The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

Grand Bahama Power Company yesterday made 19 staff redundant as part of a restructuring designed to “retire” its steam generation plant, a senior executive telling Tribune Business the engines at its new $80 million power plant were up to four times’ more efficient.

Whitney Heastie, Grand Bahama Power’s vice-president of generation, said the monopoly electricity provider was in the third, cost-cutting phase of its turnaround programme.

With the company focused on reducing power costs for its residential and business customers, and the new $80 million West Sunrise plant now fully operational, Mr Heastie said yesterday’s redundancies were part of a process that began 18 months ago when talks were started with the trade union representing Grand Bahama Power’s line staff.

With yesterday’s action reducing Grand Bahama Power’s workforce from 180 to just over 160 staff, Mr Heastie explained that phasing out the steam plant was necessary to generate increased efficiencies and lower power costs.

Comparing the steam plant with the new West Sunrise operation, Mr Heastie likened the former to “a vehicle that gets 8 miles per gallon, versus 32 miles per gallon”.

“The actual efficiency of the steam plant units is anywhere from 200 kilowatt (KWh) hours per barrel [of fuel[] to 400 KWh per barrel,” Mr Heastie told Tribune Business.

“At the West Sunrise Plant, you’re looking at 750 KWh to 800 KWh per barrel.”

Putting it in context, Mr Heastie said: “When we looked at the steam plant, we likened it in comparison to the Sunrise plant, as a vehicle that gets eight miles per gallon versus 32 miles per gallon.”

Describing yesterday’s redundancies as “a tough decision”, Mr Heastie said Grand Bahama Power had begun an assessment of its technology, processes and systems 18 months ago, the goal being to improve consumer welfare.

Referring to the decision to close the Peel Street-based steam plant, he added: “When we looked at the cost savings, we were more concerned with the long-term effect on our customers.

“We recognise it was a tough but very necessary decision to move the company forward, and we’re looking at the best interests of our consumers.”

Grand Bahama Power was looking to bring in more efficient fuels into its generation mix, and Mr Heastie said consumers would soon see the benefits of the West Sunrise Plant in terms of reduced fuel surcharges in their bills.

He added that “no more redundancies are anticipated at this time”.

While happy that the 19 workers made redundant received all the compensation they were entitled, Leslie Lightbourne, president of the Commonwealth Electrical Workers Union (CEWU), said the union was upset with how the process was handled.

He added that the CEWU was first consulted on the proposed redundancies only at 8am yesterday, and half-an-hour later the affected workers were informed and given their financial payments.

Mr Lightbourne argued that this was insensitive, as those being made redundant could have been “embarrassed” when passing their still-employed colleagues who were also reporting to work at the same time.

Suggesting that the union could have been informed of the termination plans on Wednesday, and the affected workers stay home and only come in to pick up their cheques, Mr Lightbourne said the CEWU’s membership at Grand Bahama Power had now dropped to 80.

And, adding in 11 previous lay-offs, Mr Lightbourne said CEWU members at the company had fallen by 30 - from a high of 110.

“The union’s position is very clear,” Mr Lightbourne told Tribune Business. “It [the redundancies] comes as a little shock, but we knew it was coming. We didn’t expect it so soon; we thought they would have a little more grace and wait until after Christmas.”

The union president said Grand Bahama Power’s recent actions, such as terminating long-serving employees for “minor” infractions, were actions the CEWU “sort of picked up on”.

All 19 made redundant were union members, and Mr Lightbourne said: ‘I would have done it in much better taste and manner.

“What we would have expected was that they would sit down with the union ahead of time, we could have done it yesterday, and then we could have informed the employees so that they did not have to come to work, only pick up their final payment and come to human resources.”

Mr Lightbourne, though, conceded that the payments received by all the workers were “more than fair”, and greater than the minimum set out in the Employment Act.

Apart from receiving one month’s pay for each year worked, those let go were given 12 weeks’ notice pay and an additional one month’s pay until the end of October. They also received all their’s, and the employer’s contributions to their savings/pension plans.

Mr Lightbourne said 10-11 of the redundant workers were “ecstatic and very happy”, as they received bumper payouts due to working for the company for over 35 years. Average salary levels of between $2,500-$3,000 gave some idea of the payout’s size.

The union president, though, again expressed unhappiness at what he termed “union busting” tactics in relation to the new West Sunrise Plant.

Suggesting that Grand Bahama Power had moved to slash its labour costs, he said the $80 million plant was owned by one of its subsidiary companies.

Workers moving over to it had to resign from Grand Bahama Power, Mr Lightbourne said, and become “contractors” working for its subsidiary.

In resigning, they gave up the benefits of their union contract for a higher salary. Mr Lightbourne said that when benefits were factored in, those employees working at the new plant had gone from earning $28 per hour to $24 per hour.

“Why make your own employees resign to become a contractor? It can only be union busting,”he argued.

‘The Government gave us no help in that. I’m disappointed with both governments. It started under the FNM, and the PLP helped it along the way.

“The union has limited resources, while Emera [Grand Bahama Power’s] majority shareholder is a billion-dollar company. So it’s like trying to fight City Hall, but it is what it is.”

Mr Lightbourne said the CEWU was also trying to get its industrial contract registered, and was set to meet with the Government over the issues it had.