Rafter served with letter in Mantra wage dispute

Tennis-pro Pat Rafter has allegedly been drawn into a dispute between Mantra Group and the hospitality workers union following the hotel group’s push to slash employee penalty rates.

Rafter is the celebrity brand-ambassador for Mantra Group, and is believed to have received a letter from the United Voice and the Australian Council of Trade Unions urging him to intervene in the hotel group’s attempt to cut workers’ weekend, evening and public holiday penalty rates, according to a report by Fairfax.

Travel Weekly contacted Mantra Group executive director, sales, marketing & distribution, Kent Davidson who said: “Our position is simple – Mantra is motivated to build a strong hospitality industry, for the betterment of all who work in it, and any suggestion to the contrary is false”.

Mantra is calling for a 50% reduction to Sunday pay, dropping it to 125% of regular rates paid to employees, and wants public holiday pay to go down from 250% to 225% the report stated.

“It is our view that the hospitality industry is predicated on a seven-day per week operation and employees seeking work in our industry are aware of that fact from the outset,” the Mantra submission to the Fair Work Commission stated, the paper reported.

Meanwhile, the unions are urging Rafter to “take a stand” against cutting rates for the thousands who work at Mantra hotels and resorts across Australia.

“That Mantra is arguing to cut the wages of some of the lowest-paid workers in the country when its businesses are expanding and highly profitable is particularly disappointing,” the letter said, the paper reports.

Davidson told Fairfax the group was currently in “discussions with industry bodies to work towards the best outcome for all industry stakeholders”.

While unions argue penalty rates are “fair compensation”, employer groups say the high cost result in businesses having to close on weekends and holidays.

“If a hotel closes a restaurant or cuts back on room service, the worker … doesn’t get the opportunity to work”, Tourism Accommodation Australia acting chief executive, Carol Giuseppi, told the paper.

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Latest comments

sting says:
May 5, 2015 at 2:06 pm
…what’s wrong with accommodation employers… can you not even give your employees extra money since their wage is one of the lowest not only in the industry but of all industries in australia… you don’t even give bonus or cash reward on a regular basis….always remember a business that makes nothing but money is a bad business… be humane… you’ll lose a little but in the long term you’ll make more… trust me…
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Nicolas Delacharlerie says:
May 5, 2015 at 12:12 pm
Mantra properties in general are piece of crap, the rooms are badly looked after, I stayed mantra once and will never return.
In light of this, I believe Mantra can afford any of the above. I hope they lose.
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Peter Hook says:
May 5, 2015 at 12:12 pm
‘Slash’ penalty rates is incorrect, it is making them more rational. If a hotel restaurant doesn’t open, then a 275% loading of $0 isn’t worth all that much to a worker who would like to work, but isn’t able to because the business can’t afford to open. The point that we make at TAA is that we are not opposed to compensation for working public holidays and ‘unsociable’ hours, it is just the level of penalty rates that we do not believe is sustainable. The penalty system was established 50 years ago before 24 hour trading (or even post 6pm service) was a reality. Today is different, and there are lots of workers who do not see Sundays or public holidays as all that much different to any other working day. It is time for a serious review. Peter Hook, TAA
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