Tag: Maldives Iru Fushi Resort and Spa

No staff complaints received following termination of Hilton management agreement: Tourism Ministry

The Ministry of Tourism, Arts and Culture has said it has “not officially” received complaints that staff at the Iru Fushi Resort in Noonu Atoll have faced alleged political harassment after the property’s owners terminated a management agreement with Hilton.

Deputy Tourism Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamal told Minivan News this week that while the tourism ministry closely monitored working standards and staff treatment across the industry, it had not been informed of any concerns so far resulting from the change in management at the resort on May 1.

Despite the claims, the Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) said an official letter had been sent to the Tourism Ministry last week raising concerns over allegations that employees were facing intimidation over their political beliefs from fellow staff and management at the Iru Fushi Resort.

The allegations of harassment were said by the trade union to have intensified since local company Sun Tour and Travels opted to terminate Hilton’s management of the site at the beginning of the month – adding no official response had been received from the Tourism Ministry.

Sun Travel and Tours, which is owned and operated by local businessman and media magnate MP Ahmed Shiyam, announced May 1 that it was terminating Hilton’s agreement to manage the Noonu Atoll-based resort.  No reason has so far been given by the resort owner for the termination despite repeated requests for an interview by Minivan News.

“The cessation of Hilton Worldwide’s management of that resort was unforeseen and due to factors outside its control,” the hotel chain said in an official statement following the termination.

Sources on the resort, speaking to Minivan News on condition of anonymity, have previously accused Sun Tours of allowing MP Shiyam’s Maldives Development Alliance (MDA) to offer jobs at the site exclusively to its supporters, while also threatening and harassing staff with differing political view points.

“When Hilton was here, there was freedom to talk about politics, whatever party you supported,” an employee at the resort claimed earlier this month. “No one was holding campaigns here for parties or anything, but now just talking about politics is a problem. This has happened recently.”

The same staff member at the time accused certain employees of acting as “MDA spies” for MP Shiyam’s political party, leading to fears about job prospects at the site for those with differing political views.

“People are really afraid to talk here now. We know that some people here represent the MDA [party] and we have heard them warn others ‘we have the power now’ – these are words they are using,” the source claimed. “We do not have job security right now.”

The resort is now being run as the Maldives Iru Fushi Resort and Spa.

MP Shiyam had his phone switched off at time of press, while company spokesperson Mohamed Hameed was out of the country when contacted by Minivan News.

Inspection process

Deputy Minister Maleeh said that tourism authorities had not been “officially” made aware of the allegations raised by Iru Fushi staff, adding that from the ministry’s experience, the vast majority of the country’s resort workers and management were all working together to benefit the wider industry.

“If there is an issue, we will go and inspect resorts and make sure staff are being treated in line within the stipulated requirements,” he said.

Maleeh said that various conditions and standards concerning treatment of resort staff were outlined by ministry regulations such as the number of toilets being provided to employees and their living arrangements.  Maleeh added that a large number of operators complied with these practices.

“Some resorts currently even provide a staff pool,” he said.

Maleeh said that while the tourism ministry was able to carry out inspections of resorts where there were reported staff issues, it had not been given any information that wuld require it to carry out such checks at the Iru Fushi resort.

He added that in the case of a management termination, the ministry itself looked to avoid involvement in cases involving two private parties in the country unless there was deemed to be a significant contractual issue.

“Even then, a contract like this is normally governed by international law or arbitration anyway,” Maleeh added.

Hilton has meanwhile said earlier this month that discussions were continuing with Sun Travels over the decision to abruptly terminate its agreement, though no further details were being provided by the company at present.

Despite the decision by Sun Travels to terminate Hilton’s management contract for Iru Fushi, the hotel giant still presently operates the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island resort in the Maldives for a different company.

Attractive destination

Maleeh claimed that the Maldives ultimately still remained a very attractive destination for multinational hotel chains and boutique hospitality groups alike, adding that the ministry had received “no complaints” regarding their treatment in the country.

“The reason that the Maldives is so popular is not only is it a place where contracts are known to be honoured, but it also offers a return on investment that is very strong,” he said.

The deputy minister said that there continued to provide a very favourable investment climate for hospitality companies.

Maleeh said that upon returning from a recent visit to the Arabian Hotel Investment Conference that took place earlier this month in Dubai, there remained a strong interest and appetite for emerging hospitality groups to enter the Maldives tourism industry.

The Maldives already has 100 exclusive island resorts being operated in the country by both local and multinational companies.

However, TEAM Secretary General Mauroof Zakir has told Minivan News he that the trade union remained concerned at the response of tourism authorities in the country to complaints raised by staff following the termination of Hilton’s agreement.

Zakir said that after having submitted an official letter to the tourism ministry earlier this month, no response had yet been received over its concerns.

Just last week, TEAM alleged it had received received information that management had been hiring  local MDA members to replace staff members who resigned since the change in management.

Zakir added that he had also been informed by various members of staff that Sun Travels had since brought in a number of experienced managers from its wider resort operations to ensure the property was being run more smoothly on the back of alleged difficulties following the changeover.

“Things seem to be much more under control at the site now, staff told me,” he said last week.

However, Zakir has continued to maintain that there was concerns that authorities were failing to properly review the nature of the resort termination and its impact on staff as a result of political influence.

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Hilton in talks following contract termination as staff allege political harassment from new management

Hilton has said discussions are continuing with operator Sun Tour and Travels over the local company’s decision to abruptly terminate its contract to manage the Maldives Iru Fushi Resort last week.

The claims were made as staff at the property alleged some workers are now facing harassment over their political alignments following the termination of the resort giant’s management contract.

Sun Tour and Travels announced on May 1 that it was terminating Hilton’s agreement to manage the Noonu Atoll-based resort, with sources on the island accusing the local tour operator of giving the multinational company barely 24 hours notice to cease their operations before they were asked to leave.  The resort is now being run as the Maldives Iru Fushi Resort and Spa.

The Hilton group, which continues to manage the Conrad Maldives Rangali Island property in the country, today confirmed to Minivan News that it was still in discussions with the resort’s owner, Sun Travel and Tours regarding the matter. Hilton said it could not therefore confirm what action it would take to resolve the matter.

Sun Travel and Tours is owned and operated by MP Ahmed Shiyam, a local businessman and media magnate, who last year founded his own political party, the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA).

Current resort General Manager Abdulla Thamheed today said he was “not the right person” at Sun to speak on the decision to terminate the Hilton contract, requesting Minivan News instead contact a media official at the company’s head offices in Male’.  The nominated spokesperson was not responding to calls or e-mails at time of press.

However, a member of staff at the resort, speaking on condition of anonymity, said workers were continuing to perform their duties at the site, despite claiming that 40 employees had resigned since the termination of the Hilton contract last week.

“Staff are working as hard right now as they were before,” the source claimed. “We need the money for our families.”

Job security fears

The employee alleged nonetheless that a work environment had “recently” developed resulting in staff being “fearful” of talking politics on the resort during their free time.

Since the termination of Hilton’s agreement,  the resort source accused certain management and staff at the resort backing MP Shiyam’s MDA party and making verbal threats against workers who held different political beliefs.

“When Hilton was here, there was freedom to talk about politics, whatever party you supported,” the source said. “No one was holding campaigns here for parties or anything, but now just talking about politics is a problem. This has happened recently.”

The staff member accused some staff of acting as “MDA spies” for MP Shiyam’s political party, leading to fears about job prospects at the site for those with differing political views.

“People are really afraid to talk here now. We know that some people here represent the MDA [party] and we have heard them warn others ‘we have the power now’ – these are words they are using,” the source claimed. “We do not have job security right now.”

Outside of talking politics at the resort, the same source alleged that staff had lately found their access to televised news media being restricted in the staff area to private pro-government aligned broadcaster DhiTV.

The employee said requests by some workers for access to other private broadcasters such as VTV and Raajee TV – media owned by political and business rivals of Shiyam or perceived as being aligned with the opposition politicians – were currently awaiting management approval.

Complaints

The Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) today claimed it had continued to receive complaints from workers at the resort before and after the termination of the Hilton management agreement concerning attempts to politicise staff.

TEAM Secretary General Mauroof Zakir said he had received information that management had been hiring  local MDA members to replace staff members who resigned over the last week.

However, Zakir added that he had also been informed by various members of staff that Sun Travels had brought in a number of experienced managers from its wider operations to the resort to ensure it was running more smoothly after alleged difficulties following the changeover.

“Things seem to be much more under control at the site now, staff told me,” he said.

Zakir had expressed concern about a lack of response from tourism officials and industry bodies about the nature of the change of management and allegations of political influence at the resort.

Minivan News was awaiting a response from Tourism Minister Ahmed Adheeb and Deputy Tourism Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamal at time of press.

Aftermath

Sources at the resort have alleged there have been a number of cancellations from Hilton loyalty members over the decision to terminate the company’s contract, as well as complaints from some guests concerning security at the site after police were summoned to the property earlier in the week.

However, the same source stressed that the Sun Travels and Tours had provide compensation packages for guests at the property following the change in management.

Police Spokesperson Chief Inspector Hassan Haneef confirmed this week that police had attended the resort on May 4 in response to allegations that three female Maldivians staying at the property had been harassed.

Haneef said police arrived at the site to investigate after receiving a complaint from resort management over alleged harassment of some guests by an unidentified suspect.

He claimed that police had insufficient information to identify a suspect at the time of press.

Earlier this week, sources at several large local travel operators based in Male’ confirmed to Minivan News that some bookings for the property had been cancelled as a result of Hilton no longer operating the site.

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Cancellations and resignations after Iru Fushi Resort terminates Hilton contract

Sun Travel and Tours has abruptly terminated its agreement with hotel giant Hilton to manage the Maldives Iru Fushi Resort leading to the resignation of 30 employees at the property, staff have alleged.  The termination has also led to some guests cancelling their bookings at the property with local operators.

Hilton said that its agreement to run the resort was cancelled officially on May 3 by the Sun Travel and Tours company.

“The cessation of Hilton Worldwide’s management of that resort was unforeseen and due to factors outside its control,” the hotel chain said in an official statement.

A staff member at the Noonu Atoll-based resort, who asked to remain anonymous, alleged the property’s owners had given Hilton barely 24 hours notice before terminating the agreement.

The staff member said Sun had given little information for the reason for the termination, stating that Hilton’s management team was notified on April 30 that their services would no longer be required.

According to a letter sent to staff that was seen by Minivan News, Sun took over management of the property on May 1 and began removing all Hilton branding from the resort, which will now be known as the Maldives Iru Fushi Resort and Spa.

“As I understand, management were informed by letter at about 3:00pm on April 30 that the owners would be taking over. Even Hilton did not know what was happening. There is a lot of shock, it is a very smoothly run resort,” the resort source claimed.

Despite a pledge by management at Sun Travel and Tours management to retain all staff at the site, the staff member said some employees were now concerned about their job security.

The staff member said 30 of an estimated 500 staff employed at the resort has resigned in the four days following the termination of the Hilton contract. Bookings had already been cancelled due to of the loss of the Hilton name, the source said, while other guests were already in the process of trying to amend their bookings.

Sources at several large local travel operators based in Male’ confirmed to Minivan News today that some bookings for the property had already been cancelled.

Peaceful handover

The resort staff member praised Hilton’s conduct in handing the property over in a peaceful manner, claiming that the company had in some cases offered to transfer guests to the company’s other resort in the country, Conrad Maldives Rangali Island.

“Hilton have been so patient in this matter and left the place so professionally. Although its GM had left, the management urged us not to resign right away and to think of our families,” the source claimed.

After Hilton management were informed of the cessation of the management agreement, the source alleged the company was given less than 24 hours to vacate the premises, with access to the site’s computer equipment and offices cut off by 12:00pm the following day (May 1).

“I am a Maldivian myself, but I am ashamed of these guys and the way in which they have [taken over management],” the source claimed.

No statement from Sun

Sun Travels and Tours Pvt Ltd is owned and operated by MP Ahmed Shiyam, a local businessman and media magnate, who last year founded his own political party known as the Maldives Development Alliance (MDA).

Shiyam was not responding to calls at time of press, though senior MDA official Ali Mauroof recommended Minivan News contact Abdulla Thamheed, “our general manager” at the resort.

Thamheed later requested that media inquiries on the resort be addressed to Sun Travel and Tours offices in Male’. Minivan News was still awaiting a response from the company at time of press, which had yet to release an official statement as of May 5.

Political activities: TEAM

The Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) meanwhile claimed it had received complaints from workers at the resort before and after the termination of the Hilton management agreement concerning attempts to politicise staff.

TEAM Secretary General Mauroof Zakir alleged he had received several reports of widespread uncertainty at the resort from staff, alleging a number of guest rooms were being provided to MDA supporters and members.

“The resort’s operations are being jeopardised by a complete lack of understanding as to who are paying guests and where people are staying,” he alleged. “It sounds like a real mess there at the moment.”

Zakir said that TEAM had also received complaints by staff concerned over job security at the resort amid reports that individuals signing up to the MDA were being offered employment at the site.

“More than this, there is the direct damage to the industry of losing a major name like Hilton from the country,” he claimed. “We haven’t heard anything from the Tourism Ministry about this and will be looking to meet authorities over the matter tomorrow.”

Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Ahmed Adheeb and Deputy Tourism Minister Mohamed Maleeh Jamal were not responding to calls from Minivan News at time of press.

The staff member meanwhile claimed that during the second day of working under the new resort management, a speedboat belonging to MP Shiyam had arrived with an entourage of people who had been campaigning for the MDA on nearby local islands.

“This party have been staying here with the owner [MP Shiyam] while they conduct political activities,” claimed the source.

As well as using the resort’s offices for MDA administrative matters such as photocopying and producing promotional material, the member of staff alleged that politicisation of the resort had been ongoing even while Hilton was in charge of site.

“Management have already hired two new guys linked to [MDA]. As I understand they were employed without undergoing any of the regular formal processes. Those who are here do not feel this is a safe place to work right now,” the source alleged.

Police called over harassment of female guests

Police Spokesperson Chief Inspector Hassan Haneef meanwhile confirmed that police had attended the resort on May 4 in response to allegations that three female Maldivians staying at the resort had been harassed.

Haneef said police arrived at the site yesterday afternoon to investigate after receiving a complaint from resort management over alleged harassment of some guests by an unidentified suspect.

He claimed that police had insufficient information to identify a suspect at the time of press.

The resort source alleged police had been called to the resort over allegations of attempted sexual assault of female guests on Friday (May 3) by an individual he claimed was part of the resort owner’s group.

“This individual entered the room belonging to these ladies and threatened them if they tried to make a noise,” the source alleged. “They managed to scare the man off and he escaped. These ladies complained and the police were called. This person was not a guest,” he said.

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