Casino to pay worker $14,000

Island Club Casino has been ordered by the Industrial Court to pay a retrenched worker $14,000 in damages by the end of this month. In addition, Deon Hutchinson has to be paid for 35 days work. Reason for the 35-days’ payment stemmed from the termination letter which only apportioned ten days’ pay to Hutchinson, while the period stipulated in the Industrial Relations Act (IRA) was 45 days notice before retrenchment. 

The Union of Commercial and Industrial Workers, (UCIW) which represented Hutchinson, contended that he was dismissed from his job under the guise of retrenchment. The union also said that the employer’s decision to terminate the worker due to reorganisation, after failing to find him guilty on disciplinary charges, was harsh, oppressive and contrary to the principles of good industrial relations practices. The employer’s case was that Hutchinson’s services were terminated as a result of re-organisation. The court rejected this contention.