Managers at Atlantis Resort were added to the unemployment list, as a number of them this week were made redundant.

It is estimated that as many as 40 managers were sent home.

In a brief press release issued late yesterday afternoon, Atlantis confirmed the reduction exercise, and attempted to give justification for the move.

“Atlantis, in an effort to remain competitive in the marketplace has over the past several months reviewed its management structure. As a result, consolidations have taken place over the past several months both in Ft. Lauderdale and locally resulting in several management positions being made redundant. The consolidations were primarily at the management level,” the statement said.

“These measures are not taken lightly, but are necessary in order to allow for the business to grow and to provide for capacity to reinvest which will result in greater job creation where positions are needed in the future.”

A few employees have expressed their disgust to the Bahama Journal on what has transpired yesterday.

One particular employee suggested that the international resort’s real motive is to remove Bahamian workers from managerial positions and replace them with foreigners.

These latest layoffs come months after the beleaguered multi- billion dollar Baha Mar Resort laid off over 2,000 employees.

Around that time, many wondered if Atlantis would consider taking in or in some instances, re-hire some of those individuals affected.

When asked, Mr. Fields said Atlantis was unable to recruit any additional human resources, mainly due to the enormous demand in maintenance of the resort.

“Our expenses continue to go up. We have electricity to pay. We have basic license fees to pay. Minimum wage has been increased. There’s National Health Insurance that’s on the rise. There’s a whole range of things that impact our expense level,” he said.

He added that Atlantis will continue to work with their existing employee base and continue to maintain world standards.

In November 2008, Kerzner International conducted a massive downsizing exercise of 900 employees due to low occupancy levels brought on by a poor global economy.

In September 2014, the resort was contemplating the layoff of 300 employees, but after negotiations, the jobs of those individuals were secured.