Four Seasons Miami has kept many longtime employees on a furlough for 14 months without paying them a cent in order to pressure them to resign and forgo severance payments, a new class action lawsuit alleges.
The class action lawsuit was filed in Miami on May 17 by lead Plaintiffs Aletta Van Balderen, Dagoberto Turcios, Shirley Bowrin, Rosario Miranda, Natalie Arias, and Luz Rojas, all longtime employees of the company.
The group says that Four Seasons Miami laid off more than 50 workers in March 2020 when the coronavirus pandemic hit, and many have not received any income since. The group alleges that during that time the company eliminated several of their positions and restructured duties so that none of them would ever be recalled to work.
According to the claim, Four Seasons violates the WARN Act, which says that any furlough lasting more than six months is considered an employment loss as a matter of law.
The Four Seasons employees say that they have attempted to contact the company regarding their status and recall possibilities.
“The Four Seasons, however, has continued to keep its workers in the dark in hopes that the growing frustration would lead them to resign and fall into the trap created by the Severance Siphoning Scheme,” the class action lawsuit alleges.
The claim says that all of the staff behind the lawsuit are longtime employees of the Four Seasons, and many have been employed there for decades.
“The Plaintiffs considered the Four Seasons to be a second home. And for good reason. The Four Seasons claimed to have a ‘family-like’ work environment,” the claim states.
However, when it came time for the Four Seasons to reciprocate and care for its workers, the organization created a scheme to deprive thousands of employees of their hard-earned benefits, according to the class action lawsuit.
“Specifically, the Four Seasons has kept a multitude of workers on a perpetual furlough—despite having no intention of recalling the workers, many of whom have had their positions permanently eliminated—in order to force its employees to resign from the organization,” the claim alleges.
“Such ‘resignations’ are then categorized as a ‘voluntary separation’ by the employee—thereby stripping the employees from the money they are entitled to under the Severance Policy (the “Severance Siphoning Scheme”).”
However, the class action lawsuit says that the alleged scheme is unlawful as it breaks the WARN Act, and due to the nature of the claims the class action lawsuit can be filed outside of the company’s arbitration policy.
“The Four Seasons has always feared unionization,” the claim alleges. “Its primary strategy to prevent unionization has been to pretend as though the organization provides employees what a union would otherwise deliver.”
The claim alleges that the pandemic exposed the company for being profit-driven and uncaring of its staff.
The group wants to represent all Four Seasons employees who were furloughed in 2020 and were not called back after six months. They are suing for violations of the WARN Act and seek certification of the Class, damages, legal fees and costs, interest, and a jury trial.
Earlier this year, Blackjewel coal firm reached a $17.3 million settlement with its former employees, who alleged that Blackjewel violated the WARN Act when it abruptly closed its coal mines without proper notification and compensation of the affected coal miners as required by federal labor law.
Were you furloughed due to the COVID-19 pandemic? Were you offered your job back within six months? Let us know in the comments section!
The Four Seasons employees are represented by J. Freddy Perera, Bayardo E. Alemán, Valerie Barnhart, Brody M. Shulman, and Alexandra C. Hayes of Perera Barnhart Aleman.
The Four Seasons Miami Furlough Class Action Lawsuit is Aletta Van Balderen et al. v. Four Seasons Miami Employment Inc., Case No. 1:21-cv21842, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
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One thought on Four Seasons Miami Kept Staff on Permanent Furlough as Part of ‘Severance Siphoning Scheme,’ Class Action Lawsuit Claims
Si yo fui despedido,del epic hotel Miami,también soy empleado de fourseson o cal,no sé si entro en esa categoría,de despido
Masivo,pero el epic hotel era a tiempo
Completo y nunca me llamaron