Motion submitted to parliament calling for resolution of Covid-19 difficulties faced by resort workers
Many employees locked down at their workplace for over a year away from families
MP for the Faresmaathoda constituency Hussain Mohamed Latheef speaking at parliament
A motion has been submitted to parliament calling to resolve the issue of resort workers being unable to return to their families, one year after the Covid-19 pandemic was first detected in the Maldives.
The motion was submitted to parliament by MP for the Faresmaathodaa constituency Hussain Mohamed Latheef, a member of the Progressive Party of Maldives (PPM). He noted that many employees of resorts had been unable to return home to their families for months, and that this was causing a lot of distress for families. He also noted that there was no way for them to return home even if the resort was located very close to their native island, and that many employees had been locked down at their workplaces for about a year. now. He added that some employees had been unable to return to resorts and were out of job as well.
MP Hussain Mohamed Latheef also highlighted that the biggest difficulty being faced by youth working on resorts was the 10-day quarantine period they had to observe when traveling, which many resorts were counting as "no-pay" leaves from work. In addition to this, he noted while one off day had been made mandatory every week, some workers were struggling to take it in full.
Further, the Faresmaathodaa MP also highlighted that resort employees were being forced to rent spaces for quarantine, and that arrangements made to conduct medical consultations were also less than desirable.
Noting disparity in HPA guidelines for resort employees and tourists, MP Hussain Mohamed Latheef remarked that different resorts were treating employees differently. While complaints had been submitted to the Health Protection Agency (HPA), resort managements and the Ministry of Tourism on multiple occasions, employees of resorts were very distressed that no solution had been presented to them as yet, MP Hussain Mohamed Latheef said.
In submitting the motion, the MP had highlighted that it was unacceptable that the government was implementing regulations to bolster tourism at the cost of the rights of tourism sector workers. As such, he called for the government to coordinate relevant authorities and have the issue resolved as quickly as possible.
33 members present at the sitting of parliament during the motion's submission had voted in favor of accepting the motion, and five members had abstained from the vote.
