Staff at the Landings Resort and Spa are escalating calls for the removal of their managing director, citing serious breakdowns in leadership, deteriorating working conditions, and industrial-level concerns that they say are undermining the hotel’s performance and the livelihood of its employees. What began as outrage over alleged disrespectful remarks about staff members’ personal lives has now grown into a broader dispute over management practices, culminating in a petition reportedly backed by more than 300 employees and widespread condemnation across social media.
An employee speaking on condition of anonymity said the controversy is unfolding against the backdrop of a prolonged operational slump, with occupancy levels falling to troubling lows. “The hotel has been operating under 30 percent occupancy throughout 2025. And it is just one primary group, a repeat annual client, that has lifted occupancy for a short window this year,” the staff member noted, describing the situation as unsustainable.
Workers assert that declining revenues and questionable management decisions have intensified financial pressure on staff. They report reduced hours, diminished gratuities, and disrupted holiday pay, all of which they say are directly tied to leadership’s failure to stabilize the resort’s operations.
“The staff are being redirected. Their hours are being cut. They’re not receiving their holiday pay because their hours aren’t meeting the threshold. Sales have even been redirected to an external partner, and sales numbers have dropped compared to previous years,” the employee added. “As such, the staff are the ones feeling the squeeze.”
Employees also described the human cost of the resort’s internal challenges, saying many are now struggling to maintain basic financial commitments. “They have mortgages, vehicle loans, student loans, everything. It’s difficult. A staff member once mentioned to the CEO that Black Friday would have been the perfect time to buy a stove, but because of the constraints at the hotel, she couldn’t. He told her, ‘Now is not the time to buy a stove,’” the staffer recounted.
Former employees have also weighed in publicly. One former manager wrote: “He said if you believe in work-life balance and put family first, then that’s not the place for you. So I left. As a Saint Lucian and as an executive member, I couldn’t pass that message on to the staff.”
Others echoed the sentiment, calling for a reset in leadership. “The leadership structure needs to change for the betterment of everyone,” one former employee stated. “Employees deserve to be happy,” another wrote.
Workers say they want more than apologies, they want structural fixes, a coherent operational strategy, and leadership that respects both labour and the people who keep the resort running. The petition, they say, signals a workforce that is no longer willing to accept the status quo, as the resort faces mounting pressure to address both the industrial and interpersonal issues at its core.
