Sandals Royal Bahamian Lays Off More Workers

Expecting low occupancy this fall, the Sandals Royal Bahamian Resort in Nassau laid off 80 employees until at least December. Sandals spokesman Stephen Hector said the company would review the situation in November to determine if the employees can return to work or if the layoff period must be extended.

Last winter, 150 employees at the Royal Bahamian were sent home as a result of declining occupancy levels, and none has been rehired.

Staff members were informed of the more recent layoffs during a company meeting on Tuesday. The unions representing the workers were made aware of the action by letter on Monday, as were the Bahamas ministries of labor and tourism.

Several Bahamas resorts have cut jobs in the past nine months, including Atlantis, RIU Paradise Island, Wyndham Nassau and Old Bahama Bay. The Port Lucaya Resort & Yacht Club in Freeport closed on Aug. 31, putting more than 100 people out of work.

The unemployment rate in the Bahamas has risen from 8.7 percent at the end of 2008 to 14.2 percent year to date, according to the Bahamas Department of Economic Statistics.

On New Providence, where Nassau and Paradise Island are located, the unemployment rate currently stands at 14 percent. On Grand Bahama Island, where Freeport and Lucaya are located, the unemployment rate is 17.4 percent.