Workers of Plateau-owned Hill Station Hotel protest non-payment of 24 months salaries

Protest

By Blessing Odega

Jos, May 24, 2019(NAN) The staff and retirees of Plateau State-owned Hill Station Hotel, Jos on Friday took to the streets to protest the non-payment of two years entitlements and salaries.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that the workers and retirees, who moved through the streets of the Plateau capital, carried placards some of which read “Lalong, pay our two years salariess”, “Pay our retirement benefits and pensions”, “No promotion for 20 yesrs”, among others.

Mr Binshak Ayuba, Chairman of the hotel’s chapter of the National Union of Hotels and Personal Services (NUHPSWS), told NAN that the protest was to drive home their demand for the payment of two years salaries and allowances.

He said that the workers were also angry over stagnation, claiming that none of them had been promoted in the last 20 years.

He said that retirees were also owed three years pension, gratuity and other entitlements.

Ayuba also decried the no

n-remittance of pension funds to their various managers, saying that no staff had remittance backing against his name.

“We are protesting for our rights; labourers are entitled to their wages.

“Our children are out of school, our landlords are threatening to throw us out, most of us are dying because when we fall ill, we can’t go to the hospital since  we can’t foot our bills,” he lamented.

According to Ayuba, the hotel generated N44 million naira out of which the governor approved N20 million to address some of the issues facing the hotel, especially that of salary and pension payment.

He, however, regretted that the management of the hotel had failed to pay the members of staff and retirees their entitlements, despite the release of the funds.

The chairman appealed to Governor Simon Lalong to intervene toward rescuing the workers from the hotel management that had refused to heed his directive.

Mr Goyit Tapk, a staff of the hotel, who spoke with NAN, said that he had become a financial burden to friends and relatives, and regretted that people no longer pick his calls or respond to his text messages because of his constant appeal for financial assistance.

He said that his kids were out of school as he could 

no longer pay their school fees.

Similarly, Mr Daniel  Atuk,  one of the retirees of the hotel, said that since he retired in 2016, he had not been paid his entitlements and was yet to receive his pension in the last three years.

“We were promised that after three months in retirement, we would be paid our entitlements and our pension payment would commence, but it is very pathetic that I am yet to receive either of them,” he said.

He further revealed that due to lack of funds, his wife had developed stroke while he had lost his sight partially, as he couldn’t afford to seek medical attention.

He lamented that most of the retirees had died without getting their entitlements and pension.

Efforts to reach the hotel management for reaction proved abortive as the manager was not vailable to pick calls to his lines.

 (NAN)

UBO/ETS

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