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Workers from several departments of Buccament Bay Resort went on strike Wednesday morning over non-payment of wages, the second such industrial action since December.
But unlike the industrial action six months ago, when construction workers downed their tools, Wednesday’s strike action included staff from the resort’s engineering, housekeeping, and maintenance department and the staff at the spa.
A worker told iWitness News that she is yet to receive her full salary for May, although she has been paid three times since.
She did not disclose her full salary, but said it is more than EC$1,000 per month.
One man, who said he is married and has children, told iWitness News that he needs his money to take care of his family and pay his rent.
He has children ages 7 and 8 years old.
He told
He told iWitness News that he works for EC$1,300 and takes home EC$1,200-plus, after tax and social security deductions.
A single mother, who has an 11-month-old child, was among the workers on strike.
She said that the management of the resort gets “vexed” whenever workers complain about their salaries.
Another worker said that her immediate manager is in a similar position and has complained about not being paid for three months.
The
The strike action comes less than a week after Dave Ames, founder of Harlequin Hotels and Resorts, parent company of Buccament Bay Resort Ltd. and Harlequin Property SVG Ltd., left St. Vincent after being summoned to court to answer eight charges.
Ames, who was born in the United Kingdom and also has Vincentian citizenship, is charged, among other things, that he failed to pay to the Comptroller of Inland Revenue EC$1,291,558.14 deducted from remuneration paid to employees between Jan. 1 2012 and Dec. 31, 2013.
iWitness News contacted the resort on Wednesday and was told that the manager was not in.
We left a request for her to return a call to us and will publish the response of the resort, if it becomes available.
To me, it’s been a miracle that the resort has been operating this long. These workers have walked off at the worst possible time: when the resort has few guests.
Is the end near for this resort just as the first big jets full of tourists are about to arrive at Argyle from all around the world, including Qatar?
Three hundred to be exact, C. ben.
And the hot Ju-C and cold roti vendors supposedly installed in the airport shops are going to be rich because according to Ces McKie tourist arrivals are going to “triple” and according to Glen Beache the impact would be “immediate.”
Yes, We all know that every human on earth wants to come to SVG. We are all going to be fabulously rich because our PM is going to give all of us free houses or lumber to build our own. SVG is the least expensive nation on earth with the lowest taxes and duties, where we have more job positions than people to fill them. This must be true because starting one year ago our PM promised us jobs and “what the comrade says the comrade does”…ALWAYS!….Remember the photo that was not photo-shopped of THOUSANDS that were there at the opening of the airport that has since that time received thousands of planeloads of tourists?…If you are not rich right now it must be your own fault… Someone please wake me up!
well sadly the owner’s son ,the same very one who tried to come into this country illegally and was turned bck for work permit ,the same one who’s committed multiple frauds and was incarcerated in England and who british folks do not want to hear about even the guests of the buccament bay resort despise and is disgusted of is now saying he needs a list of all the names of those who striked or stayed home so he can fire them ,why?because they see us African Vincentian as slaves but I hope they realize they are the ones who’s inviting violence to themselves and the resort .
Tell them to hang in. Matthiass slyly crafted state of readiness for operation is upon us like all now so, June, 2016. And the plane with the first 300 passengers for Buccament will follow shortly thereafter. (Not Rudys words; somebody elses.)
Kindly look up slyly, youd find cunning, deceitful, and manipulative. One following the other in short order.
On a related issue, I understand that the resort has not filed tax and business reports for several years and should have lost its business license on that basis a long time ago.