"Times are hard," that may well be the general consensus out on the streets and for employees of one of the largest hotels in the country it is not just speculation, it appears to be a reality.
An employee of the Princess Hotel and Casino visited us today complaining that for the past few months, she hasn't been paid on time. It's rough in any month, but on New Year's Eve...? Well for this employee, it's unthinkable and outrageous. Joset Ferguson says that she has had enough of deferred paydays and cannot bear it any longer. She says that today was to have been her end of year payday but it simply will not come, she also showed us the letter explaining the delay.
Joset Ferguson, Princess Hotel Employee
"Today is our payday and they will not pay us until the 6th of January of 2005 and I think its totally unfair to us as the workers working for two weeks and when payday comes we cannot get pay."
"It affects the workers in so much ways because people go to work not knowing if when payday comes they will get paid. And in the area of work, people don't know what to do; they come to work because they just come to work. You have people there who are mother, you know they are mother and father, and they need their jobs so you know what, they just tolerate it and they cannot do anything other than sit back and swallow everything that Princess gives them."
"At this point I know I will not have a job when I return back but life goes on. I will find another job but whatever comes out of this, it will be to the benefit of the other workers there."
Ferguson claims that this payment deferral started in October of this year. We today tried to get comment from the Princess but were unable to.
