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Seymour Hotels is holding its 11th Annual Long Service Loyalty Awards presentation on Tuesday 27 June. Every year awards are given to staff who have completed 5, 10 or 25 years of service. This year 19 employees will be celebrating their 5th or 10th anniversary with the Company, two employees are celebrating 25 years and two will be celebrating the milestone of 40 years’ service, which in total represents 240 years of service. Since the awards programme was first launched in 2007, over 3,600 years of long and loyal service have been celebrated.
Carlos Ferreira started his career with the Seymour Group in 1977 as a young man, aged just 18. Arriving from Madeira to take up the role of commis waiter at the Hotel de la Plage, Carlos spoke very little English. Working with some of the top hospitality staff in Jersey at the time, he quickly learned both the trade and the language in the luxurious seaside restaurant.
When it was decided to close the hotel at the end of each summer season, Carlos, who was by then a wine waiter, joined a number of his colleagues to work at the Pomme d’Or Hotel, which remained open throughout the winter. He was offered a full time position in the Harbour Room, under Restaurant Manager Italo Morin. Carlos spent the following 21 years progressing up the ladder and managing the numerous changes in the restaurant and the hotel. Today, having been the Harbour Room Manager for the past 15 years, he is one of the most recognisable faces at the Pomme d’Or and the reason why many of our regular guests choose to return year after year.
Alongside Carlos and also celebrating 40 years’ service is Manuel De Freitas, affectionately known by all his friends and our guests as ‘Leo’. He has worked in a number of the bars in the Merton Hotel for 40 years. Leo has some fantastic memories from his time in the hotel, especially when he was responsible for Bubbles Nightclub within the Merton Hotel during the late 70’s and 80’s. Leo currently runs The Commentary Box, the Merton Hotel’s Sports Bar, aimed at guests looking for a late night drink. Leo has been an absolute credit to the hotel over the last 40 years and continues to enjoy welcoming both new and regular guests to the Merton Hotel.
David Seymour, Managing Director of Seymour Hotels, said ‘I am extremely proud of our long serving and loyal staff, to whom I attribute our reputation for excellent service and customer care. Today is just the tip of the iceberg; since we started recognising loyalty in this way, 36 employees have had their 25 year award, with more qualifying next year. I am also delighted that our efforts to be a fair and respectful employer are paying such dividends’
Whilst we are very keen to celebrate long service in this way we are also pleased to be working actively with the Back to Work Team in recruiting local staff to join us, many of whom are new to this industry. We hope that our approach to training and employment ensures that many of those we have employed this season will also one day celebrate a significant milestone in their employment with the company.
