The Tribune

By YOURI KEMP

Tribune Business Reporter

ykemp@tribunemedia.net

The National Tripartite Council’s chairman says recent University of the Bahamas (UoB) research on the livable wage had caused him to rethink his push for a minimum wage increase.

Robert Farquharson, pictured, speaking at the Council’s 20201 general assembly, said he was reconsidering his call for a 40 percent increase in the weekly minimum wage - which would increase it from the present $210 to $294 - as this would still be more than 50 percent below the livable wage levels identified in the university’s study.

He added: “Too much times we hear about living healthy and eating healthy foods, but do you know how expensive it is to do it in our country? Policymakers need to take a conscious decision of finding ways and mechanisms to reduce the cost of living in our country for all payments.”

The UoB study, dated September 30, 2020, and authored by Lesvie Archer, Olivia Saunders, Bridget Hogg, Vijaya Permual and Brittney Johnson, concluded that a living wage in New Providence and Grand Bahama is $2,625 and $3,550 per month respectively.

“Our gross living wage estimate for New Providence is 26 percent lower than the Grand Bahama living wage estimate, nearly 200 percent higher than the national minimum wage, 127 percent higher than 2013 poverty line and nearly 75 percent higher than the minimum wage hike proposed by a local union,” they wrote.

“Our living wage estimate for Grand Bahama is nearly 300 percent higher than the living wage, 200 percent higher than the 2013 poverty line and 140 percent higher than the minimum wage hike proposed by a local union.” The Bahamas’ private sector minimum wage, last increased following VAT’s introduction in 2015, is currently $210 a week.

Mr Farquharson, meanwhile, also pledged to work with the government towards creating a “national pension plan”. He added: “Far too many times we see men and women put in 25-30 years on the job, but when it comes to reaching retirement age, they have difficulty maintaining the same standard of living.

“The government, I think in 2012, reviewed a national pension plan. My recommendation is that Bill should be revisited with the view to having the National Tripartite Council recommend to the government the enactment of a national pension plan that’s transferable and portable, so you can take it from one job to the other job, and it will supplement what’s happening at the National Insurance Board.”

The last attempt at pension legislation saw the Christie administration bring the Employees’ Pension Fund Protection Bill 2012 to Parliament in early 2013. However, it was never passed or enacted into law.

Mr Farquharson added: “Secondly, we see so many issues associated with COVID-19: The mass amounts of redundancies. Just last week, Atlantis, a major employer, would have laid off 700 people. Serious talks need to be put in on a national redundancy fund.”

He added that the government needs to find a “mechanism” for workers and employers to contribute to such a redundancy fund in an effort to “take the burden off of the government”.

Peter Goudie, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s director responsible for labour relations, said the enactment of national productivity legislation was the number one priority for the National Tripartite Council.

He added that despite delivering the final report on the National Productivity Council consultations and public relations campaign, the pending legislation has been has been stalled by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“We’re truly looking forward to getting over this pandemic, getting on with our life so we can establish the National Productivity Council and so we need to work very positively with the government on establishing this legislation.”