Casino Workers Picket Again

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Business News

Tuesday, 29 January 2013 02:30

By caribarena news

Antigua St. John's - Antigua Amusements Ltd employees took to the streets in protest for the second time this month, in response to management’s reportedly failure to honor outstanding wages.

A section of workers attached to the franchise’s English Harbour Casino – Casino Club – had come out against what was then considered an impromptu dismissal.

Communications between the union representing the employees, the Antigua & Barbuda Free Trade Union (ABFTU), and the company’s owner Anthony Velardi, had resulted in a commitment that the workers would be paid and relocated to other posts throughout the company pending the resolution of operational issues surrounding the Casino Club.

This has not happened, and the embattled employees opted to stage their picket outside Keno Palace Casino – the operational hub of Antigua Amusements.

Joseph told Caribarena on Monday evening that the employees had not been compensated entirely for their labour, having only received a portion of the outstanding wages.

He said the union had been tasked with the responsibility of tallying the staffs’ outstanding wages and submitting same to the company for payment.

“There are some issues of outstanding monies due to them and I have requested a meeting with management,” Joseph said.

He added that the workers have not been paid money outstanding from December of last year, as well as bonuses, and that he had spoken directly once again with proprietor Anthony Velardi who referred him, after giving payment assurances, to Steve Hurst who manages the company.

Velardi was reportedly of the opinion that the workers should not have been picketing outside the Keno Palace Casino, since they did not work there. The union boss, despite agreeing with the company head, contended that with Keno Palace Casino being the operational base, the workers had every right to seek redress wherever they saw fit.

Joseph said Velardi had committed since earlier this month to paying the employees in question until the matter regarding the English Harbour Casino was resolved.

Antigua Amusements has come under fire in the recent past for its failure to honor court-ordered benefit payments to at least two employees who had been deemed illegally dismissed some years ago.

A meeting has been tentatively between the union and the company’s management to resolve the matter.

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