Princes Casino group defy Labor Ministry Advice.
Hurricane Irma struck the Island on September 6 and a curfew was imposed by the Government on September 5, the day before the hurricane and extended into the month of September. The damage caused by the monster storm left the whole Island in a state of shock and its people have since being trying best they could, to return to normalcy. Most business called in their employees to offer support and enquire of their well-being while updating them on what will happen after clean up and reopening of their establishments. The Princes group was not one of the companies to consult with its workers about their state after the hurricanes but called them in to begin work and paid them based on their no work no pay policy.
The Ministry of Labor Affairs and Social Services after learning of the many complaints of some workers not getting paid and not hearing from their companies, issued a statement urging Employers to follow good business practices. The communication spelled out clearly that payment must be upheld for days when the Government curfew was in place. The announcement also urged business not to financially penalized employees for these times since they were unable to work due to no fault of their own, and that no work no pay policies do not apply in this situation.
The Princes group that owned three casinos on the Island, Princes Port De Plaisance Casino, The COLISEUM and Tropicana, paid their workers exactly for days worked before the Hurricane and days worked after the hurricane during the month of September. This action from the management surprised the employees who felt they were not treated with respect and worse yet they were not paid for curfew hours imposed by government. Most of the casino workers followed the guidelines of the Ministry, instructing workers with questions to visit a dismissal and complaint officer in the government building and found out if nothing else, they should at least be paid for the curfew hours. The Coliseum workers tried reaching out to the Managing Director for a meeting and was granted the opportunity; the Tropicana workers did likewise but none could convince Mr. Hakan Unal that he needed to see things differently. On Monday the Managing Director for the Princes Group, Mr. Hakan Unal defended his position in a meeting with the Tropicana workers and made it clear he is following the advice of his attorneys and he is not prepared to do anything different.
The statement issued by the Ministry of Labor Affairs and Social Services, obviously were not respected and the meetings yielded nothing. In the meantime, the employees are on the job as scheduled, working under the impression the management cares little about their real situation, and how they are doing after hurricane Irma. And, unless something change dramatically, and Mr. Hakan Unal and his advisors are willing to consider the instructions of the Ministry of Labor Affairs and Social Services, the employees effort to at least gain some respect and consideration, from the management, will come up empty handed.
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