By Bill W. Cooper
Several aggrieved employees of the Sinkor Palace Hotel, owned by businessmen turned politicians, Simeon Freeman, have taken drastic action in response to the non-payment of their salaries by management for the past three months.
The dissatisfied workers, who said they have and are still struggling to make ends meet without their wages, yesterday, April 25, 2024, besieged the various entrances of the hotel in demand of their just compensation.
Mr. Freeman, who is also the owner of the DSTV Company operating Liberia has been a voice in the Liberian political spectrum, criticizing past and current administration for not doing much to better the lives of struggling Liberians.
Mr. Freeman, the political leader of the Movement for Progress Change (MPC), who contested the country’s recently held Presidential elections but got defeated, came down hard on the government of President Joseph Boakai of not doing much to address the nation’s many challenges, saying Liberia is doomed for failure because Boakai lacks the energy to run the country.
But on the contrary, his workers at his Sinkor Palace Hotel are now accusing of serious bad labor practices and overdue arrears being meted against and owed them by his company, disclosing that for over three months, they have not taken a cent home as remuneration or salaries.
Expressing their dissatisfaction during their protest, the workers, mostly young people, said Mr. Freeman will never be elected in Liberia due to his “bad” human relations, and emphasized, “That man can never be community chairman before talking about President.”
They threatened that the facility will remain closed till management addresses their concerns by settling the payment of their three months arrears, and stressed, “Because Freeman is noted for always insulting us. He has refused to give us a contract sheet only because he doesn’t want to pay us well.”
Accordingly, the employees, who have been left in a dire financial situation due to the delayed payments, gathered outside the hotel in protest with some holding placards and chanting slogans, calling for management to address their grievances and provide them with the salaries owed them.
One of the employees, who wished to remain anonymous due to fear of losing the job, expressed their frustration at the situation, saying, “We have been working tirelessly for months without being paid. We have bills to pay, families to support, and we cannot continue like this.”
“The management needs to take responsibility and pay us our arrears,” they maintained. The aggrieved employees further accused the management of neglecting their welfare and failing to prioritize their well-being.
They further highlighted the financial constrains they have been under, with some resorting to borrowing money to survive while others are unable to settle their rents and children’s school fees obligations.
Meanwhile, all efforts exerted by this paper to get Sinkor Palace Hotel management’s side proved futile as the management remained tight-lipped till press time.
