stopped an exodus of workers as the hotel's closure looms closer.

Around 450 workers at the Tucker's Town resort are set to lose their jobs when the hotel closes in November, but hard work by human resources staff is helping to ease the transition for many employees.

And workshops and job events, together with assistance from the Marriott network of hotels, have ensured that staff have received assurance about their futures.

The work has paid off, with no large numbers of staff leaving following an initial departure of 65 workers.

And now the resort is hoping to hold to its remaining workers as they work towards assisting people finding new jobs and opportunities.

Human Resources director Lorrita Tucker-Simmons said although some departments had been hit by staff shortages, particularly utilities, waiting and laundry, other sections had not been affected.

"We have talked about the closure, how it will affect them and how we would be able to help place them,'' said Mrs. Tucker-Simmons.

"The staff are very comfortable at this point. I believe they feel assured that we are doing just about everything we can to help them.

"We originally feared that people would leave immediately but that hasn't happened.'' Already many workers have been able to find new positions, many starting in November.

Some foreign and local staff have found jobs with Marriott overseas, with Greece and Atlanta just two of the locations.

Later this month a four-day workshop will be held to help staff consider their futures.

It will feature talks on stress counselling, tips for marketing their skills, and advice from the Bank of Bermuda and Bermuda College.

In September there will be a two-day job fair, which Marriott is hoping many Island employers will attend.

Mrs. Tucker-Simmons said a redundancy coordinator had also been appointed to deal with salary and holiday queries, and other Island hotels had also approached Marriott when they had staffing requirements.

The long-term approach is designed to ease the workers into the closure, rather than it coming as a last-minute shock.

"I am very sure most people will find something. People feel a lot more comfortable with it,'' she added. "We have had calls from other hotels who are very much interested in our people and plan to come to the job fair.''