Staff shocked as Toowoomba business shuts doors

WITHOUT notice, a single mother of a child with a disability has been left without an income after her employer of two years closed her place of work.

WITHOUT notice, a single mother of a child with a disability has been left without an income after her employer of two years closed DeLacy's Hotel and the associated Bottlemart bottle shop.

Through tears, Emily Lund said she didn't know what to do with a home loan, a car loan and a 10-year-old son who has a form of autism.

"He turns 11 in three weeks' time," the 29-year-old said.

"He saw me crying this morning and when he asked me what was wrong I told him I didn't know if I had a job.

"He started crying and asked 'does that mean I won't have a birthday party?'.

"Because it's so close to Christmas it will be hard finding another job too as most of the (hospitality) jobs have been taken by now.

"The timing couldn't be worse."

Emily Lund along with other staff from DeLacy's Hotel and the Bottlemart at Northlands were sacked after closures. October 2018. Picture: Bev Lacey

Because staff were hired as casuals, there was no severance pay.

John Anderson, who owns DeLacy's Hotel, The Settlers Inn and the Norville Hotel, has been in failing health so his sons Rob and Lachlan have been responsible for those businesses.

A spokeswoman for the business told The Chronicle DeLacy's simply was no longer viable as a business.

"This was not an easy decision to make," she said.

"But after meetings with the banks and accountants it was found DeLacy's is just not a viable business at the moment."

However, there were no plans at this stage to sell the DeLacy's property.

She would not comment on speculation that The Settlers Inn too could close.

"We're only focusing on DeLacy's today," she said.

"We're trying to get staff into other pubs.

"I don't know what is going to happen with The Settlers.

"Pubs are a very difficult trade these days."

Ms Lund had worked at DeLacy's bottle shop, Bottlemart, at Northlands Shopping Centre for the past two years.

"We got a text message at 5.30pm (Monday) to say there would be a staff meeting at DeLacy's at 8.30am today (yesterday).

"We arrived to find we were locked out, we were asked for our keys and handed the letter.

"There's a lot of beautiful people now out of work.

"We might have been a bit of a dysfunctional family, but we were a family."

Originally published as Staff shocked as Toowoomba business shuts doors