Eva Nyambura 
Diani Reef Beach Resort and Spa in Kwale county shut down operations on April 1 after slashing their employees salaries by 50 percent for the month of March.
In a letter shared by a former staff member on Facebook, the hotel will no longer sustain its employees due to the coronavirus pandemic that has paralysed businesses.
The employees on Sunday protested against the pay cut on grounds that they worked for the entire month.
According to online sources, the hotel owes at least 200 employees Sh160,000 each. The arrears were supposed to be settled by the end of March.
But the hotel management sent its staff on unpaid leave on Thursday, April 2.
The Diani Reef Beach Resort and Spa employees’ representative, David Mulai, said that the management resorted to empty promises and blackmail instead of explaining the situation.
“We were sent home on Thursday without salaries and the management has not addressed the issue even as they shut the facility,” he is quoted by a local blog.
Diani Hotel Manager, Jotham Mwang’ombe, on his part acknowledged that they were in disagreement with the staff over the pay cut.
He further noted that business has been slow for the past two months hence the pay cuts.
Thousands of people have been sent home as the hospitality industry takes a hit over the pandemic.
Many hotels have drastically scaled down operations, with many of them sending staff on compulsory unpaid leaves as they struggle to cope with the consequences of the virus.
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