The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

The Bahamian Hard Rock Cafe franchise continued operating for almost three months after its rights to use the brand were terminated, as its 38 former employees yesterday blasted its failure to give them due severance pay.

Irate Hard Rock Café (Nassau) satff said they were called into an emergency meeting around 9am yesterday morning, where they were informed that the the rock ‘n’ roll-­themed restaurant was going into voluntary liquidation.

Employees said they were later told to leave the premises, with the landlord for the downtown Nassau premises, Marvin Pinder, ordering the locks to be changed.

The workers said they were uncertain when or if they would receive compensation, and some accused the ownership and management of being deceitful, after allegedly denying on repeated occasions that their jobs were in jeopardy.

Tribune Business understands that the staff will now have to ‘stand in the queue’ with the rest of Hard Rock Café (Nassau’s) creditors, and it is unclear if they will, recover anything. Paul ‘Andy’Gomez, the Grant Thornton (Bahamas) accountant and partner, is understood to have been appointed as liquidator.

In truth, the Nassau franchise’s existence had been in question since mid-2013, when it became apparent that the franchise holder, Irish-based Kevin Doyle, was encountering business difficulties.

Mr Doyle was forced to shut down his Grand Cayman-based Hard Rock Cafefranchise in June, after alleged legal issues over non-payment of fees arose with the US parent company, Hard Rock International.

Hard Rock international, in a statement to Tribune Business yesterday, confirmed that it had pulled the Nassau franchise’s rights on January 6 this year, meaning the business had operated without authorisation to use the brand for almost three months.

“The Nassau Cafe is owned and operated by a third party franchisee, HRCC Ltd,” it said.  “On January 6, 2014, Hard Rock International terminated the Nassau franchise agreement and the rights of its Nassau franchisee to operate under the Hard Rock brand.

“As a result, Hard Rock has been pursuing its available legal rights to protect the famous Hard Rock Cafe brand in the Nassau market.Due to pending litigation, Hard Rock will not comment further.”

On its website, Hard Rock International listed the Nassau location as one of six which continued to operate without its permission after having its franchise agreement terminated. It cautioned customers that the quality of goods and services were no longer being monitored by Hard Rock, and may not meet its standards.

Employees, though, were outraged by their treatment. Geovanna Hanna, a former kitchen supervisor, told Tribune Business: “We were being deceived from day one. I asked questions over and over if they were closing. It seems they just wanted to close and pull out without giving us our due. I was employed here for years and now today I’m walking out here with nothing, and it’s not fair.”

Nikia Heild, a bar supervisor, said: “We found out that we were closing this morning, probably at about 9am.  They called us into an emergency staff meeting. They didn’t tell us what it was about. Some of us came dressed for work. We came and found out we were closed, without any notice.

“We have to look for new jobs. This is going to be rough and we don’t even know if we are going to get the money that is owed to us,”    

Another employee, Shimeko Cooper, told Tribune Business: “The way they did it was unprofessional. They should have given us some warning so we could be able to look for another job. I feel disappointed; I shed some tears this morning. We are walking away without even a cheque. I just feel disappointed and hurt. They told us they have to settle some things first.”

Repeated attempts to reach Mr Doyle for comment this week have proven unsuccessful. Efforts to reach Marvin  Pinder,  the  owner  of  the  building, were also unsuccessful up to press time.