The Tribune

By NATARIO McKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

PRESIDENT of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Obie Ferguson said that the union had been left with “no other alternative” but to file criminal charges against Sandals Royal Bahamian and its top executives for failing to negotiate an industrial agreement since 2009, a move prompted by the recent termination of union officers employed at the Cable Beach all-inclusive property.

Gary Williams, Sandals Royal Bahamian’s general manager, confirmed to The Tribune that he had received a summons to appear in court on August 10. “They have summoned me to court. The matter is going to court. The issue with the union has been with the courts for some period now, well before my tenure. It’s with the lawyers so I don’t want to say anything to prejudice the case,” said Mr Williams.

The TUC and its Bahamas Hotel Maintenance & Allied Workers Union (BHMAWU) affiliate, which represents some 500 plus workers at Sandals Royal Bahamian, have had a long-standing dispute with the resort over the issue of union recognition. In 2011, the BHMAWU secured a ruling by the Privy Council that it and not the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) be recognised as the bargaining agent for Sandals Royal Bahamian employees. Despite this however, Sandals has refused to negotiate with BHMAWU, union officials have said.

“From 2009 to now, Sandals has been violating the laws of the Bahamas and in a criminal manner,” said Mr Ferguson. “We have not been able to get the government of the Bahamas to bring criminal proceedings and so we have had to do so.”

According to Mr Ferguson, Section 41(1) of the Bahamas Industrial Relations Act notes that all employers should recognise a trade union of which more than 50 per cent of the employees are members. Moreover, sub-section 41(3) calls for employers who are refusing to recognise a sanctioned union to be prosecuted and, if found guilty of the offence, face a fine not exceeding $5,000 or imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or both.

Last month several BHMAWU members were arrested following a protest over conditions the Cable Beach property. “Three officers were suspended and terminated. The law protects officers of trade unions and so we are asking for the court to deal with them with respect to the reinstatement of those officers,” said Mr Ferguson.

“The officers were off duty when they were fired. They were not working. They didn’t walk of their job and began to picket. There is no requirement by law for a peaceful picketing to be approved by the police. The police brought charges agent them or picketing without a permit. That is something the court will deal with,” said Mr Ferguson.

He added: “An officer of the union cannot be terminated while they are pursuing and participating in a lawful and peaceful demonstration. To fire or even discipline officers of the union you have to deal with the president. You can’t just get up and say and officer will be terminated. This is the very first time we know of where an employer is subject to be imprisoned for failing to negotiate an industrial agreement under Section (41) Subsection (3) of the Industrial Relations Act.

“If the government doesn’t do what it has to do with respect to the labour laws, we will have to do what we have to do because the employees are at a disadvantage. We are going to be very active cover the next seven to eight months. This is the beginning of something very historic, something very new, because we need to tell employers that the laws of the Bahamas are not just for the average man but they were designed of all of us,” said Mr Ferguson.