PROVIDENCE – Despite the owner and operator of the R.I. Convention Center Authority venues filing a notice for more than 1,000 layoffs earlier this month, the convention center authority says all workers will remain employed as it transitions to a new managing company.
ASM Global, which manages the R.I. Convention Center Authority properties, including the R.I. Convention Center and the Amica Mutual Pavilion, on May 4 filed a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification, or WARN notice, with the state, indicating that it will lay off 1,029 employees effective June 30.
But an additional note on the report, which was last updated on Wednesday, states that "All 1,029 workers are being retained." That includes 800 employees who are represented by eight different unions, according to the notice.
According to the R.I. Department of Labor and Training's website, the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act is "a federal law requiring employers of 100 or more full-time workers to give 60-days advance notice of a plant closing or mass layoff. This federal law applies to employers in the state of Rhode Island."
It wasn't immediately clear if ASM Global's May 4 filing with an effective layoff date of June 30 was in violation of the WARN Act.
ASM Global and Daniel McConaghy, executive director of the R.I. Convention Center Authority, did not respond to a PBN inquiry.
But at a March 28 meeting of the convention center authority's board of commissioners, minutes show that members unanimously voted to approve Denver-based Oak View Group LLC as its new management services company, with negotiations to follow.
This decision was based on Oak View Group's "professionalism, enthusiasm, opportunities for growth, [and] emphasis on helping in our areas of struggle, such as parking," the meeting minutes state.
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.