Eight staff in the maintenance department of The Reefs hotel have been made redundant, in a move attributed by the Southampton hotel to outsourcing.

Workers who lost their jobs will be able to reapply for positions with the alternate firm.

The layoffs were confirmed by the Bermuda Industrial Union, although the union gave no details as to the number of unionised staff or how many were Bermudian.

A statement issued by Reefs general manager Nagma Walker cited necessary cost cuts. The jobs went to a local company, iFM, of which Ascendant Group is listed online as the parent company.

Last night an Ascendant spokeswoman sent the following: “We cannot comment on organisational changes made by our client, except to say that staff who were made redundant will be considered candidates for employment by iFM.”

Yesterday’s statement by The Reefs expressed regret at the move.

“The announcement of redundancy is never an easy decision; however it is a necessary one for the survival of our business,” it read.

“After thorough and careful consideration of different alternatives, and given the fact that we have an ageing physical plant, we believe the partnership with iFM will assist The Reefs in the optimisation and efficiency of its maintenance operations.

“This partnership also allows The Reefs to have access to a pool of highly qualified technicians and mechanics, and to reduce its operational costs.

“In order to provide our guests with the best experience possible, we need to maintain and enhance our physical product to a high standard. The professional implementation and management of initiatives such as energy conservation, preventive maintenance and long-term asset management is vital to the hotel’s future. We believe the best way to achieve this is through leveraging the systems, capabilities and experience of a strong, local company such as iFM.

“Not only will they help us deliver an excellent customer experience in the short term but, crucially, will also safeguard our physical assets and future product investments in the long term.

“We are providing full support to all our employees affected by this change.”

The announcement came three years after hotly disputed cuts were made in the same department at The Reefs, when the hotel said it had to scale back its operations.

Those cuts, in November 2011, resulted in industrial action by maintenance staff, and there was heightened security some days later when an apparent Molotov cocktail was thrown at the employees’ dormitory, causing only minor damage.