The Bahamas Hotel Maintenance and Allied Workers Union has not filed a trade dispute, despite threatening to do so if Labour Minister Shane Gibson did not sign a certificate recognizing that union as the bargaining agent for line staff at Sandals all-inclusive resort.
The unionﾒs lawyer, Obie Ferguson, told the Journal that he had been in contact with labour authorities.
“As a result of the position taken by the workers at Sandals, I have had preliminary discussions with the director of labour (Harcourt Brown), and as a result of that discussion, it became necessary for us not to file a trade dispute as was intended,” Mr. Ferguson said.
“We are reasonably satisfied that the director of labour ﾖ certainly the minister ﾖ would ensure that the wishes of the people are realized and not the wishes of [Sandals General Manager Stephen] Ziadie.”
Mr. Ferguson reiterated his expectation that Minister Gibson would recognize the hotel maintenance union, led by Lynden Taylor, “in short order.”
“A proposal will be sent to the company to begin the negotiation,” he said. “This is a very straightforward matter. The workers say they want the Bahamas Hotel Maintenance and Allied Workers Union. Itﾒs not for Mr. Ziadie to decide which union they associate with.”
However, Mr. Ziadie told the Journal he was not trying to make such a decision by recognizing the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union. He insisted that among other reasons, Sandals recognized the other union because the hotel maintenance union did not respond to the hotelﾒs enquiries into its intentions.
“At no time have I discouraged or encouraged anybody to join any particular union. We have never discouraged any of our staff at any time to not join a union,” Mr. Ziadie said.
“Weﾒve operated here for 10 years, and weﾒve operated as a family and been able to be non-unionized. I have always told my staff that it is their constitutional right to have a union and if they so desire, they can do so. Weﾒre forcing nobody to do anything.”
Asked about the possibility that workers in the hotel maintenance union might strike, Mr. Ziadie insisted that his organization had done nothing wrong.
“We intend to talk to our employees as we have in the past. We have done nothing wrong here. We have gone with a more established union that operates within The Bahamas having over 80 percent of the workers in the industry, and weﾒre confident that we will dialogue with our staff to come to some agreement that we move down the road,” he said.
Mr. Ferguson sees it differently. He said the workers at Sandals had already made their own choice.
“They have expressly, openly, legally and otherwise conveyed that to the honourable minister, and thatﾒs the only application by law presently in front of the minister,” he said.
“I am reasonably satisfied that if the law is allowed to take its course, the workers would be given the certificate (recognizing Mr. Taylorﾒs union) in short order and they would begin to negotiate with Sandals in a responsible and reasonable manner.”
Mr. Ferguson did not foresee difficult relations between Sandals and the union, despite the threat of a strike so early in those relations.
By: Quincy Parker, The Bahama Journal
