Turtle Bay denies new allegations by union
Turtle Bay Resort has denied the latest allegations made by hotel workers' union Local 5 to the National Labor Relations Board.
Turtle Bay union workers have made more than 30 complaints to the labor board against their employer since early 2004. A federal judge is expected to make a ruling on 16 of those complaints sometime this spring.
Turtle Bay General Manager Abid Butt said the newest complaints, which include allegations that the resort replaced workers who participated in a picket line and gave bonuses to workers who crossed the picket line, are false.
"The replacement of workers was not illegal," Butt said. "We had to replace workers who, of their own volition, walked off the job. When workers walk off the job, we have a right to replace them in order to continue to serve our guests."
While Turtle Bay Resort has not fired a single employee illegally, employees who have testified against the union during the heated labor board proceedings have been brutally harassed and vendors have been threatened, Butt said.
The North Shore hotel and the union have been at odds for several years over contract negotiations. The union called for a consumer boycott of the hotel in 2003. Over the summer, Turtle Bay filed a civil lawsuit against Local 5 alleging theft of proprietary secrets.
"We are committed to our employees and their families, despite an atmosphere of fear and repression generated by the union," Butt said. You can not imagine the tactics employed here against our employees, their families and our clients."
The latest labor board charges will be heard on Feb. 28, 2006.