THE 17 security guards manning the unfinished Imperial Pacific International casino hotel in Garapan received their two-week salary on Monday, after a weeklong delay.
Of the 15 in-house construction workers, only those earning less than $1,000 per payday received their salaries. Their team leader, Jesse Aquiningoc, said he and four other construction workers who earn more than $1,000 biweekly did not receive their pay.
IPI’s current employees including the eight administration staff were supposed to get paid on Feb. 25, but IPI International issued a notice informing them that the payroll for the period Feb. 7 to Feb. 20 would be delayed until further notice “due to the challenges of funding.”
Ton Mendiola, one of the security guards manning the casino hotel in Garapan, said he received his salary for the pay period Feb. 7 to Feb. 20. This coming Thursday is the next pay day, “so let’s see if there will be no delay this time,” he said.
According to a source from IPI’s management, the writ of execution issued by the District Court for NMI “will present some additional challenges.” The writ of execution in favor of Red Coral Corp., allows the seizure of IPI funds in Bank of Saipan to satisfy the $163,500 judgment against the casino operator.
The source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said the last time the U.S. Marshals executed a writ of execution in favor of IPI’s former contractor, Pacific Rim, “Bank of Saipan closed all IPI accounts.”
With this recent writ of execution, the IPI management source said “all the money in the accounts will be raided, most likely the accounts will be emptied and closed and IPI will miss eight payrolls.”
A former employee said the writ of execution “would be a devastating blow to IPI’s ability to continue as a going business concern.” The writ, he added, “will effectively prevent IPI from paying its employees and also hinder its ability to pay its obligations.”
This would be the second time a writ of execution will seize IPI’s accounts so it is possible that the bank will no longer allow IPI to open new accounts, the former employee said.
The casino, which is facing several lawsuits filed by former vendors and employees, has shut down since March 2020 with the onset of the global Covid-19 pandemic.
The unfinished Imperial Pacific International casino hotel in Garapan.
