Around the same time in the morning, he would be headed to Kupundole to begin his shift as the Captain (responsible for food and beverages) at Bricks Café. This however, isn't an option anymore. With the Brick's Café suffering damages from the earthquake, the building isn't in a state to run business. They have been closed for almost four months now. So these days Dhungana finds himself a little aimless. He confesses that he spends his day mostly wandering around Kathmandu.

 

It's an issue that's been quietly bubbling underneath the hectic façade of the city. While it appears that the country's workforce has resumed its normal pace, the truth is there are some, especially in the hospitality industry, who haven't been able to do so.

 

Shankar Singhdam of Kathmandu's Labor and Employment office can back up the claim with their records. "So far we have had four official application placed by managements of different hotels. Their complaint is that they have made redundant without a fair severance package. Unofficially, our sources state that around 9-10 other restaurants and hotels have been forced to close their businesses for the moment. They haven't approached us though. They might be trying to sort things out themselves," says Singhdam.

 

Being victims of circumstance, both the establishments and the staff members are confronted with a unique challenge to meet a settlement which is suitable for both the parties. Shiva Karki, HR manager of Hotel Royal Singhi, shares that he and the hotel's team had to navigate the tricky situation themselves. With the luxurious four star hotel deemed to be at risk after the earthquake, they immediately had to begin planning its reconstruction. This meant that their 100 plus staff wouldn't have any guests to carter to or even a hotel to work at for a couple of months. Hotel Royal Singhi would obviously suffer a huge loss of revenue but it also couldn't shirk its responsibility and leave its staff in a financial lurch.

 

"Thankfully we had the cooperation of our employees," says Karki. "We plan to reopen by September. In fact, people have already made bookings as well and we want to rehire the same people who have worked for us all these years. So now we have an understanding. We continue to pay them a basic salary and they report back to us once we officially open again," he adds.

 

So even though, at present the hotel is empty and looks like a massive construction site, workers such as Gyanendra Adhikari, 40, harbor hopes of returning to work in its splendor. Nevertheless Adhikari isn't holding his breath for a call back just yet. That's where the problem arises. He has to look after his family of four and even though he insists he appreciates the Royal Singhi's management trying to be fair in this difficult situation, the basic salary is not quite enough for him. So after weeks of being unemployed and hustling around town looking for vacancies , Adhikari has recently landed a job in another kitchen through a

friend's help.

 

"The hotel's business is down so I guess their hands are tied as well. We can't make high demands right now. I'm waiting for the day, Hotel Royal Singhi will reopen but till then I have to find other ways to feed my family, pay the bills, and send my children to school," says Adhikari.

 

Singhdam at Kathmandu's Labor and Employment office can see it for himself. The shutdown of some restaurants has forced many previously employed workers to take an extended break or look for another job altogether. Interestingly, there are also cases where the management doesn't have enough applicants to fulfill the required positions. There are cases of youngsters being hurt in the disaster and many youths have also chosen to go back home to assist their families.

 

"Fortunate" that's how Manoj Karki, 25, defines the scenario. He too was among the staff members who had to be cut from the Brick's café. Even though he was given a stipend by the establishment for a month or so, it's not confirmed when or if he would get a call back to work there again. Karki knew he had to find some work.

 

"Fortunately I knew a friend who informed me that the restaurant he worked at was in need of a waiter. Apparently the previous waiter was injured while visiting his village after the major quake. I know I got lucky because I still have many friends who were laid off like me and despite their efforts have not been able to land a job," shares Karki.

 

For some people like Bhim Parsad Dahal, 29, a job hunt is not the priority. For more than two months, he, along with the rest of the 230 employees of the Everest Hotel, has been holding a peaceful demonstration. Every day he spends the 10-5 working hours sitting behind the grounds of the now shut down hotel compound because he feels like the hotel management has done them wrong.

 

"The managers and owners of the hotel are using the earthquake as an excuse to get rid of the hotel staff. Initially we were told to stay on leave for a couple of weeks. The weeks then turned into a month and eventually they sent a notice saying that they were cutting almost all of the staff members. They didn't even want to give us any settlement money. We are shocked and disappointed so we have taken our case to court. Each and every one of us comes in every single day to sit for a day long peace demonstration. We have been doing it for more than two months now," says Hom Subedee, Dahal's colleague and head of their United Labor Party.

 

The Everest Hotel's management declined to comment on the matter but their 230 staff members have no intention of letting the matter rest. They are all standing together despite being unemployed and not receiving any pay since the earthquake. Further, they don't plan to apply for work anywhere else until their case is resolved.

 

The earthquake has not only displaced people from their houses but from their jobs as well. They maybe in the minority but the fact remains that people, especially from the hospitality industry, find themselves in a tough spot these days. Kathmandu's Labor and Employment office states that the government is yet to make a decision on the provisions to handle these special cases. For the time being, the office's representatives can only try and act as mediators and encourage both the parties to come an agreement. So for the time being many, like Dhungana, are left to their own devices. Their wait continues. Only time will tell if these employment complications will be resolved or if it will turn into a full blown problem.