‘Disgraceful but not surprising’

Staff at a luxury Scottish hotel owned by Donald Trump are being paid below the legal minimum according to a whistle-blower.

Unite said the way employees are treated at Trump’s Turnberry golf resort is “disgraceful but not surprising” given the US president’s history of not paying his workers properly.

An employee at the Turnberry golf resort told the Daily Record that overtime pay is often withheld and that staff are made to work like “robots”.

Overtime hours are ‘banked’ at the five-star resort, in Ayrshire, meaning staff can end up being paid below the minimum wage for extended periods.

The whistleblower told the Daily Record, “I get paid minimum wage and have to work shifts which sometimes span 10 days, depending on where they decide to place your two days off.

“I’m contracted to work a set amount of hours and any hours over are banked.

“You’ll not receive this pay until 170 hours have been banked, which could mean working less than the minimum wage by the time the new tax year arrives.

“Managers are under pressure to reduce staff wages so they force people to have time off instead of paying any banked hours.”

The whistleblower’s comments are backed up by an online review on the Indeed website posted in September 2017.

The review states, “Hours vary depending on departmental needs, often expected to work extra with little or no reward.

“Additional hours are banked in lieu and not paid.”

Turnberry’s general manager, Ralph Porciani, said staff at the resort are paid for a set number of hours and shift lengths are increased and decreased depending on the time of year to fit within the contracted hours.

He insisted that all staff at the Trump resort are paid the legal minimum, however Unite said businesses owned by the president are known for treating staff unfairly.

Unite’s Bryan Simpson said, “The treatment of workers at one of Scotland’s most luxurious resorts is disgraceful but not surprising because it’s owned by Donald Trump, who has a history of not paying workers what they’re due.

“However, workers are fighting back across the Trump estate. Here and in the US, hotel workers are joining unions and demanding better wages and conditions.”