Vistana Files WARN Notices with Hawaii

[controller1]

Vistana filed WARN (Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification) notices with the state of Hawaii on September 3 furloughing 424 employees through January 8, 2021 and permanently laying off 302 employees effective November 13, 2020.

The furloughed employees are primarily food & beverage, front desk, maintenance, bell attendants and drivers. The permanent layoffs are almost exclusively sales and marketing.

The breakdown by resort:
Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort & Westin Ka'anapali Ocean Resort North - Furloughed: 231 / Permanent: 169
Westin Nanea - Furloughed: 116 / Permanent: 79
Westin Princeville - Furloughed: 77 / Permanent: 54

Real-time WARN Updates | Workforce Development Division – WDC

Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification (WARN)

labor.hawaii.gov

 

[PamMo]

Wow. This sounds devastating. Vistana is just a small piece of the pie in furloughing and laying off workers. It looks like workers at ALL the resorts are going to be hit. What a terrible blow to the economy and the personal lives and families of those who make their home in Hawaii. It’s so very, very sad.

 

[CPNY]

Wow. This sounds devastating. Vistana is just a small piece of the pie in furloughing and laying off workers. It looks like workers at ALL the resorts are going to be hit. What a terrible blow to the economy and the personal lives and families of those who make their home in Hawaii. It’s so very, very sad.

Very sad. Didn’t have to be this way.

 

[jabberwocky]

Sept. 3 was not a good day for employment in Hawaii. Furloughing employees until January probably indicates they are getting signals that travel restrictions will be in place until then.

 

[DannyTS]

This is from Westin Nanea. The list is in addition to the one with the sales department. It is going to be very tough for them and their families. Hopefully some of them have spouses that are still employed.

 

[PamMo]

If you don't want to go to the link, this is the gist of the layoffs/furloughs for the hospitality staff at WKORV. This is only one of many filings from Vistana, Marriott, Hilton, Four Seasons, Hyatt, Wyndham, etc.

Due to the sudden, dramatic, and, unfortunately, continuing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, FOH HOSPITALITY, LLC (“the Company”) has experienced unforeseen business circumstances, including enormous and unexpected financial losses. As a result, pursuant to the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (“WARN”), we are writing to notify you that the Company will be extending the current furlough status of a number of its employees employed at its facility located at 6 Kai Ala Drive, Lahaina, HI 96761 for beyond six months. ​

​

The Company will formally extend the furlough status of affected employees on September 2, 2020. At this time, we anticipate that 231 employees will be affected by this furlough extension. At this time, we anticipate the extended furlough will last until January 8, 2021. If an employee has not been recalled by this date, he or she will be considered to have been permanently laid off. A list of the job titles of positions to be affected and the number of affected employees in each job classification is attached hereto. No bumping rights exist, and no employees are represented by a union. ​

​

The vast reach of the coronavirus outbreak, including the travel restrictions imposed by the State of Hawaii beginning with the March 23, 2020 Stay at Home Order and the April 1, 2020 Interisland Travel Restrictions, as well as the August 29, 2020 announcement that travel restrictions will remain in effect through September 30, 2020, was unforeseeable and caused, and will continue to cause, among other things, a drastic impact on our business. After reviewing our staffing and business needs, we are providing this notice to you at the earliest possible time. ​

 

[DannyTS]

It appears that Vistana has delayed the furloughs as much as it could, other hotels and resorts filed earlier for similar positions. Maybe they have information that they will open in January or February but not earlier or maybe they are just throwing the towel since there has been nothing consistent about the situation there. If they did not open the islands for tourists when the number of cases was close to zero (like in June-July), when are they going to do it? Since May we have heard the governor saying that they were "working diligently" to put the measures in place to reopen the islands and look where we are today.

 

[CPNY]

This is from Westin Nanea. The list is in addition to the one with the sales department. It is going to be very tough for them and their families. Hopefully some of them have spouses that are still employed.

View attachment 26102

It didn’t have to be that way.

 

[CPNY]

It appears that Vistana has delayed the furloughs as much as it could, other hotels and resorts filed earlier for similar positions. Maybe they have information that they will open in January or February but not earlier or maybe they are just throwing the towel since there has been nothing consistent about the situation there. If they did not open the islands for tourists when the number of cases was close to zero (like in June-July), when are they going to do it? Since May we have heard the governor saying that they were "working diligently" to put the measures in place to reopen the islands and look where we are today.

Hopefully this is the first chip that will fall and others will announce similar steps JUST to put pressure on the local government. Of course Ige could just be holding out for a federal bailout. There aren’t many places to go in the Caribbean, Aruba has been one of the only islands open. The community spread is not from tourism but from the local community. It seems the tourists are the more cautious. Even with Aruba open, it was extremely quiet. It’s a shame the level of fear they instilled in many and we have put ourselves in a horrible situation.

 

[controller1]

These numbers through August 15 will only get worse for the state with the highest unemployment rate in the U.S.

 

[CalGalTraveler]

PPP loans and Govt subsidies probably ran out.

 

[pedro47]

The limited travel ban to Hawaii is causing a very high pike in unemployment in the service industry IMHO.
Sounds liked Vistana occupancy timeshare rate is under 80% in Hawaii.. IMHO.

 

[CPNY]

These numbers through August 15 will only get worse for the state with the highest unemployment rate in the U.S.

View attachment 26107

The most restricted states in the country have the worst outlook. My fear was never the virus, but the fallout from the restricted measures. Here we are.

 

[pedro47]

These numbers through August 15 will only get worse for the state with the highest unemployment rate in the U.S.

View attachment 26107

I am very surprise that the state of Florida is not on this top ten list (with the massive lay-off in the cruise industry, Disney, Sea World, Universal, the hotel & restaurant industry & ts resorts) .

 

[rickandcindy23]

This is so sad. The devastation to the local economy and the locals personally is enormous. I see a lot of people moving from the islands to the mainland in the near future. The food banks have always been stressed to the limit in Hawaii, something churches on the islands were very well aware. Now these additional layoffs after the initial job losses. It's such a tragedy. Will Hawaii ever recover? If they go a full year, I see no recovery happening. It's been almost six months and nothing announced for safe entry to Hawaii.

Of course, they did let the television show actors go to the island a few days ago. That reeks of favortism to the entertainment industry. I wonder how many celebrities are there in Wailea at the expensive resorts, out on the beaches and in the hotel restaurants and using the hotel amenities: spas, pools and restaurants. After all, Maui's mayor does like "those kind of people" staying on Maui, meaning those of us who are lowly, cheap timeshare owners.

 

[controller1]

The limited travel ban to Hawaii is causing a very high pike in unemployment in the service industry IMHO.
Sounds liked Vistana occupancy timeshare rate is under 80% in Hawaii.. IMHO.

I assume you're being sarcastic because I've read the Vistana occupancy rate in Hawaii is hovering around 10%.

 

[jabberwocky]

The most restricted states in the country have the worst outlook. My fear was never the virus, but the fallout from the restricted measures. Here we are.

Locking down initially was the correct thing to do as we didn't know how the virus behaved or whether there was capacity in the healthcare system to deal with it. We now know so much more about the disease, largely have sufficient testing and healthcare capacity, and have a good idea of how to treat it medically. Continuing broad lockdowns is simply compounding the damage that has been done by the virus.

I am very surprise that the state of Florida is not on this top ten list (with the massive lay-off in the cruise industry, Disney, Sea World, Universal, the hotel & restaurant industry & ts resorts) .

A few points:

- Florida opened up relatively early and has not gone back to large-scale lockdowns. The restrictions that are in place do not seem to be too onerous.
- I think most employment in the cruise industry takes place on the ships. Most of the employees on the ships are not Florida residents.
- Florida is so much more than just Orlando theme parks (which are open and seem to be operating without outbreaks occurring). There are a lot of state parks and outdoor activities that draw in tourists as well.
- From what has been reported, it seems like many of the Florida TS resorts were operating over the summer and had decent occupancy, particularly those in coastal locations.
- A large proportion of the population in Florida is retired. This provides stability for consumer spending in some segments. As long as retirement checks clear, Denny's and IHOP will do just fine.

 

[Moparman42]

This is very sad. I have a reservation for mid January and am putting off rescheduling it until it gets closer to the 90 days. I also have an explorer package booked for the same time. I really want this trip to happen, but news like this is starting to convince me it won't. I feel bad for the good employees, and fear that a few of the good employees we've known over the years will no longer there to make our stay better. Something needs to change and quick to protect the economy of the islands. Of course, even if the resort is still open, there are so few flights that the logistics of that alone will be..interesting….

 

[pedro47]

I assume you're being sarcastic because I've read the Vistana occupancy rate in Hawaii is hovering around 10%.

I was not being sarcastic, I have no knowledge that Vistana occupancy rate in Hawaii is around 10%. That is just sad.

 

[LisaRex]

We are just beginning to see the fallout from this dreadful pandemic. The financial impact will be severe across the globe. I will not criticize Gov. Ige because there are compelling arguments for all sides. Hawaii is in a unique position because they are very dependent on tourism, an island group state, AND one of the healthiest states in the union. Recipe for disaster should cases rise significantly in a short amount of time.

I feel badly for anyone losing his job through no fault of his own, but especially those who are in service positions that don't pay well, which means less chance that they have savings to see them through another year.

FWIW, we are taking our last vacation of the year next week to a beach that we can drive to. It may be our last vacation until the pandemic is over because wave 2 is predicted to start this winter. States may be forced to close again...

 

[jnsywg]

Incredibly sad. They obviously see the recovery taking a long time.

 

[clymberz]

This is so sad. The devastation to the local economy and the locals personally is enormous. I see a lot of people moving from the islands to the mainland in the near future. The food banks have always been stressed to the limit in Hawaii, something churches on the islands were very well aware. Now these additional layoffs after the initial job losses. It's such a tragedy. Will Hawaii ever recover? If they go a full year, I see no recovery happening. It's been almost six months and nothing announced for safe entry to Hawaii.

Of course, they did let the television show actors go to the island a few days ago. That reeks of favortism to the entertainment industry. I wonder how many celebrities are there in Wailea at the expensive resorts, out on the beaches and in the hotel restaurants and using the hotel amenities: spas, pools and restaurants. After all, Maui's mayor does like "those kind of people" staying on Maui, meaning those of us who are lowly, cheap timeshare owners.

You mentioned local food banks. Are Tuggers aware of and can comment on local food banks in the area that support the locals?

 

[Sea Six]

You mentioned local food banks. Are Tuggers aware of and can comment on local food banks in the area that support the locals?

You don't need to do the work. Just leave all your stuff with the Bell staff and they will make sure it gets to the needy. Have them load it up on your cart when you check out, and they will store it in the baggage area until someone comes and gets it. Also, leave a few things in your fridge for the maids.

 

[dsmrp]

You don't need to do the work. Just leave all your stuff with the Bell staff and they will make sure it gets to the needy. Have them load it up on your cart when you check out, and they will store it in the baggage area until someone comes and gets it. Also, leave a few things in your fridge for the maids.

We left a larger $ tip for housekeeping and parking attendant when we checked out of a short stay Hawaii unit.

 

[Vacation4us]

You mentioned local food banks. Are Tuggers aware of and can comment on local food banks in the area that support the locals?

Maui Food Bank — Helping the Hungry in Maui County

Maui Food Bank helps to provide hunger relief to those in need by collecting and distributing food to organizations and agencies throughout Maui County.

mauifoodbank.org