The Chinese investors ordered that the Port be closed as an illegal strike stretched into a third day. The workersﾴ action was taken in support of their union president, John Rolle, who was terminated from the facility earlier in the week.
Port officials said in a weekend statement that the facility will recommence operations on Monday to facilitate the requests of customers who have suffered significant financial losses as a result of the illegal work stoppage.
For now, the work will centre around removing existing containers located at the Port, according to officials.
The regionﾴs major transhipment facility is the main U.S. and Caribbean hub for the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), the worldﾴs largest shipping group.
ﾓAll employees who abandoned the workplace on Wednesday, June 23 (29 of them) have been terminated and as a result of the immediate reduction in business levels caused by the illegal work stoppage, the company has been forced to reduce staff levels immediately,ﾒ the statement said.
Since opening in April 1997, the Freeport Container Port has been a key engine of economic growth in Grand Bahama.
On Friday, Willie Moss, president of the Grand Bahama Port Authority, told reporters that, ﾓThe cost of this type of activity in terms of the message it sends to other investors is phenomenal. The Port Authority has spent millions and millions of dollars in trying to bring investors into Freeport.
ﾓThis type of reckless, irresponsible behaviour cannot be allowed and it cannot be condoned.ﾒ
Government officials, meanwhile, are also concerned about the message the illegal strike at the Port and the subsequent closure of the facility have sent to present and potential investors.
At least one other investor recognized recently the potential impact that such industrial action could have.
Kerzner International warned in its share offering prospectus that work stoppages and other labour disputes could harm the companyﾴs financial condition and results of operations.
ﾓLabour relations in the Bahamas have been unstable at times over the last few years and there have been occasional work stoppages,ﾒ Kerzner said.
The future of the Container Port remains uncertain as Hutchison officials consider whether the business will continue in the Bahamas.
President of the National Congress of Trade Unions Pat Bain declined comment on the matter Sunday, saying that discussions with the relevant officials were ongoing and he did not want to compromise anything.
The NCTU has been negotiating on behalf of the workers at the Port.
The Bahama Journal
