Jul 18, 2008 1:00 pm US/Eastern
Hotel Employees Receive Paychecks
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) ―
Employees of the Hilton Hotel in downtown Pittsburgh have now received their paychecks after threatening to walk off the job over financial issues.
The hotel has been under renovation for nearly two years. On Thursday, contractors pulled their workers and equipment off the job saying they hadn't been paid.
But officials with the hotel ownership group say employee paychecks were handed out this morning.
Also, officials say they have been in touch with contractors and are working out those payment issues and the plans are to resume renovation work in about three weeks and wrap it up completely by next spring.
Chief Operating Officer Harris Mathis admits that workers do not deserve the uncertainty of waiting for money they have earned.
"Employees, they work, they do a good job for us, they expect to get paid and it's our duty to make sure the paychecks are there on payday," said Mathis. "People depend on receiving their paychecks in a timely manner."
The hotel is owned by the Schub Corporation, based in India. And union representatives for the workers say the hotel is still a million dollars behind in payments to the health and pension fund.
When the Shubh Corporation bought the Hilton, executives promised renovation work to make it the finest hotel in Pittsburgh.
"We're going to spend approximately $25 million, which is more than what the hotel is built for," said President and CEO of Shubh Hotels, Atul Bisaria, before the renovations started.
However, this morning, Mathis admitted that there is not enough money to finish the project along with paying off contractors and paying employee benefits.
"It all has to do with construction and during the winter when we had over 500 of our 713 rooms out of order," said Mathis. "The problem is it took longer and took more money than we anticipated. We had underestimated to cost and how long it would take."
As far as renovations go, officials say the interior is just about complete, but there is still a long way to go to finish the exterior.
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