By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The hotel union yesterday said it was unaware of any imminent lay-offs at a Paradise Island resort, despite suggestions from the Minister of Labour that job lossses would soon be announced.

Shane Gibson told reporters outside the Cabinet Office yesterday that the Government had met with a Paradise Island-based property, which had said it planned to lay-off employees due to impending renovations.

Darren Woods, the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union’s (BHCAWU) secretary-general, said it was unaware of any such pending redundancies.

“We don’t know of anything, certainly not in relation to our members,” said Mr Woods.

Mr Gibson declined to name the resort involved but, with the Warwick (former Paradise Island Harbour Resort) and Comfort Suites having either undergone or currently in the midst of renovations, it is unlikely to be them.

That leaves Atlantis, the One & Only Ocean Club, the RIU and Club Land’Or in the frame.

A check of Tribune Business files suggests that the hotel Mr Gibson is likely referring to is the One & Only Ocean Club, which was purchased last year by Access Industries, the conglomerate owned by Len Blavatnik.

Prime Minister Perry Christie, in closing the mid-year Budget debate, confirmed that Access Industries had plans for a $50 million expansion of the One & Only Ocean Club.

He said: “The first phase will include a $12 million renovation of the Hartford Wing this summer, with 35 construction employees, adding $1.2 million in taxes through VAT and Business Licence collections, and will maintain current levels of employment of 435 staff following the renovations.”

And John Conway, the property’s general manager, previously told Tribune Business: “Everyone knows it’s an old wing and needs to be updated to make it really spectacular again.

“Right now we are open and budgeted for a full normal year, but there is serious discussion about what if we keep the resort open and take those rooms off-line for renovations some time in May 2015 through October 2015.”

Taken together, the comments by the Prime Minister and Mr Conway indicate that any lay-offs, if they do happen, will likely be temporary.

Indeed, Mr Conway added: “The new owners certainly intend to put money into the property over time, and one of the projects is the Hartford Wing.

“If we go ahead it would be pretty thorough. It would be a very expensive full bring back. They’re even talking seriously about making the rooms significantly larger.”

Mr Woods, meanwhile, said that “nothing much” had changed with regard to the hotel union’s dispute with the  Meliá over gratuity payments, noting that the parties were heading back to court this month on the matter.

 “The situation is pretty much the same. The court case is coming up this month. Nothing much has changed. We just have to go back to court on that matter,” was all Mr Woods would say when contacted by Tribune Business.

    The gratuity dispute arose last December when Meliá  officials announced a reduction in the standard 15 per cent gratuity rate because it was moving to an all-inclusive model, where food and amenities are covered in one price.

Baha Mar said it was forced to cease the normal gratuity payments at the Meliá but only after 10 months of failed negotiations to reach an agreement with the union on a new arrangement.

    The union filed a trade dispute with the Department of Labour after management at Baha Mar withheld gratuities from employees until the parties could negotiate a new gratuity rate.

The BHCAWU has said the union will not accept a reduction in gratuities because, in most cases, it represents the majority of the employees’ take-home pay.