More layoffs are looming in Grand Bahama
More layoffs are looming in Grand Bahama as a small resort prepares to close its doors.
The Nassau Guardian confirmed yesterday that 29 employees are set to lose their jobs at Port Lucaya Resort & Yacht Club, which is partially owned by the Grand Bahama Port Authority.
The group reportedly includes 16 permanent employees and 13 casual laborers.
One government official said Ross University may be interested in leasing the space once the property closes.
The resort's owners are reportedly finding it impossible to remain open during the ongoing economic downturn. The Nassau Guardian understands that employees have already been advised that job cuts may be imminent.
An official familiar with the details declined to go on record until resort officials formally announce the closure and layoffs.
Former Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe said last night that while 29 jobs may not seem like a big deal, it is the ripple effect of those layoffs that would be significant.
"Twenty-nine people impact at least 150 others," Wilchcombe said.
"You're talking about families. You're talking about a time when it's back to school. You're talking about a Grand Bahama that's been struggling. So the impact is perhaps greater when all the multiplying effects are considered. Once you put those things together and you realize how grand the issue is... it also impacts our food stores, our gas stations, and every single thing on the island. When you lose one job, it's the multiplying effect that you've got to think about."
Wilchcombe, a Grand Bahama member of Parliament (representing West End and neighboring Bimini), said although the property is small, the island cannot afford to lose any more room inventory.
"It is the total count of the rooms I think that is so important now, particularly when the Ministry of Tourism is talking about the all-inclusive for Grand Bahama Island," he said.
"Consistent with that would of course be the need to have inventory because if you increase the airlift then what happens if there is no inventory? You need to have both working simultaneously so we have to maintain a high level of inventory. Certainly we have to be in the range of 2,000 to 3,000 hotel rooms, otherwise you're not going to have much of an impact on Grand Bahama's total tourism economy."
According to its web site, Port Lucaya Resort & Yacht Club is comprised of 10 distinctively colored, two-story buildings that encircle a beautiful garden area and Olympic-size swimming pool.
The surrounding Port Lucaya Marina can accommodate boats of up to 170 feet with complete yacht facilities including water, electricity, cable T.V. and telephone, the web site says.
The layoffs at the property will come at a time when Grand Bahama continues to experience hard times. Those hard times were evident long before the current global economic crisis took hold.
Properties on the island are among those in the country that have had to send employees home over the last year as a result of soft tourism performance.
Grand Bahama's unemployment rate stood at 14.6 percent in February 2009, up from 9 percent in May last year, the highest number recorded in 15 years, according to the Department of Statistics.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009