The Tribune

HOTEL workers overwhelmingly backed a strike during an official Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union’s poll yesterday.

Up to press time last night more than 2,000 workers had voted in favour of striking, union president Darron Woods said, and fewer than 30 voted against industrial action.

Mr Woods said that, based on the unofficial tally, 1,594 Atlantis workers supported a strike, 14 voted against it, 41 left their ballots blank and six had spoiled ballots. About 4,000 Atlantis workers are part of the BHCAWU.

Mr Woods also said 538 employees from Melia Nassau Beach, British Colonial Hilton, Lyford Cay Club and the Towne Hotel voted “yes” to a strike; only seven voted “no”.

Forty-four employees of Harbourside Resort voted in support of a strike, none voted no. And 56 employees of the Ocean Club voted in favour of a strike, with only one voting no.

Mr Woods said he still hopes to avert a crippling stoppage. “We will get together with hotel operators and start talking,” he said. “The voice of the people is clear. It’s now about getting together to resolve the issues.”

The Bahamas Hotel Employers Association (BHEA) recently presented hotel workers with its proposed industrial agreement.

A viral video captured the angry reaction workers had to the proposal, with some burning the document during a recent meeting as one man shouted: “Burn this proposal, it’s not good for the people.”

The proposal would eliminate the automatic 15 percent gratuity employees receive. Workers’ holiday benefits would be adjusted; the Christmas bonus would be tied to a hotel’s performance and paid in January, not December. Ham and turkey gifts will no longer be guaranteed.

The proposal comes despite performance indicators for major Nassau/Paradise Island hotels increasing by double digit amounts during the first quarter of this year, with room revenues up 37 percent. Tourism Minister Dionisio D’Aguilar has said the industry is “firing on all cylinders,” with stopover bookings from April to June about nine percent ahead of 2018.

The last industrial agreement between the BHEA and the union expired in 2013 and its terms are being treated as if they are still in effect after the union missed the October 8, 2012 deadline to submit a new proposal for an industrial agreement. BHCAWU leadership has felt pressure to deliver a new industrial agreement. Mr Woods and his leadership team made securing a deal their top priority when they took office a year ago.

The BHEA represents Atlantis, the Reef, the Cove, Harbourside Resort, Melia Nassau Beach, British Colonial Hilton, Lyford Cay Club, the Ocean Club and Towne Hotel. Amid the rancor, BHEA officials have emphasised that industrial agreement negotiations have only just began.

Earlier this week, Mr D’Aguilar urged the hotel union and industry officials to allow “calmer heads to prevail”, insisting that a strike at this time would have a devastating impact on soaring tourism numbers.

“Get into a room and ensure they come to an amicable solution,” the minister said.