'Like family': Hotel Miramar staff reflect on decades of friendship, memories before final goodbye

SINGAPORE: In 1973, two years after Hotel Miramar opened along Havelock Road, a 17-year-old Florence Tan started work there as a room attendant.

It was a big year for tourism in the island nation: Singapore was hosting the 1973 Southeast Asian Peninsular Games for the first time, the Singapore Zoological Gardens held its official opening, and officials announced that Singapore had reached its “million-tourists-a-year mark”.

For Mdm Tan, her introduction to working life, tidying and servicing rooms at the four-star hotel, was a whirlwind. Hotel Miramar has over 340 rooms.

“It was a bit tough. But as I worked longer, I began to love. Because the people are all very nice,” said Mdm Tan, who is now 69 and a senior housekeeping executive.

Her colleagues, bosses and guests have become family, and Hotel Miramar, her second home, she said.

Although she had hoped to work there until 75, she will have to find another job when the hotel closes at the end of October.

“These are all the memories that are inside my heart,” she said. “So it feels sad to let go.”  

Mdm Tan is among 28 staff members who have spent at least a decade of their lives at the hotel. She spoke to CNA, along with five other staff members, in a group interview at the hotel on Tuesday (Sep 2).  

Hotel Miramar announced that it would cease operations on Aug 29 after more than 50 years of business. A total of 108 employees will be laid off.

"This difficult decision was made after careful and comprehensive evaluation of the hotel's long-term business outlook," the hotel and the Food, Drinks and Allied Workers Union (FDAWU) said in a joint statement.

The hotel said it had engaged early with the union and would provide fair retrenchment packages, with additional payouts to recognise long-serving employees. Employees with less than two years of service will also receive an ex gratia payment.

The management has “gone above and beyond its collective agreement to support impacted employees” to ensure that workers’ welfare is prioritised, FDAWU added.

The union also said it would work closely with the hotel to help affected employees secure new jobs by connecting them to the labour movement’s network, such as NTUC's Employment and Employability Institute (e2i).

According to the National Heritage Board website Roots.gov.sg, the hotel opened in 1971 and was one of the few hotels established in the area during the construction boom in the late 1960s and 1970s.

Mdm Tan recalls those days as the hotel’s heyday.

“Occupancy was always full-house,” she said. “Everybody was busy.”

A HOSPITALITY ICON

Over the years, Hotel Miramar played host to countless weddings and corporate events and gained a reputation as an independent operator in an increasingly crowded hospitality scene.

According to Roots, the hotel was hit by a spate of thefts in the 1970s and 1980s, and was also the venue for opposition leader J. B. Jeyaretnam’s public forum on free speech in July 1986.  

In 1992, the hotel became part of a joint initiative known as “The Riverside: Havelock Downtown Hotels” by the then-Singapore Tourist Promotion Board to draw tourists to the area.

The initiative also included Apollo Singapore Hotel, Furama Singapore Hotel, The Glass Hotel, King’s Hotel and River View Hotel, according to newspaper archives. Today, Hotel Miramar is the only independent hotel standing, as the other hotels were bought over or re-branded. 
 

Aside from the business aspect, the hotel had always treated its staff well, said the veterans who spoke to CNA.

Mdm Stephanie Goh, who started as a part-time waitress in 1991, said their boss, managing director Ken Lim, always took good care of the staff.

She held back her tears as she recalled how Mr Lim checked in on her after an operation.

“Until now, deep inside my heart, (I) always think of Miramar,” said the 65-year-old, who is now a restaurant captain.

Mr Lim had hailed the hotel’s veteran staff when Hotel Miramar announced its impending closure, stating that while the hotel has been part of the nation’s hospitality story for over five decades, “what truly defines us are the people behind the hotel”.

Mdm Kaval Jit Kaur, a purchasing officer, told CNA that the management always provided opportunities for staff to improve themselves through upgrading courses.

“We feel sad because we have one of the best bosses. We couldn't ask for more,” said Mdm Kaur, 64, adding that the management was always there for them whenever they had any personal problems. 

Even when things were uncertain during the COVID-19 pandemic, the staff stayed as they felt supported by each other.

Ms Ma Nel Cargason, 34, an assistant food and beverage outlet manager, said that many foreign workers, especially those in the F&B department, had left during the pandemic. Amid a shortage of workers, other departments stepped in to help.

“It’s not like… you put a line in between. So we help each other (with) the trust that the boss gives us, that each department helps each other,” she said.

Staff told CNA they were in disbelief when they heard the news of the closure.

Mr Aaron Chio, 37, said he was at work when he found out. He immediately messaged his colleagues, asking if it was true.

“We thought that I'm the one (who) will retire first, but end up the hotel retire first,” said the front office manager, who has worked at the hotel since he was a management trainee 14 years ago.

“It's very hard to accept, but we need to face it.”

NEXT STEPS

In July, The Business Times reported that negotiations for the sale of the hotel were said to be in “advanced stages”. The property, which partially opened in 1971 after its owner-operator was set up in 1968, sits on a site with a balance leasehold tenure of about 41 and a half years.

The hotel told CNA it would not comment on what would happen to the hotel’s site after its closure.

Speaking to CNA about the hotel’s journey, Mr Ivan Lim, the director of operations, said that Hotel Miramar faced manpower challenges.

“Ever since COVID came, things have changed,” he said, adding that the hotel also had to deal with rising supply costs and competition from newer hotels.

From his conversations with employees, he understands that business was better in the 1970s and 1980s. “Now, you have to do so much just to get someone through the door.”

With the days counting down to the hotel’s closure, staff said that things are mostly business as usual. After all, there are still guests to serve.

Ms Cargason said she is trying to stay positive.

“We're just telling ourselves it's okay. Now we can go travel altogether. No one can stop us now,” she said. With work, it has been difficult to meet outside, she explained.

Ultimately, their bonds will last beyond the hotel’s closure.

During the interview, Mr Chio gestured to three colleagues sitting nearby, including Mr Ivan Lim. They are godmothers and fathers to his two-year-old daughter, he said.  

“So it’s not just colleagues. It’s connection,” he said. “After this Miramar, we still keep in touch because the bond is different.” 

The staff are now in the process of searching for their next jobs with the help of their HR department and the FDAWU, which has provided resources, including a list of job openings.

Most of them hope to continue working in the hospitality or service sector, armed with the skills they have picked up over their years at the hotel.

“I grow up here, gain everything from here, from the day when I joined, until the closing chapter,” said Mr Raymond Lim, 50, an executive assistant manager of operations who has worked at the hotel for 24 years.

He is also open to trying something new. “No harm. Maybe I can experience different things, another new chapter for me, new life,” he said.

Long-time employee Mdm Tan said she would like to join Mr Raymond Lim - whom she has come to see as a son - in his next job if possible.

She will miss her colleagues, bosses and guests, who often treat the staff like family, she said.

“I must treasure them for this month, every day must go and be close to them.”