The Tribune

By SANCHESKA BROWN

Tribune Staff Reporter

sbrown@tribunemedia.net

MORE than 100 BEC workers walked off the job yesterday after a union executive was suspended and another employee was terminated “without cause”.

The workers gathered at the Bahamas Electricity Corporation’s headquarters on Baillou Hill Road demanding the Prime Minister fire BEC Chairman Leslie Miller and immediately reinstate the fired employee.

Urban Smith, Vice President of the Bahamas Electrical Workers Union, said the corporation fired the woman, an employee for 17 years, without a valid reason.

He also claims the suspended employee, who is also an executive in the union, was being victimised for exercising his freedom of speech.

“Two of our employees were victimised. A union executive was suspended for five days for what they call gross misconduct and it is this union’s position that in this corporation our freedom of speech is being violated.

“Where in this country is there a place where we do not have the right to voice our opinion? Why can’t we say how we feel? Only the chairman has the prerogative in this country and in this corporation to say whatever he wants to say, to whom he wants to say it, when he wants to say it?

“But when we attempt to state our opinion we are terminated? That is not right,” he said.

“They terminated one of our employees and all the letter says is that she was terminated. In a unionised corporation our agreement states that BEC stated what she is being terminated for but the corporation has said nothing. You look at her records, her appraisal forms, she is an excellent employee and here it is she is being victimized. We are standing against it. This must not happen.”

Mr Smith said if the fired employee is not reinstated immediately things will “only get worse for the corporation.”

He said: “We call upon the Prime Minister and the Deputy Prime Minister to please come and intervene immediately. We are not going to be tolerant, we are not going to wait any longer. We call upon them to act immediately. It only gets worse from here. We want her reinstated and we are asking that she be reinstated immediately. If they do not do it, I am sad to say the corporation will have to suffer the consequences. Now whatever that means, you are intelligent, you read between the lines.

“We want Leslie Miller fired. We want him gone, not tomorrow, but today. If our employee could get terminated today why can’t the chairman be fired today?”

Speaking with The Tribune, Mr Miller said the corporation has the right to “disassociate” itself from anyone in the company at any time.

He said: “It’s as simple as that. When you look at the industrial relations act anyone has the right to terminate an employee, you give them what you have for them and that’s it. I do not have to go into specifics, she was terminated, with cause.”

Mr Miller said if the workers do not return to their jobs the corporation will do what is necessary.

“If they decide to take their services away, the corporation will do what is necessary. Plenty Bahamians out there looking for jobs, thousands of them. I will not allow 600 people to run this corporation or to run this country. This corporation is owned by the people of the Bahamas, not some union members who believe they run this corporation, it will not happen as long as I’m here,” he said.

“They think they own the corporation, some of whom taking home $85,000 a year in overtime. One of the big ones who caused most of the trouble, for the last seven years, he took him $80,000 a year in overtime but he is the king. I know what his money is and that’s in addition to his about $70,000 a year in salary, you figure it out. You’ll have to appreciate why they do what they do.

“This whole thing is about the rostering and overtime and everything else, this is just them wanting an excuse to do what they have to do, they been doing it now for 30 years and it’s time now for them to stop.”

Union members met with Deputy Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis last night. Up to press time, he was not available for comment.