Employees of the Dhara Dhevi hotel asked the deputy governor to help them get their wage compensation, following the closure of the hotel which has allegedly cost 300 employees nearly 100 million baht.
On 1st October, around 100 employees gathered at the provincial hall, holding signs demanding compensation and revealing some information about the hotel’s financial status.
According to the employees, not all of them have been compensated fairly, even though they are still hired by the hotel, and have been throughout the pandemic. The employees say that the hotel is using various tactics to avoid payment. They also claim that the hotel no longer has its operating license, which expired on 8th July of this year.
They allege the computer equipment, furniture as well as many physical assets of the hotel have been confiscated by debtors and that the hotel is in bad repair.
The hotel has announced that it is reducing its payment to employees due to the COVICD-19 situation, however, employees say that that is a disingenuous claim, as the hotel was already rolling back on payment since January, before the pandemic hit.
According to the complaints, as of January, only 50% of salary was paid, February 25% and March 10%, with no payment since. Employees say that recently they were promised 75% of their salary, which was to go into affect two months ago, but have again been disappointed.
A representative of the group say that only 100 out of the 300 employees came to complain, as most had to return home or seek work elsewhere to earn a living. He himself, the manager of the award-winning Fujian Restaurant since its inception, is owed three million baht.