section of the hotel earn less than maids in other areas, but said the Princess "was not prepared'' to subsidise their income because of the recession.

Rooms division manager Mr. Henry "Hal'' Browne was testifying before the Essential Industries Disputes Settlement Board, which is to resolve contract disputes between the Hotel Employers of Bermuda and the Bermuda Industrial Union.

Under cross-examination from BIU president Mr. Ottiwell Simmons MP, Mr. Browne said housekeepers working in the hotel's Princess Club section earned less take-home pay than other maids because the Club's rooms are generally occupied by single guests, reducing gratuities.

Hamilton Princess housekeeping gratuities are currently $6 per guest per day.

The money for each section is divided among the staff.

The Princess Club was created some six years ago on the hotel's sixth and seventh floors as an "exclusive club'' for businessmen and executives.

Besides their room, Club guests have additional amenities such as a separate lounge where they are served breakfast and afternoon wine and cheese.

In addition to the disparity in gratuities, Princess Club housekeepers have also complained they have more tasks than other maids, such as constantly clearing up glasses and plates of food which the guests bring in from the lounge.

Mr. Browne did not agree with this assessment, and said he believed they had a lighter workload because Club guests did not spend that much time in the hotel. He said the maids were only required to place tableware outside for room service staff.

Mr. Browne also said hotel management had suggested two alternative arrangements to alleviate the tip problem, but both were rejected by the staff.

The first proposal involved allowing senior employees to move elsewhere in the hotel while assigning junior maids to the Princess Club. Rotating the entire housekeeping staff to different sections at regular intervals, which Mr.

Browne called the "most fair (plan) on paper'', was also rejected.

Before closing for the day, Mr. Simmons requested documents from the Princess showing total housekeeping gratuities from 1991, how they were distributed, the amount retained by the hotel and what guests are told about the gratuity system.

The hearings resume on Tuesday.