The Tribune

By Fay Simmons

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

Bahamas Power & Light’s (BPL) two trade unions yesterday made good on their threat to escalate their grievances by filing trade disputes alleging industrial agreement breaches and other violations by the state-owned utility.

The Bahamas Electrical Utility Managerial Union (BEUMU), which represents the utility’s middle managers, accused BPL of refusing to negotiate a new industrial agreement in “good faith” after the previous deal expired in 2018. It also alleged that BPL continues to create positions without consulting the union or giving priority to existing staff.

It said: ”The respondent refuses to negotiate in good faith with respect to a new industrial agreement, as the existing agreement has expired on September 30, 2018.

Other grievances outlined in the trade dispute concern BPL’s pension plan. Union representatives have previously claimed that the staff pension scheme has been operating without a governing board and deducting contributions prior to the required date, with a second pension plan created outside the industrial agreement. The trade dispute also called for a resolution to issues with staff at the Clifton Pier plant, which it alleged has left BPL is in breech of its industrial agreement.

The Bahamas Electrical Workers Union (BEWU), which represents BPL’s line staff, alleged that the utility is in breech of their industrial agreement by contracting other staff to do the same jobs as unionised employees but with better benefits such as hazardous pay, insurance and 12-hour shifts. The dispute claimed that BPL was “discriminating” against union members and breaching the industrial agreement by providing these workers with more favourable terms.

It said: “The BEWU negotiated an industrial agreement for the period May 1, 2021, to April 30, 2026 with the respondent which was registered on April 1, 2021. The respondent then contracted two-year agreements with certain employees dated January 1, 2023, with better terms and conditions than that of the industrial agreement knowing that there were employees doing the same work without these additional benefits. These benefits include full insurance, hazardous pay and 12-hour shifts.

“The respondent is discriminating among the bargaining unit members without any justifiable reason for providing better benefits to some workers performing the same work pursuant to Section 6 (b) of the Employment Act. The payment of full insurance for these selected workers is contrary to Clause 27.4 of the registered industrial agreement. The payment of a fixed monthly hazardous pay contravenes Clause 35 of the industrial agreement in that persons do not get the benefits as a normal part of their daily work.”

The BEWU went on to claim that BPL has violated the industrial agreement over the pension plan and failed to give workers the agreed-upon pay increments. It also called for the reinstatement of Monica Gaitor, who was ruled by the Industrial Tribunal to have been wrongfully dismissed.

It said: ”The respondent breached the industrial agreement by instituting a second pension plan outside the agreement in contravention of Clause 28.1. Further, the respondent has continually refused to put the union president on the pension board.

“The respondent breached the industrial agreement by failing to pay increments pursuant to Clause 52.1 (2) of the registered industrial agreement signed by the parties and registered on April 1, 2021. The union is claiming that the respondent is non-compliant with the industrial agreement, discriminating in dealing with bargaining unit members and continuing to deliberately punish a member who the Tribunal has ruled was wrongfully and unfairly dismissed.

A BPL spokesman said the company is aware that both unions filed trade disputes. The maintained that most of the issues outlined by the line staff union are either in active discussion or being settled in courts, but declined to comment further other than to say weekly discussions with the union to address its concerns are ongoing. They added that BPL is working on completing a new industrial agreement with the managerial union.

They said: “We are advised on the same by both unions. With regard to the BEWU, most of the matters filed in the dispute are either being actively discussed with the union or are before the courts. We continue weekly meetings with the union to discuss their concerns but cannot comment on any matter presently before the courts. We continue to work towards completing a new industrial agreement with the BEUMU.”

Kyle Wilson, the BEWU president, yesterday said the trade dispute is a “tool” that the union is using to draw attention to the concerns of employees. He added that he had publicised the issues that the union has with BPL on numerous occasions and does not feel the company is willing to come to a resolution.

He said: “It’s no secret. I will do whatever it takes to protect the members and to protect their benefits and to protect their safety. And so that’s one of the measures that one would take is to file to trade disputes. That’s a part of the toolbox and if we feel like nothing happened, then we’ll use another tool.”

Mr Wilson said workers have become “bitter” and staff morale has “plummeted”, adding that it seems as if “the jet is on autopilot”. He added: “We would have expected a lot better and we got a lot bitter. Many of the members in BPL feel as though BPL has gotten worse post the previous administration.

“The frustration has reached to the high heavens and no one has listened to the cries of the employees. And they just use PR to try to downplay the issues and this is not good. This is not good, man, that the morale of the staff has once again plummeted to depths unfathomable based on what’s going on. It seems as if there is no one in the captain’s wheel. It’s like the jet is on autopilot because no one has hearing the issues.”

“An MOU was signed stating that we’re going to work together but you can’t when one side wont deal. It’s very sad the way that workers are being treated when there’s an MOU [signed with the PLP when it was in Opposition] in place, and a government that says it’s a worker-friendly government. I can meet with anybody, but are you meeting towards a resolution or are you meeting just to tell the public you met with the union just to do PR.”