Workers of Sheraton Hotel, Abuja, on Tuesday embarked on a peaceful protest within the premises over nonpayment of severance package.

The aggrieved workers, under the auspices of the National Union of Hotels, Personal Services Workers (NUHPSA), told journalists that it would be unfair for the management to ask them to quit their jobs without paying them off.

Leke Success, the general secretary of the Union, said, “the protest is to ensure Marriott International pay the money that we jointly agreed to be paid as a severance package in view of the new owner shutting down this place today.

“We just heard about a week ago that the new owner, NIPCO, who just acquired this place, decided that they will shut it down and commence renovations.”

Mr Success said several efforts were made to persuade the management against shutting it down but were futile.

“So we sat down as a responsible union to negotiate severance pay for our members, and the agreement stipulated that before the close of business on Oct.17, the money would be paid.

“But up until now, the management is still dilly-dallying, and very soon, they will lower the banner and shut this place,” he said.

The unionists also demanded that some workers termed “casual staff”, who were excluded by the management from the payment, be treated equally as other staff.

“Whoever works here deserves to be paid because they are workers. No condition of employment will make them (casual workers) not to get their pay,” Mr Success said.

Meanwhile, some of the casual workers, while expressing their grievances, said the news came as a shock.

Blessing Moses, who said she is a mother of four children, said they did not have prior notice of the new development until two days ago.

Similarly, Vincent Ajiji, a university graduate who also works as a casual staff at the kitchen department, reiterated the importance of casual staff to be paid as regular staff equally.

Meanwhile, a senior staff of Sheraton, who spoke under condition of anonymity, said the corporate affairs unit of the hotel would soon release the response of the management in due course.

Its new owners, NIPCO, which bought 51 per cent majority shares in Sheraton, had planned to shut down the hotel to carry out a holistic renovation and repositioning of the hotel.

As of the time of filing this report, the union’s leaders and the management of Marriot International were holding a closed-door meeting. 

(NAN)