The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL Tribune Business Editor WIDESPREAD labour-related disruption "could be catastrophic" for an already-weak Bahamian economy, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation's (BCCEC) chairman yesterday warning that this was "possibly the worst time" for trade unions to contemplate industrial action. Speaking in a week that has seen the temperature in industrial negotiations at Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) rise, and the Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) threaten action over the Government's alleged "cherry picking" of who would get pay rises, Winston Rolle expressed concern that industrial action by one union could easily spread. Agreeing that public sector trade unions were looking to exploit the upcoming general election to wring concessions out of politicians seeking votes, the Chamber chief said strikes and work-to-rules could further cripple a Bahamian economy still struggling to recover from the recession. "From the private sector perspective, there's already a challenge in getting things done with the public sector in many ways, because of the lack of efficiency," Mr Rolle told Tribune Business. "When you talk about the public sector taking a strike vote or work-to-rule, that tends to spark other unions as well." He recalled the walk-out by the newly-formed Customs and Immigration union just before Christmas, which disrupted imports for a day during the busy season in the run-up to Christmas. "These things have a way of catching fire," Mr Rolle said of trade union disputes. "There are a number of private sector organisations where they have union representation, and if those unions have an affiliation with other unions, they may decide to get involved, too. That could impact private sector effectiveness. "One has to be conscious that when you're talking about an already depressed economy, any additional hiccup could be disastrous," the Chamber chief told Tribune Business. "There's never a good time to take industrial action, but when you're talking about a bad time this is possibly the worst one. There are so many people already out of work, the economy is already slow, so any industrial action impact will make it worse and more detrimental." Mr Rolle acknowledged that with "political season" upon the Bahamas, some in the public sector unions were "trying to leverage what influence they can" to enhance their negotiating position and obtain better terms and pay from the Government. "It's the old adage of war," he told this newspaper. "You have to use whatever resources you have at your disposal, and at the opportune time. At election time you have more leverage than ever with the politicians, as they have less opportunity to ignore you. They can't ignore you on one hand and then turn around and ask for your vote on the other. "This is a very opportune time for persons to make demands of the Government. That's just the way it works." Apart from impacting the Bahamian economy, Mr Rolle also urged parties in industrial disputes to be careful about the impact their words had on "the perception of persons who are looking at, or want to do business, in the country". "It behooves everyone to bring these matters to a quick and amicable resolution," Mr Rolle said. "I don't think any kind of strike is beneficial to anyone; not the country, not the employees, not the employer." He described the approach taken by KFC to its industrial negotiations as "rather interesting", the fast food brand's operating parent, Restaurant (Bahamas), having published a half-page advertisement in the newspapers to justify its case for asking staff, represented by the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU), to take a cut in salaries and benefits. The data showed that KFC staff are earning, on average, salaries some 79-95 per cent higher than their counterparts in other fast food chains in the Bahamas. Mr Rolle said it would be "interesting to see" how the union responded, suggesting that the advertisement might sway public sentiment which, until now, was likely to have been sympathetic to the workers' cause against salary and benefit cuts.