The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL 

Tribune Staff Reporter 

jrussell@ribunemedia.net

AFTER more than a year of straw vendors urging the government to implement a system that would improve their chances of making a profit, Straw Businesspersons Society president Rebecca Small says their requests continue to fall on “deaf ears”.

“Everything, in my opinion, has fallen onto deaf ears,” Ms Small said, criticising the government’s refusal to reinstate a rotational shift system at the straw market. “When you have the majority of the people requesting something and nothing has taken place, or they just refuse to listen to the cries of the majority, what message are they sending?”

Ms Small noted that despite the millions of cruise passengers arriving in the country each month, many vendors at the Nassau Straw Market struggle to benefit from the booming tourism sector.

She said there are days when sales are good but also days when vendors barely make any money. While profits can fluctuate for various reasons, she highlighted the frustration vendors face with the uncertainty of earning a steady income each week.

Ms Small explained that most vendors have asked the government to reinstate the rotational shift system, which allowed vendors to work three days some weeks and four days in others. Under this system, vendors were divided into groups A and B, which reduced competition and overcrowding in the market.

The Ministry of Works and Utilities has previously said the rotational system was a “temporary measure”, adding that there was never an intention to permanently let straw markets operate on a rotational basis.

Since 2023, vendors have repeatedly called for a return to the rotational shift system, but the government has maintained its full-time work schedule.

Sales have remained poor for many vendors despite record-breaking cruise passenger arrivals. In July, Minister of Tourism Chester Cooper said the Tourism Development Corporation was working with vendors to ensure they provide services and products that appeal to visitors.

Mr Cooper expressed confidence that continued efforts to modernise vendors’ payment systems and offerings would reduce complaints over time about not benefiting from cruise tourism.