Sandals looking for best team

WITHIN AN HOUR AND A HALF of the start of the Sandals Barbados Resort job fair, more than 90 per cent of the former staff members had completed the registration process after converging at the Lloyd Erskine Sandiford Centre from 9 a.m. to be interviewed yesterday.

Most of them expressed hope they could secure steady employment.

“It literally seems all of the former team members will show up for the job fair,” said hotel general manager Josef Zellner. He called the turnout “great”. 

However, he said it was not automatic that everyone would be rehired.

“It is an open forum; everybody will be interviewed the entire week then we try to hire the best team members possible.”

Sandals Barbados is seeking to fill 600 positions in all departments across the Dover, Christ Church property during the five-day job fair.

The staff of 377 was reduced to 65 in April when the hotel was closed to facilitate a US$65 million renovation of the 280-room property.

Former bartender Tanisha Jones said she remained unemployed since the hotel’s closure. She added the unemployment benefits had assisted with taking care of her daughter and keeping things afloat as the head of her household.

Tameisha Chase, a former housekeeping supervisor, said she wanted to fit back into a similar role. For the past few months she has been helping a relative who operates a catering business.

“It has not been too bad, but I hope to get a secure job,” she said.

Thaneisha Wilkinson said she hoped to get back into the Sandals group because of the opportunities it provided for development.  Even though she was working at a different hotel as a waitress and bartender, Wilkinson said she preferred the Sandals experience and would like to be rehired.

Shari Greenidge, a mother of three, who worked in housekeeping, said things had been hard taking care of them. She was anxious to get steady employment again after trying unsuccessfully. 

Joel Ryan, group director for entertainment, said past workers who gained additional skills during the hotel’s closure would also be given opportunities to advance or move to other departments.

The job fair will be open to the public from today and continues daily until Friday.

Sandals Barbados is slated to reopen in January.