Welcome to the start of another week in the world of timeshare, unfortunately, we begin with bad news. It has been reported that around 78 employees have been given notice at the Modern Honolulu Hotel, a Diamond Resorts owned property.
The Modern Honolulu is a full-service hotel, purchased by Diamond Resorts in April 2018, it is also one of the 21 hotels and timeshares in the network of Diamond Resorts managed or affiliated properties internationally.
Diamond has expressed an interest in either partially or fully converting the hotel into timeshare use. They have also planned on reducing guest services such as daily room service, banquets, meetings and catering. It has also been reported they have not yet received any timeshare registration approval from the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs or any of the relevant permits required to build or renovate hotel rooms for timeshare use.
The layoffs will account for around 30% of the workforce, it will impact many departments such as housekeeping, banquets, pool, in-room dining, reservations and of course the bar, restaurant and kitchens. These workers are being represented by the trade union UNITE HERE Local 5.
According to Gemma Weinstein, President of Unite Here Local 5, “Timeshares have shown over and over again that they hurt Hawaii more than they help. They pay less than hotels, the work is harder, and they provide less jobs. They negatively affect the guests’ experience in Hawaii by charging exorbitant maintenance fees while cutting guest services. Companies like Diamond Resorts are bad for Hawaii.” She also pointed out that this is going to destroy the lives of 78 families.
One worker a housekeeper at the Modern Honolulu expressed here fears that this was going to hurt her family, she holds down three jobs to support them, but the job at the Modern is the only one that provides family medical coverage.
It is also noted that this decision comes very close after Diamond Resorts CEO Mike Flaskey informed Fox News that “his company is benefiting from the Trump administration’s tax cuts and deregulation.” It was also reported that Diamond Resorts in March “failed to issue paychecks to workers on time, resulting in workers incurring fees and penalties.”
Readers of Inside Timeshare are very familiar with the stories of the sales tactics of Diamond Resorts, with the incessant preying on the elderly and the many disabled service veterans we have highlighted. This is just another in the sorry tale of a company that seems to have no morals, just an insatiable appetite for money.
We will keep you updated as and when more information comes in, follow the links below for more on this story.
Tomorrow we continue with the Diamond v Aaronson trial where Irene Parker reports on days 2 and 3 and the early ending of the trial. So join us again tomorrow.
The post Start the Week: Hotel Employees to be Laid off in Hawaii appeared first on Inside Timeshare.