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Sunday, March 16, 2003
Cebu's landmark hotel closes
By Lorenzo P. Ninal
CEBU -- A former Cebu Plaza Hotel employee, who now works in the US, is in Cebu to fulfill a cherished dream of holding her wedding reception at the hotel's Visayas ballroom.
Spending close to P1 million for her wedding last Saturday, former Cebu Plaza Hotel guest relations officer Suzette N. Parungao gathered her guests at the hotel in what was to be their last time to set foot in the Cebu landmark.
Against advice from friends, she had booked her wedding reception at Cebu Plaza despite fears that its impending closure might jeopardize her wedding.
Billeted in the President's Suite, Parungao said her weeklong stay at the hotel with husband Ariel brought poignant memories of the place she once considered home.
If it was sad for Parungao, who worked in the hotel from 1988 to 1992, to see the place close, it was even more painful for the hotel's 400 employees who became jobless after 11 last night.
Grace Salut, front office manager, couldn't describe her feelings during the hotel's last hours Saturday.
It pained her to leave a place that had become her second home for 13 years and to part ways with fellow employees whom she considered her family.
"I can't describe my feelings. For now, I just want to rest," Salut said, taking time to talk with Sun.Star amid what seemed like a usual busy day for the hotel Saturday.
Attending to a wedding reception, a graduation ball and two debuts, Salut and the rest of the hotel staff served their guests like it was the first day of operation.
Telephone operator James del Rosario entertained calls just like any busy day.
Manoy James to fellow employees, del Rosario admitted he cried in private whenever he thought of the hotel's fate.
"When you have worked here for 15 years, you can't help but feel sad. We have become like brothers and sisters to each other," said del Rosario, who started with being a bellboy and elevator boy.
So, is there life after Cebu Plaza for its employees?
Ordinary hotel workers are fearful. Waiters at the hotel's Café Tartanilla said they don't know if they can ever find work again, especially with the worsening of the economy due to a looming war in Iraq.
Workers too old to be absorbed by other companies are expected to suffer most.
"I pity them. Employers have this bias against older jobseekers thinking they are no longer productive. Where can they find employment now?" del Rosario said.
At 7 a.m. Sunday, del Rosario shall have said his goodbye to his office, to be replaced by a machine operator that will tell callers that the place is now closed.
Parungao, Salut and others who have learned to love the hotel shall have parted ways after last night's despedida party, to move on with life.
Cebu Plaza, which initially opened its doors in 1978 with its low-rise buildings, will be ending operations due to losses.
Close to 400 hotel employees will be displaced when the hotel closes its doors tonight, with no assurance that it will reopen under a new management.
As for the Cebu City Government's appeal to delay the hotel's closure to accommodate two pre-booked functions, public relations manager Aissa dela Cruz said it is not for the hotel's former owner, Pathfinder Holdings Philippines Inc. (PHPI), to decide on the matter.
Two big international conventions will be held in Cebu in the middle of this year.
It is now up to Metrobank, which will own the hotel starting tonight, whether it will continue to operate even after Pathfinder gives it up.
A labor dispute forced the hotel to suspend operations for at least two months in 1998, on the heels of a regional tourism slump that stemmed from the Asian financial crisis.
Cebu Plaza Hotel has won the tourism department's Hotel of the Year award at least twice, in 1996 and 1997.
Employee benefits
Much as they want to prolong operations to cater to clients who have already made reservations, dela Cruz said Pathfinder did not want to further jeopardize whatever funds the hotel had for the separation benefits of its employees.
"Pathfinder did not want to continue operating at the expense of the funds it saved for the employees' benefits. They thought that operating longer will only deplete the funds further," she added.
Cebu Plaza Hotel is the flagship project of PHPI in Cebu. Sequestered in 1986, the hotel reopened in 1987 after PHPI acquired it from the Asset Privatization Trust.
Designed as a resort hotel, Cebu Plaza comprises the 22-story Plaza Tower and three-story Plaza Club, for a total of 383 rooms and extensive sports and recreational facilities for adults and children.(Sun.Star Cebu)
(March 16, 2003 issue)
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