Mar-a-Lago Grapples With Job Losses

A total of 713 workers have been furloughed at 2 Trump properties in Florida
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Apr 18, 2020 1:00 PM CDT
Even at Mar-a-Lago, Jobs Aren't Safe
In this photo taken April 15, 2017, President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Fla.   (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

Even Mar-a-Lago is letting employees go. As the coronavirus cripples Florida's hospital industry, the Palm Beach Post reports that two Trump Organization properties are furloughing "non-essential" staff. A total of 713 are being furloughed in all, with 153 at Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach and the rest at Trump Doral in Miami. "Due to the unforeseen business circumstances caused by the natural disaster and spread of the novel coronavirus, the mandated closures under Palm Beach County’s Declaration of Emergency, as well as recommendations regarding public gatherings ... the club has been forced to place its non-essential personnel on temporary furlough status," a Mar-a-Lago official wrote to the Florida Dept. of Economic Opportunity last month.

The letter says furloughs were likely temporary but no timeline was given "based on the fluid and rapidly evolving nature of this situation," per the Miami Herald. Full-and part-time workers are both facing furloughs, including 11 dishwashers, 19 valet attendants, and 32 servers, the Herald notes. Meanwhile, Forbes reports that Mar-a-Lago's business has declined in recent years, with revenue falling from $29 million in 2016 (when Trump began running for president) to $25 million in 2017 and $23 million in 2018. The Herald reported last year that the main property housing Doral's 643-room hotel lost 2% of its value after appraisers said income had fallen there. (More Mar-a-Lago stories.)

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