The Tribune

EDITOR, The Tribune.

Comments of Minister Shane Gibson on redundancies at Scotiabank are totally irrational and totally misunderstanding of the difference between a Work Permit holder and redundancy.

All banking institutions are modernising with e-this and that, something which today’s consumer asks for, but unfortunately the consumer does not understand, that with this modernisation comes what we are now seeing at the following banks – RBC, Scotiabank and CIBC First Caribbean... Modernisation saves enormous costs and reduces the requirement of employees – sorry Minister Gibson there is zero connection between redundancies and Immigration Permits. You know as well as anyone else a Work Permit is ONLY issued where there are no Bahamians who can fulfil that responsibility.

A banking e-banking platform does not need to be paid weekly – no Health Insurance – no NIB – no Pension – no high BEC bill, just click and the transaction is done with little costs.

Yes there is a danger owing to the opening – when it actually does – of Baha Mar that this opening will cause a rethink of the employee levels, because there is a significant danger that the current occupancy levels will reduce, as even with the denials of Ministry of Tourism in 2014. The stay-over numbers were very negative in comparison with the rest of the Cariibbean, south of Cuba.

SPORTS TOURISM and hotel room rates – for the Sunshine Marathon, Atlantis was offering rooms at a 60 per cent discount. For the week-end of IAAF Relays, Atlantis was again offering room rates at 60 per cent discount. So we are really giving away the rooms at the expense of the Bahamian employees, whose 15 per cent gratuity will be calculated and paid at a 60 per cent discount – senseless!

ABRAHAM MOSS

Nassau,

April 1, 2015.