By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Fusion SuperPlex’s chief executive yesterday said reduced curfew hours will provide “a much-needed jolt” allowing between “70-75 percent” of its 354 staff to return to work full-time.

Carlos Foulkes told Tribune Business that the previous 9pm curfew start had a “devastating” impact on the cinema and entertainment complex to the point where no employee was working a full week, as it was unable to show the evening movies that had accounted for 47 percent of revenues pre-COVID.

Speaking after Philip Davis QC pushed the nightly curfew’s start back three hours to 11.59pm in his first act as prime minister, the Fusion chief disclosed that managers had been receiving just 60 percent of their due salaries - “with some of us down to 25 percent” - to ensure the business “survives” the pandemic’s crushing economic effects.

Some 60 staff were still on full furlough, and Mr Foulkes confirmed that the complex will still be unable to offer its late-night movie slate because these typically end at 12.30pm after the new curfew’s start. Cinemas are also limited to a maximum 30 percent theatre capacity in a bid to mitigate COVID-19’s spread, and he acknowledged that these restrictions - and the virus - may be present for some time to come.

Nevertheless, the extra night-time hours will also revive Fusion’s fine dining restaurants that had been “almost completely killed” by the 9pm curfew. Mr Foulkes said the new administration’s first action had placed Bahamian-owned businesses back on a more even footing with their hotel-based counterparts, which had been allowed to open until all hours in a tourism-related “bubble”.

And he argued that it might save companies, especially those heavily reliant on night-time business and activity, from “coming to the point of extinction” as many were unlikely to survive much longer after scraping through 18 months of lockdowns and other COVID-related restrictions.

“We do expect this will have an immediate impact,” Mr Foulkes said of the eased curfew. “When operating under the curfew, particularly the last curfew, it resulted in us not being able to show evening movies, and those evening movies represented 47 percent of revenue pre-COVID. With the restrictions on occupancy, and not having the entire evening, it was devastating. 

“We were able to push the hours back last night [Saturday], and we had a really good showing. I am hopeful this will help us to at least start to break even because we have been operating at a loss for many months under the last set of curfew restrictions. I’m hoping the business will return to a more reasonable level.”

Mr Foulkes said the 9pm curfew start also removed “the number one dining slot” for Fusion’s restaurant. This was 8pm, as it gave persons a chance to refresh and attend to domestic (home) affairs following a workday that ended at 5pm. However, the 9pm curfew meant all restaurant and eatery facilities instead had to close at 8pm to give staff a chance to reach home by 9pm and comply with the health protocols.

Explaining that the situation “killed the restaurant almost completely”, Mr Foulkes said “we’ll see how it turns out” in relation to the new 11.59pm start. Asked how the adjustment will impact staffing needs, he added: “I have need of them. We have almost 60 staff members still on furlough, and as the hours of business increase we will need to have staff return to work.

“We’ll not be able to operate the latest shows, which start at 10pm, as that requires freedom. People would only come out at 12.30pm and not be home until 1pm. The last show is still not available to us, and that’s understandable. The Government is still feeling it’s way through this situation. I expect that when they finish their analysis, maybe things will change then or the emergency orders will go away completely.”

The emergency orders left in place by the Minnis administration are due to expire in mid-November. Meanwhile, Mr Foulkes revealed that none of Fusion’s several hundred recalled workers are on a full week. “What we did with the persons employed, nobody is on full-time,” he told Tribune Business of events since the mid-February re-opening. 

“We decided to bring people back as much as we could and put them on a partial week schedule so we could give more people partial income. My managers are working full-time but on 60 percent salary, and some of us are down to 25 percent salary. They took that sacrifice so the business survives.

“In some divisions we people on two-three days and cycle them out. This week you get three days, and next week you get three days, so you give people an opportunity to get some work.” Mr Foulkes said the circumstances imposed by COVID-19 had made staff retention especially difficult, particularly given that Fusion was competing with hotels operating under far less restrictions.

“We did lose some staff members to the hotels,” he confirmed. “They said: ‘Mr Foulkes, we love you, but we’re not getting enough work’. The hotels are opening, calling for staff members, and some of the new properties are looking for specialists in food and beverage.

“They didn’t see critical improvements in Fusion’s business. They repeatedly said: ‘Chief, I have a family and cannot make enough. Tips are not coming in here, while the hotels are in a ‘bubble’ and open, and their restaurants are open past curfew hours whereas you guys in the evening are shut down’.

“In one week I had seven resignations. That was a real inconvenience to us. I appreciate that my staff had to do what they did to support their families, but it did hurt us a lot and we had to scrap to make adjustments. You lose a sous chef and cannot fine one at home,” Mr Foulkes continued.

“Between 70-75 percent of staff will now be able to come back full time according to the estimates of our human resources department. It’s a matter now of having greater cinema occupancy rates. While persons are in the building, we still have to reduce sales. This virus will linger in the environment, and the business will not return to normal until we have that social experience and can stand next to everybody again. That may be some months away.”

Mr Foulkes, though, argued that the curfew change will level the playing field between the domestic and international segments of the Bahamian economy. “This should allow some sort of return to normal economic activity for local businesses,” he added. “They were lagging behind the hotels which were given an advantage over local businesses, and this puts us back on an even footing.

“For local businesses, Over-the-Hill businesses, this is a much-needed jolt. Those businesses were coming to the point of extinction. You can’t go this long under these circumstances without some significant impact. The local bars, corner stores, all their businesses are suffering because they had to shut down, close and go home. This [curfew push back] is absolutely a step in the right direction.”