Public statement by owners claiming that company is seeking to relocate flies against information workers received

Closure reinforces need for hospitality workers to join a union to be protected

Unite Hospitality activist Neil Moore spoke out against the high-handed approach adopted by the owners of the Ivory Champagne Café bar in Belfast.

“Staff at the Ivory Champagne Café Bar were given no warning of the impending threat to their jobs as they gathered for what they were told was a post-Christmas meeting yesterday. Instead they were told that the restaurant would be closing leaving the workforce of twenty-seven facing the imminent prospect of unemployment.

“The PR company hired by the owners has said the owners are looking to relocate their business but this was not what staff were told. Indeed while customers were reassured that the company would honour gift cards and refund deposits, the approach to employees appears to be far less. Very few of the workers have been employed long enough to have statutory rights or receive redundancy payments so this move is a huge blow.

“January is one of the hardest times for hospitality workers to gain employment. These workers have been left jobless with no redundancy pay and face the prospect of weeks if not months attempting to find a new job.

“This experience reinforces the need for hospitality workers to join and organise themselves in a fighting union like Unite. That’s the only way to secure basic protections in an industry which is marked by exploitative practices. We will be organising a meeting with affected workers to inform them of their rights and take further action if necessary”, Mr Moore concluded.