Govt forms committee to settle $35 million Roosevelt Hotel union dispute, approves $153 million GoP guarantee for PIAIL-NBP deal

Profit reported that the Economic Coordination Committee of the Cabinet has approved a negotiation committee to resolve a labour dispute with the union at New York's Roosevelt Hotel. The dispute stems from a November arbitration award that obliges the owners to make severance payments of no less than $35 million, and could add about $1 million monthly in employee costs from January this year.

The panel includes officials from the Defence and Finance ministries and the Privatisation Commission, alongside a US-based legal adviser and two PIA Investment Limited Board members. Its brief is to pursue one comprehensive settlement covering every open matter with the union, along with the withdrawal of grievances and court cases filed by both sides. It will also seek the union's commitment to help secure no-objection certificates and regulatory permissions needed for redevelopment.

The hotel has stayed closed since 2025, and the dispute could affect redevelopment plans and the arrangement with the US General Services Administration, which followed a memorandum of understanding signed in February this year. Separately, the ECC raised the hotel's borrowing limit to $153.8 million and allowed its loan from National Bank of Pakistan to be converted into rupees against sovereign guarantees.