Cayman Islands developer NCB Construction appeared in court Tuesday charged with labour offences.
At this point, the company has been charged with five counts of failure to pay wages, three of failure to pay vacation pay and two of failure to pay severance pay.
Prosecutors told the court that more charges will follow, including health insurance and labour violations.
NCB is also being investigated over complaints of unpaid pensions.
Operations Manager Justin Matheson, who appeared on behalf of the company, claimed that “five of the 10 payments” listed in this set of charges had been paid.
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He added, “They intend to resolve this.”
Chief Magistrate Angelyn Hernandez directed that proof of those payments should be provided to the Department of Labour and Pensions. She also asked that the rest of the charges be laid by the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions as a matter of urgency.
The case was adjourned until 1 Dec.
Asked for clarification on pending charges, Department of Labour and Pensions Director Bennard Ebanks referred the Compass to his earlier statement, which said that “all labour complaint matters are processed promptly” and typically referred to the Labour Tribunal or the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions within 90 days.
Wider problems at NCB
The Compass has previously reported that multiple NCB employees have come forward alleging they are owed tens of thousands of dollars in unpaid wages, health insurance premiums and pension contributions.
Managing Director Matthew Wight acknowledged “delays in payments” and attributed them to “financial pressures the company has faced over the past year.”
Some of the pension deficits date back more than three years, according to documents reviewed by the Compass. Some of the employees said they had entered into settlement agreements with the company for the outstanding payments to be made in instalments over a number of months and only made reports to the Department of Labour and Pensions once those payments were missed.
NCB is facing wider financial problems across the group linked to its developments.
Its Kailani hotel project went into receivership earlier this year and the unfinished resort was put up for sale in September.
Meanwhile, NCB companies and their principals are facing litigation linked to allegations of missed repayments on more than US$40 million in financing connected to its Kailani and Auburn Bay developments.
Over the last 10 months, six separate lawsuits have been filed against NCB Group companies, with many also naming individuals involved in the company.