Laid off LDB workers feel ‘used’
The popular Little Dix Bay Hotel and Resort closed yesterday, May 1, 2016 for 18 months to undergo major renovations, putting more than 320 workers out of work.
And while many of the employees would have liked to leave with pleasant memories of the many years worked there, their departure at the weekend turned out to be one of disappointment, anger and even tears.
‘Management treated us really bad’
“Management treated us really bad, like for the last few months of the closure. They have a new manager that treated us really horrible. He has no hospitality, no Caribbean warmth. All he was concerned about was about the closure,” alleged an upset former employee of the resort.
According to the former employee, since a new manager, Mr Andreas Pade, came a couple of months ago, which was at a very sensitive time, he allegedly never sought to "form a bond" with employees or tried to be sympathetic.
Virgin Islands News Online was told that there was a prayer session on Friday April 29, 2016 where the staff members prayed for each other and the resort and the manager didn’t even show up for it.
Staff is also upset that management allegedly chose to destroy their food supplies and furniture without even making an offer to staff, some of whom worked at the resort for over 40 years.
“Imagine they had some food stuff and beds and sheets and so on, all the stuff the resort had they didn’t even say to give to the employees, everything they dumped. The manager even followed the dump trucks to ensure the items were dumped and burnt,” the former employee alleged.
Used & discarded?
This news site was further told that Little Dix Bay Hotel and Resort hired a lot of security personnel to “police the resort” on Saturday, April 30, 2016. “Like they think we were going to thief anything,” the source stated.
The ex-staff member further said that some 70 guests left on Saturday, which meant that staff had to finish the day by “packing up things at the resort. There was no consideration for us, you just collected your severance and you were gone. It’s like they used us for the last then discarded us, throwing you to the wolves.”
Staff snubs LDB fun day!
Meanwhile, the disgruntled former employees said the resort had planned a fun day for staff on Sunday May 1, 2016, however, it was postponed because the laid off employees were going to boycott it.
“We are actually going to our own party now because the employees went to church and spent time together and now they going to a party, and they don’t want any management around....It was just the last months or so how they treated us, their employees. It was just terrible,” the source alleged.
Management denies some allegations
Meanwhile, Virgin Islands News Online contacted Resort Manager at Rosewood Little Dix Bay Hotel and Resort, Mr Andreas Pade who denied that the resort had discarded anything.
“We haven’t even got to that yet. We have been running a full occupancy right up to the last day [that] that we haven’t got to sorting out what is going to happen to everything. So that is why nothing has been done, nothing has been gotten rid of,” Mr Pade said.
Further, Mr Pade said the fun day was postponed due to the inclement weather.
“It was simply postponed, we are waiting for the weather to let up. As you probably noticed, the last two days, and now we are into the third day, it has been very wet, so in order for the event to really have the right environment we decided to hold off to see if tomorrow will be sunnier to whenever a sunny day comes this week. We were worried that people wouldn’t show up because of the weather,” Mr Pade told this news site this morning, May 2, 2016.
Meanwhile, concerning the other allegations, Mr Pade advised that we speak to General Manager Mr Edward Linsley. A response to our questions from Mr Linsley was not received up to publication time.
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47 Responses to “Laid off LDB workers feel ‘used’”
speaking the facts. That is not the worse of it. can you imagine giving a company more than 40 years of service and to be thrown out with a severance of $24,000.00.
Folks,you are free, find some dignity and get a life.
Heaven promises an eternity stay.
Little Dix is not Heaven.
The worse a prospective employee should do , is talk negatively about a previous employer.
Current and future employers are getting an earful and it hurts you and others others like yourself.
Best thing Government can do is let a man go after year is over. done take away a key position at the desk to give friend the cat lover. The poor young belonger had to run to the US.why bring someone in when people here can do the job, he has his degree.don't care what they say , no black man ain't getting no position if certain man has any say, already acting like the new gm