This archive report was first published on 11 June 2020.
Published on June 11, 2020, a high-end hotel in Kenya, Villa Rosa Kempinski, has announced plans to lay off many of its workers due to the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The hotel, owned by Simba Corporation, cited the rising number of coronavirus cases in Kenya as the reason for the decision.
Managing Director Roberto Simone stated that the hotel would pay redundancy dues in accordance with the Employment Act, 2007 and the Collective Bargaining Agreement currently in place.
However, Mr. Simone did not disclose the exact number of workers targeted for layoff.
According to Mr. Simone, 90 percent of the revenues for hotels around the world, including Kenya, have been erased due to travel restrictions and the cessation of movement in and out of key investment destinations like Nairobi and Mombasa.
"It is against this backdrop and for sustainability and long-term success it is anticipated that the restructuring will affect multiple departments and cadres of employees and will therefore result in redundancies," said Mr. Simone.
Mr. Simone expressed confidence that the proposed changes would put the hotel on a firm footing and allow it to grow sustainably in the years to come.
