Tower Hotel goes under, workers protest non-payment
May 25, 2014, By KNews, Filed Under News, Source
At a time close to the completion of the 197-room Marriott; Tower Hotel, which has been one of Guyana’s more popular places, has gone out of business. Yesterday, several non-paid workers attached to the hotel mounted protests at the Main Street location to register their aggravation.
Those involved in the demonstration lamented that they weren’t paid for quite some time. One senior employee has not been paid in as long as seven months. Over 50 workers, 45 of whom are unionized, are affected by the hotel’s “flap.”
Tower Hotel employees converge outside the building contemplating their next move.
Only security and maintenance members of staff were allowed inside the hotel. Others stood outside the front door of the property with placards that reflected their frustration.
The placards, which they held high, read “We need to be paid now,” “Lockout without pay,” “Single mother without pay,” and “Workers need to meet with directors”
President of the Clerical and Commercial Workers Union (CCWU), Sherwood Clarke, told Kaieteur News that the Union had a meeting with the Hotel’s management on Monday last. He said that during the course of the meeting, management lamented the financial constraints that the hotel is being faced with. According to Clarke, CCWU was basically told that business was at an all time low.
The Union President said that the hotel management recommended that staffers be laid off for si to eight weeks until the hotel is able to raise its head above water. However, Clarke said that the Union rejected that proposal.
According to him, the union had, instead, recommended a reduction in the work-week from five days to three days, a recommendation to which management agreed.
He said, however, that lo and behold, he got a call on Friday that workers were told to do what the initial proposal was made by management.
Yesterday’s crowd was dominated by women who bemoaned the fact that they are single parents and the present situation is causing them not to fulfill some of their parental obligations.
Kaieteur News understands that one woman, who reportedly worked at the Tower Hotel for over 20 years, took ill when she turned up to work and learned about the new arrangement.
Her colleague said, “She only found out about it today, because she didn’t work (Friday). But when she realize what they did she took in with she pressure.”
One staff member showed Kaieteur News her work agreement between CCWU and Tower Hotel. Under severance and retrenchment, there are six conditions; one being that there must be one months notice or payment in lieu.
That very employee, identified as Thereza, said that she learnt that NIS hasn’t any contributions for her since 2013.
Asked how come the workers have not yet sought employment elsewhere, given the conditions, Thereza replied, “Most of us are trained in hospitality and most members of staff have worked here for 10 to 15 years. We went through different owners and all so it is not that easy to walk away like that.
The consensus among workers is that the present management should be blamed for the poor state of affairs at the Hotel.
Clarke told Kaieteur News that a complaint would be lodged at the Labour Ministry on Tuesday as part of steps to ensure that the workers are paid.
Hotel Tower has been struggling with business in recent years, but it became worst over the past two years. The Hotel has been has been on the market since March but there are no known offers for buyers
Just this past week, the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) disconnected the electricity as a result of mounting unpaid bills.
In 2009, Tower Hotel was sold to Canal Hospitality Inc, a business partnership headed by Salim Azeez.
Recently, Prairie Hotel was placed on the market for sale. So far there has been no known sale of that hotel. But even though all these hotels go under; the government insists that the Marriott is what Guyana needs at such a time.
