The Tribune

A VISITOR arriving at Lynden Pindling International Airport over the weekend asked a Bahamian if the airport strike was still on. The Bahamian, feigning ignorance, asked: "What strike?"

The visitor replied that he had heard the report on Fox News.

On Saturday, the Associated Press reported world-wide that "hundreds of immigration and customs workers in the Bahamas are on strike and likely won't go back to work until after the May 7 general elections, a union official said Saturday."

K Renaldo Collie was the Customs union member quoted by the AP. The AP story then went into details about the airport strike. Mr Collie told AP that the strike had started on April 5.

On the same day, the lead paragraph of the same story (as quoted above) was broadcast by Fox News and CBS. Other news stations obviously picked up the report and ran with it. There is a strike at Nassau's international airport, the world was told. For the faint of heart that meant: "Stay at home."

On the ground in Nassau, Defence Force Officers and loyal customs and immigration staff have ensured that passengers arriving at the airport are not inconvenienced by those walking the picket line outside. In other words, those passengers who did not read the newspapers or listen to the television would not know that anything was wrong at the airport on their arrival.

But what should concern all Bahamians is how many potential visitors would have cancelled their plans to visit the Bahamas as a result of those news reports? Obviously, the union plans to do as much damage as it can to this country's number one industry.

It is scandalous when tourism is now climbing back to a plus position that a handful of unionists should jeopardize the livelihoods of so many of their fellow citizens.

The World Travel & Tourism Council's 2012 (WTTC) annual report said that in 2011, tourism directly generated 43,500 Bahamian jobs, a figure equivalent to 25.8 per cent of the total work force. This figure, said the report, is projected to grow by 2.4 per cent this year to hit 44,500 or 25.9 per cent of total employment.

"By 2022, travel and tourism will account for 52,000 jobs directly, an increase of 1.7 per cent per annum over the next 10 years," the WTTC said. "This includes employment by hotels, travel agents, airlines and other passenger transportation services (excluding commuter services). It also includes the activities of the restaurant and leisure industries directly supported by tourists."

On April 13 Tribune Business reported that "the wider employment benefits from tourists in the Bahamas are also set to expand. The WTTC report added: 'The total contribution of travel and tourism to employment (including wider effects from investment, the supply chain and induced income impacts) was 90,500 jobs in 2011, or 53.8 per cent of total employment."

This was forecast to rise to 92,000 jobs this year and 111,000 jobs by 2022.

If nothing stops this expansion many jobs will open up for those Bahamians who are now jobless because of the economic slump. But this will not happen, if the handful of immigration and customs officers, who already have a job and food on their tables, continue to walk the picket line. It is ridiculous that the irresponsible actions of this small group -- estimated between immigration and customs to be about 120 persons -- should impede tourism's growth and the possibility of new jobs opening up for fellow Bahamians.

This union has met with both the prime minister and labour minister and as far as these two gentlemen are aware all of their complaints were satisfactorily dealt with.

Obviously, what is now going on is politically motivated -- this belief is strengthened by the declaration to the world press by a unionist that the strike will continue until after the May 7 election. So, obviously, the key to the whole exercise is to try to throw the election, not by sensible debate, but by union unrest -- this country has certainly come a long way from election goon squads to union disruption.

The striking unionists are now trying to play cute with the law -- claiming that they are doing so on "advice."

We refer them to s. 76 of the Industrial Relations Act, which states that if the Minister considers that the "public interest is affected or threatened" by this strike he is to notify the parties to the dispute in writing that it "shall be the duty of any persons participating in the strike or lock-out to discontinue the same forthwith." For those who do not understand the word forthwith, it means immediately. The dispute is now "pending before the Tribunal."

For those who thumb their noses at this order do so at their peril. We refer them to s. 77(2) of the Act, which clearly states what happens to those who don't follow orders:

"77. (2)(b) In the case of a union or a member of the executive committee or other governing body of a union, or an employer, to a fine not exceeding ten thousand dollars or to imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or to both such fine and imprisonment."

We also remind those still on strike this morning that they are the ones who will suffer the consequences of their defiance of the law - not their handlers.