The Tribune

BY NATARIO MCKENZIE

Tribune Business Reporter

nmckenzie@tribunemedia.net

A TRADE dispute hearing filed on behalf of some 200 City Markets employees is set for this Friday, as staff seek to secure their financial compensation, pension and other benefits from the embattled supermarket chain.

Wanslaw Turnquest, City Markets' chief inventory control officer, told Tribune Business: "We have a trade dispute hearing on Friday, where we are meeting with the Minister and the Labour Department and owners to try and get the severance package for the workers. We are also dealing with the pension fund.

"The company is supposed to be closing soon, that is still the word. The whole staff is on two days, one day, eight hours, four hours; it is ridiculous. There is a lot of outstanding monies."

Mr Turnquest said he had not had any communication with City Markets' principal, Mark Finlayson. "It's amazing that all this is going on and no one is coming to the staff. I understand that all the wholesale agencies have already seized their notices of closure," he added.

Mr Turnquest said there were also concerns over the state of the employee pension fund. City Markets employees were scheduled to have a meeting last evening to establish a new Board for the pension fund, he added.

Labour Minister Dion Foulkes, in a previous interview with Tribune Business, expressed concern over the fate of City Markets employees, and said he had hoped to meet with Mr Finlayson to discuss the matter by yesterday.

Calls placed to Mr Foulkes yesterday were not returned up to press time, and it was unclear if that meeting had in fact taken place. Executives of the Bahamas Commercial Stores, Supermarkets and Warehouse Workers Union (BCSWWU) were also attempting to meet with City Markets' principal but did not return calls up to press time yesterday.

Speculation that the five-store supermarket chain may shut its locations by Friday this week continues, although there has not yet been any formal confirmation on this move by 78 per cent majority owners, the Finlayson family.

Mr Finlayson recently told Tribune Business he was negotiating with two separate international groups over the purchase of a majority stake in the struggling five-store chain.