Hilton International says it may not be able to continue operating the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre, Port of Spain, beyond September 18 unless a new long-term lease agreement is reached with the Government.Hilton International Trinidad Ltd said yesterday that if a new lease agreement is not completed, it will not be able retain employees after this date.Hilton Trinidad employs more than 250 people.Hilton Trinidad said in a letter to employees dated August 4 and copied to Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, Labour Minister Leroy Baptiste, Land and Legal Affairs Minister Saddam Hosein and officials of State-owned Evolving TecKnologies and Enterprise Development Company Ltd (eTecK) that the current lease under which Hilton Trinidad operates the hotel expires on September 18, 2026.
questions over notice:Hilton Trinidad general manager Olivier Maumaire.
In the letter obtained by the Express, Hilton Trinidad said it has been working with eTecK and the Government “for the past several months in the hopes of securing a long-term solution for the Hotel”.“We have made excellent progress and we are actively continuing discussions, but we want to inform you that our teams have not yet arrived at a final agreement,” the company said.Hilton Trinidad cautioned employees that “without a final agreement with eTecK, Hilton will be unable to operate the hotel beyond September 18, 2026. This means that Hilton will not be able to continue employing the hotel personnel after that date”.The company said that under the terms of the lease, eTecK is required to assume responsibility for employees and all related employment obligations once the lease expires. However, it acknowledged there was still uncertainty.“Accordingly, it is Hilton’s understanding that eTecK will assume responsibility for all Team Members’ employment and all related obligations after September 18. However, we cannot say with certainty what eTecK will do. If eTecK is unable or unwilling to continue operations of the hotel following the expiration of the lease, then the hotel may close following the expiration of the lease on September 18,” the letter said.Hilton Trinidad also advised employees that it and eTecK would provide an update on the status of a replacement agreement before the lease expires.If no agreement is reached, eTecK is expected to communicate directly with employees and the union regarding transition arrangements and employment matters under its responsibility.The company also enclosed estimated severance calculations for employees should the hotel close and all staff members become redundant from September 18.However, employees were told they would remain employed, continue reporting for work and receive their normal pay until then unless otherwise advised.Possible addition to 6,000 unemployed workersThe warning has prompted concern from the Communication Workers’ Union (CWU), which is seeking clarity on the hotel’s future and the employment status of staff members, while eTecK has maintained that no decision has been taken by the company or the Government to permanently discontinue operations of the hotel.CWU secretary general Joanne Ogeer told the Express that the union believes “something is afoot” at the Hilton Trinidad.Her comments followed a meeting between the union and hotel management earlier yesterday.Ogeer called on Hosein to provide clarity on the future of the Hilton Trinidad and its employees.“Practically what the union, the CWU, is actually saying is that there seems to be another possible addition to the 6,000 already unemployed workers,” she said.Ogeer said the union took particular note of yesterday’s meeting.“August 4th, the hotel invited the union to a meeting, and we believe it was just to signal its intention to inform the team members of another extension, albeit from August to now September 18. Info has reached this union from a Government official that the hotel is for sale,” she claimed.In a letter to Hilton Trinidad general manager Olivier Maumaire, the union questioned whether the company’s correspondence constituted a valid notice under the Retrenchment and Severance Benefits Act, arguing that it did not appear to satisfy the act’s statutory requirements.The union said Hilton Trinidad had not identified whether employees would in fact be made redundant, while stating that eTecK may assume responsibility for employment without confirming whether the State agency had accepted those obligations.It also contended that no consultation process appeared to have commenced before the notice was issued, and that employees had not been informed of measures being explored to avoid retrenchment or minimise its effects.The union is also seeking clarification on whether employees would retain their accrued years of service, leave, gratuity, wages, benefits and collective bargaining rights should eTecK assume responsibility for the hotel.It further maintained that the estimated severance calculations should not be interpreted as acceptance that retrenchment is inevitable or legally payable and said it was reserving its rights under the Industrial Relations Act, the Retrenchment and Severance Benefits Act and the collective agreement.Ogeer said the continued uncertainty was only increasing employees’ frustration.According to Ogeer, the union has repeatedly called on both hotel management and, by extension, the Government to be transparent about the hotel’s future.She said employees remain anxious about what lies ahead, with some hoping their employment would continue while others would prefer a severance package.“For the reasons that you know, they are young, some of them they have mortgages, they are still having their children educated and such, and then there are some that are willing to be severed,” she said.Ogeer maintained that the union remained ready to engage in discussions on behalf of workers.“We have always signalled that we are ready to sit down, consult and negotiate the terms and conditions for some of those who are ready or desire us to stay and for those who are desirous to leave,” she explained.She criticised what she described as the Government’s failure to respond to the union’s correspondence.Ogeer urged the Government to engage with eTecK and the union about if the hotel was being offered for sale.eTecK respondsMeanwhile, in a release yesterday, eTecK said negotiations with Hilton International Trinidad Ltd were in the final stages and reaffirmed the Government’s commitment to securing a sustainable operating arrangement for the Hilton Trinidad.The company said the proposed transaction had been inherited by its current board and management after the original lease expired in 2023, and stressed that negotiations remained “active and constructive”.It also sought to reassure employees, the recognised majority union, guests, suppliers, and the wider national community that no decision had been taken by either eTecK or the Government to permanently discontinue operations at the hotel.It added that all workers at the Hilton Trinidad remain employees of Hilton International Trinidad Ltd, not eTecK, and that Hilton Trinidad continues to be responsible for meeting its employment obligations.The Express also reached out by telephone to Hosein for comment, but there was no immediate response yesterday.
