Hotel Workers' Union's Social Media Campaign Threatens Hotel Revenue, Warns Barbados Hotel Association Chairman

By Sheria Brathwaite

The war of words between the nation’s hoteliers and the union that represents its workers currently raging on social media could threaten hotels’ bottom line, the head of the Barbados Hotel and Tourism Association (BHTA) has charged.

Chairman Renée Coppin acknowledged tour operators’ anxiety about a “smear campaign’s” negative influence on customer decision-making, in which messages portrayed Barbadian hotels as exploiting their workers.

At BHTA’s final quarterly conference for the year at the Hilton Barbados Resort on Wednesday, Coppin also pushed back on several charges made in viral videos that have fuelled the months-long squabble.

She also highlighted a trend of hotel workers approaching guests directly to express discontent, contributing to an anti-industry sentiment.

Coppin said she has received several calls claiming that the social media posts that sought to “villainise hoteliers” served as “clickbait” that has begun to create problems for some employers.

She told fellow hoteliers: “You have all been calling and reaching out to me and our secretariat about the damaging impact that some of the messages being promoted about our industry are having on our industry. Your concerns have ranged from our tour operators expressing alarm about the negative impact on customer decision-making based on a growing messaging about Barbadian hotels exploiting their workers, to a more recent one where it appears that some in the industry are now going to guests and directly expressing malcontent as a part of the initiative to bolster anti-industry sentiment.

“There can be no doubt that the recent campaign has done damage and there does come a point where we must speak.”

Coppin’s remarks were the BHTA’s latest response in a public spat between the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) and the association over the state of working conditions in the island’s hotels.

When she first called out the labour movement for the “smear campaign” on social media, Coppin did not name the BWU but videos on the union’s social media pages alleged mistreatment of hospitality workers. In some of those videos, people identifying themselves as hotel workers complained about poor working conditions, having to buy uniforms and work equipment, not being served lunch and not getting the service charge collected by establishments.

However, Coppin pointed out on Wednesday that the last documented concerns the BHTA received were in 2020 and there had been no activation of grievance procedures since.