Covid-19: Over 11,000 employees from 79 resorts put on leave without pay
The Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) publicized a list of the resorts
An event organized by TEAM, calling for minimum wage
79 resorts have taken action against over 11,000 employees, due to the economic impact of Covid-19.
The Tourism Employees Association of Maldives (TEAM) publicized a list of the resortsvia Facebook, stressing that there have been dismissals, wage alterations and no pay leaves imposed on employees at these resorts.
While TEAM shared its concerns with authorities and stressed that this is “completely unacceptable”, the Labour Relations Authority noted that these actions are “against the Employment Act”.
The Authority urged employers to communicate “before making any decisions related to the status of employees” as well as to refrain from acting against the Employment Act.
Furthermore, it noted that the government has decided to introduce a stimulus package of financial aid to support employers “to face the challenges arising from the economic impact of Covid-19” adding that priority will be given to those who “refrain from dismissing employees during this time and abide by the Employment Act by granting the rights provided to employees”.
Employers that are to have taken any of the aforementioned actions against employees since March 1 have also been asked to submit a form so as to keep the authority updated.
While the government has taken various precautionary measures to curb a spread of Covid-19 in the country, this includes the suspension of on-arrival visas from March 27. A number of resorts had shutdown even prior to this -and were offered to the government as quarantine facilities- while more are expected to close in the coming weeks.
