Hotel Mirage confirms dismissal of 177 people: “Only solution”

Segundo had denounced the Workers' Union in the Industry of Hotels, Tourism, Restaurants, and Similares do Sul, in question is the collective redundancy of 142 effective workers and 35 hired at term, in a universe of 182 people working in the hotel unit of the municipality of Cascais, in the district of Lisbon.

In statements to Lusa, the director-general of the Hotel Cascais Miragem, José Branco, confirmed the dismissal of 177 workers, stressing that it was the only legal solution found.

“ As it is a very long period, the only solution that is legally possible is collective redundancy”, he said, stressing that the intervention will last at least two years and it is impossible to keep workers without performing functions during that period.

The responsible also explained that the work, beginning on November 1, “could not be staged due to its structural dimension”, since it is foreseen, among other interventions, changes in the rooms and water pipes.

“ It is really a very structural work and it cannot be by stages”, he insisted.

Recognizing the labor impact of the intervention, José Branco admitted the possibility of presenting workers with a proposal to suspend contracts, a situation that would allow them to resume the contractual bond at the end of work.

“ We are currently considering, because this was one of the proposals of the union at today’s meeting,” said the responsible, recognizing that this is the only possibility currently under evaluation to mitigate the impact of collective dismissal.

Also in statements to Lusa today, the trade union delegate Luís Batista argued that the dismissal that the administration of Cascais Miragem intends to carry out “does not comply with the assumptions provided for in Article 359 of the Labour Code”, because “there is no causal link between the execution of the works and the need to fire the workers”.

For the trade unionist, the “more sensible” option of the administration would have been to carry out works “in a phased way”, allowing the hotel to remain partially in operation.

However, in spite of the ways decided, the trade unionist considered that the administration of the hotel unit has alternatives to dismissal of workers, namely the completion of vocational training during closure, voluntary suspension of contracts, withdrawals by mutual agreement or the maintenance of jobs with temporary leave of work and payment of wages.

In turn, in a reply sent to Lusa, source of the Cascais City Council indicated that “although it is a matter of labour and private law, the situation of employment, tourism and economic activity” in the municipality “is a priority” for the municipality.

“ We have already been asked to meet, which is scheduled for the beginning of September to hear, reflect and find bridges and understandings that serve to continue to make Cascais one of the municipalities with the lowest unemployment rate at national level ", stressed the autarchy chaired by Nuno Piteira Lopes (PSD).

The Hotel Cascais Miragem, inaugurated in 2005, was acquired in 2025 by the Spanish group Ibervalles and the ARD Investment & Development for about €125 million, with an additional investment of about €80 million in refurbishment and repositioning of the unit, in a global project of about € 205 million.