By KHRISNA VIRGIL
Tribune Staff Reporter
kvirgil@tribunemedia.net
VISITORS and employees of the Atlantis Resort were both startled and baffled as a team of Immigration officers disrupted operations at Dolphin Cay to detain and carry off the attraction’s head sea lion trainer.
The Tribune understands that without warning, two uniformed men and one plain-clothes officer marched into the water park through a back gate, found the American citizen in the middle of a guest interaction with sea lions, and demanded that she produce her passport.
When she explained that she did not carry the document to work, the officers escorted her to a government vehicle, put her inside, and drove off without further explanation.
A colleague said: “They came there without any warning, without even the courtesy of a call, and disrupted business operations. They came in through a back gate and detained her during a guest interaction in front of visitors and employees.
“They were very rude, demanding to see her passport, and when she explained that she didn’t have it on her, they put her in a car and drove her away.
“It happened in front of everybody, it was just unnecessary. She is not just anybody – she is highly sought after, one of the top people in her field.”
According to well placed sources, Kerzner had applied for a work permit renewal for the employee, but it was denied in December.
The resort then filed an appeal, the results of which are pending – a situation which according to normal immigration procedure, allows an employee to continue working until the matter is resolved.
She was later released after a colleague contacted Immigration and informed them of the appeal.
Her colleagues now want to know what could have warranted such “a hostile arrest” when a simple check of the Immigration Department’s database would have confirmed that the employee was allowed to be working in the country.
According to sources within the resort’s management, it is believed that a vindictive complaint from recently fired Dolphin Cay employees may have sparked the incident.
But they asked if Immigration officers can really burst into and disrupt a business – embarrassing staff and unnerving tourists in the process – on so little evidence.
Last night, Immigration Minister Fred Mitchell said he could not comment on the incident.
“In the absence of some direct comment or leave on a specific case by an employer, it is not appropriate to comment on any employer or employee’s relationship with the Department of Immigration,” he said.
The incident happened just moments before Mr Mitchell assured reporters that the government’s “Bahamians first” approach on immigration matters would not end up in masses of foreign workers being ushered out of the country.
“This is a rational policy by a rational government which is acting reasonably in the defence of its own people. This is the Commonwealth of the Bahamas,” Mr Mitchell said.
Comments
banker 11 years, 3 months ago
humming "Down to the banana republic" .. This makes Fred Mitchell and his department look like a bunch of parochial idiots in front of the world.
B_I_D___ 11 years, 3 months ago
Absolutely disgraceful. Do I feel the person could have or should have been questioned, by all means, but do it a bit more tactfully, especially when in the end you did not have all the facts and made yourself, and the country for that matter look like idiots. Willing to bet the fired employee has a friend or family member in Immigration that got that swung. Sad when people have to resort to such childish behaviour.
bahamian242 11 years, 3 months ago
I am surprised Immigration answered the phone!
marrcus 11 years, 3 months ago
Are these Gestapo tactics really necessary? Couldn't this have been done in the HR office of Atlantis behind closed doors? Definitely agree that this was retaliation for recently fired employees. Would love to why they were fired.
rkey62 11 years, 3 months ago
You know They call us meaning (Bahamian's) a bunch of Monkey's in suits! in a movie I once watched, I was really offended by this comment because I'm a Bahamian..All I am saying is maybe they were right!!. If this is the way are Immigration department is aloud to carry out their Jobs, Absolutely disgraceful.
islander242 11 years, 3 months ago
what movie was this?
goodread 11 years, 3 months ago
Scarface-starring Al Pacino as 'Tony Montana'. He's referring to the scene when 'Tony' suggested to the bank manager that he would deposit his money in Bahamian banks if the manager was unprepared to accept his large sums of cash in his local Miami bank. I believe the exact quote was "You'll trust some monkey in a Bahamian bank with $20 million?"
Ironvelvet 11 years, 3 months ago
Oh my goodness!! How disgraceful! There is a protocol for everything. These are the same police who won't go in and raid illegal activities in the number houses, the same ones who don't go into the slums, but go to a place of business of a person who had a applied for a permit? These people need to be properly TRAINED!!! How much sense does it require for you to at least know that an appeal is possible and that it status should be simply checked.
Oh and Mr. Mitchell, please let me know what Bahamian you know can train a sea lion?
Reader 11 years, 3 months ago
I know a Sea Lion that can train a Bahamian.
janmariebutler 11 years, 3 months ago
Just so you know currently there are many Bahamian Sea Lion trainers at Dolphin Cay and at Blue Lagoon and furthermore, the expatriate trainer picked up only had no prior Sea Lion training before coming to the Bahamas.
Ironvelvet 11 years, 3 months ago
Thanks for that information. I hope those Bahamian Sea Lion trainers apply for the job then.
Jamaican 11 years, 3 months ago
This has been going on for ages to the Jamaican and Haitian nationals under similar circumstances...whats the surprise???...OH the person is white!!!
Ironvelvet 11 years, 3 months ago
I think it is ridiculous on all levels, be you white, red, yellow, or purple. It is horrible that this issue just making headline news, I agree with that. Mitchell and his foreign affairs crew need to stop their foolishness and this Bahamian only mentality. No country has a workforce that is 100% comprised of its citizenry...NONE!
BahamaBoy 11 years, 3 months ago
Regardless, race/class influences the process. I do recall a Haitian maid in a tourist area being arrested for the same reason and her story never made headlines.
bismark 11 years, 3 months ago
I do agree that Bahamians should come first in the country when it comes to employment,but sometimes;we are not going to have a choice in some instances,we will have to sometimes have an expatriate who is properly qualified for the job,i agree it could have been handled more professionally,common courtesy,simple.we as Bahamians have to hold ourselves to high standards we will celebrate forty years of independence come july 10,this is one of the most prosperous countries in this hemisphere,but we have a lot to improve on,mainly our law enforcement agencies it is just a few who make it bad for the good ones.
proudloudandfnm 11 years, 3 months ago
Time for our government to use their computers for more than solitaire and facebook!
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
Couldn't these people have done their homework before,instead of looking like a bunch of idiots?
ks 11 years, 3 months ago
According to Immigration law and policy, if a renewal application is refused, the employee must cease work & leave the country; even if the employer submits a reconsideration request. I wouldn't be so quick to believe the details of this report as the Tribune is biased against the Government and the Dept of Immigration. however if the details are accurate, I too am embarrassed as a Bahamian. While according the the facts (not opinions) in this piece, proper procedure was followed, given the relationship between Kerzner & the government, this could have been handled in a more appropriate way.
BahamaBoy 11 years, 3 months ago
Had this been a Haitian maid, there would be no story! The true disgrace and shock should be how we worship certain people and are silent when others are being humiliated and degraded!
islander242 11 years, 3 months ago
Atlantis is a landmark in the Bahamas and it is interesting to know this happened in front of tourists. Who cares about the Haitian made who got busted in an empty house
john33xyz 11 years, 2 months ago
Hey, it's not just Haitians. We treat our own Bahamians worse than dogs while they are awaiting trial in remand in prison (not to mention those convicted).
Does God disown his children if they rob a jewellery store? I never seen anything in the papers from ANY church speaking out against the conditions that former human beings are subjected to in prison here. But if a gay cruise ship pulls into port - the churches kick into high gear.
B_I_D___ 11 years, 3 months ago
ks and Bahamaboy...first, check the Guardian's website, they are saying the same thing and are even going into further details with former MP's saying they are typically allowed to carry on working during the review. As for the Haitian and Jamaican maid scenarios, I think it is slightly different and here is why. You have some individual knowingly working illegal for a private residence let's say, police and immigration do need to act a bit more swiftly otherwise that person can go underground and relocate. In the case at Atlantis, she is under the employment of Atlantis, following the instructions no doubt from the Human Resources department and probably their legal department as well, all it would have taken would have been a phone call from Immigration to the HR department at Atlantis to clarify the matter to everyone's satisfaction. It's not like this gal was going to duck and cover and go try work for some other house on the side, she's a professional doing a highly trained job at a major hotel and tourist facility. One phone call...they wouldn't even have had to leave their desks, and the matter would have been resolved, instead, they behaved like idiots and made Atlantis and the Bahamas look like idiots. Let's not be so quick to turn around and say...they gonna treat her different cause she white...blah blah blah, this is not a race issue...this is a common sense issue, which a lot of you appear to be lacking.
UserOne 11 years, 3 months ago
@Jamaican: I didn't see anywhere in the article where it said the person was white.
Stapedius 11 years, 3 months ago
Please spare us the outrage. Bahamians get embarrassed by the wrong things. This happens all the time in the US and I've even seen it while working in the Cayman Islands. ICE in the US come on the work place pack illegals up and detain them without warning. They don't care what you do, who you are or where you come from. In the Cayman Islands the immigration there is quite efficient and can care less where you come from. If you work there illegally then they come for you and that's without warning.
Now I would agree that the Immigration Dept. Should have the facts before performing such and exercise. But personally, I'm not all ashamed when these officers do their job. We too love to think about what tourist would think. The fact is, the same tourists that we think are judging us are probably praising us for showing that we are a country with some law and order.
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
I don't think anyone would be upset over the department doing its job. However the facts should be checked first. Also doing your job includes all illegal immigrants. So let them go to the so called "shanty towns" and do what they did to Atlantis.
Stapedius 11 years, 3 months ago
Ah, if you read the second paragraph you'd note that I said as much. With redundancy seeming to be the order of the day I will repeat. They should have the facts before carrying out such an exercise. Happy?
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
I have read all your paragraphs. However would not you agree that many things in our country happen just to put on a show? Just to show that things are workingwhen in fact they are not? Why the so called "shanty towns" are not raided?
ks 11 years, 3 months ago
.
TalRussell 11 years, 3 months ago
Comrades I'll bet there is not a single Hotel or Business CEO, who is not going to memo their HR department to immediately commence reviewing who's on their payroll? Freddy is watching us!
http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2013…
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
We definitely have an illegal immigration problem in our country. Are we however serious in resolving it or we are just impressed with "theatrics"? Let's face it,Bahamians love a good show.
TalRussell 11 years, 3 months ago
Minister Freddy ain't joking when he says he's got the right nose to swoop out the falsehoods in the applications when expecting the old way of just rubber stamping the issuing of work permits, all for the asking.
http://tribune242.com/users/photos/2013…
MonkeeDoo 11 years, 3 months ago
A Rogue Nation by any other name. The tourists can go home now and tell all of their friends how the Bahamian Gestapo shut down their show. And when Atlantis closes up shop, I hope Freddy can pick up the new employment slack. Ever see a Bahamian working on a cruise ship ? Ever wonder why they (cruise ships) are so popular today. Bahamians need to rub the stardust out of their eyes before they go blind. And YES, I am a Bahamian too.
lazybor 11 years, 3 months ago
This can happen only in the bahamas
http://tinyurl.com/c7l9ck6" width="1">
pilgrimagerock 11 years, 3 months ago
May God help the Bahamas when foreign investors decide to cut their losses and leave without notices. They do not have to come the BAHAMAS to build a mega resort or open up an offshore bank, they could go elsewhere and do that. I wonder what this anti-foreign government would do since wealthy Bahamians do not create jobs for poor to middle class Bahamians.
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
Not to worry 10.000 new jobs will be created in the next 20 days,marking the first year in office
SP 11 years, 3 months ago
Fred Mitchell would do well to ignore the ignorant, big mouth, uncouth one-man-band red shirts and follow the lead of U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron who is doing similarly to protect British citizens jobs from expats.
http://news.yahoo.com/britains-pm-camer…
http://news.yahoo.com/britain-considers…
White, yellow or black, American in Atlantis, Haitian in an empty house or any other illegal found anywhere, if found breaking the law should be apprehended wherever found and made to leave this country as would happen in any other country.
The era of stupidity and snap horrific decisions is over!
Keep up the good work Mr. Mitchell. True Bahamians are behind you 100%.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
why do you begin your post with name calling ??
banker 11 years, 3 months ago
@SP -- true bahamians will soon be eating pigeons and coconuts again. You do not scare tourists away, which puts bread and butter on the table of 75% of Bahamians. You may be behind Mr. Mitchell, but it would be ill advised to be in the reciprocal situation.
pilgrimagerock 11 years, 3 months ago
Great minds think alike.
MartGM 11 years, 3 months ago
Best line of this entire thread goes to "Banker" for: "You may be behind Mr. Mitchell, but it would be ill advised to be in the reciprocal situation."
pilgrimagerock 11 years, 3 months ago
There is a right and wrong way in how you treat foreign workers. The commonwealth of the Bahamas is a tourist destination and regardless of the foreigner’s standings, we must treat them with respect. Our bread and butter depend on it.
SP 11 years, 3 months ago
@Banker - Please note the difference between bending over backwards and bending over forwards....Nuff said!
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
Nobody suggests that illegal immigrants should stay,just because they may work for a large company. The fact that the lady was set free shows that a mistake was made. A mistake that could have been easily avoided if some people knew how to do their jobs. Also whether we like it or not we depend on tourists. So even if she was illegal,i am sure they could find a way to arrest her without putting on a show that at the end made them look like fools.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
what amazes me most is that both Atlantis and Bahamar would say they both need permits for waiters /painters etc ..As both of these are capatalist companies that have to ansrew to share holders and directors it really says something about our workforce if they are willing to shell out 10,000 per worker for permits ..IF Bahamar needs 200 hundred permits thats 2 million dollars ,well at least the treasury gets something and money comes in ,,Believe me apart from the show and fooling w/ sea lion trainers the big investors will get all the permits they need to function ..
banker 11 years, 3 months ago
@SP -- then I see that you are acquainted with Mr. Mitchell.
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
For those that are truly interested in knowing ..this whole story is bogus she is not the head trainer for the sea-lions. she is only a manager... Secondly there was no interaction when they escorted her out out the property.. she was not in hand cuffed they simply walked behind her... She was allowed to call for her supervisors but both of them refused to respond to her call over the radio. You say in this article she is highly sought after one of the top trainers in this field well I have to dis agree she was taught everything she knows about Sea-lion training from these same Bahamians that You (Bahamians), my people didnt even know that we had. The Government has the right to deny any and all work permits when there are qualified Bahamians, Yes, even at Atlantis that can obtain this position that they are keeping for her. This very same expatiate who we are all defending in these comments left the country earlier this month and was so afraid that she would be detained came in the country under false pretenses saying that she is a visitor to the county when questioned by immigration at the airport.... So MY PEOPLE please know the fact before defending nonsense and just running off at the mouth about being disgusted. I have copy of resumes for Bahamian sea lion and dolphin trainers some with over 20 years experience. Yes Bahamas Bahamian dolphin and sea lion trainers. WOW shocker. Atlantis will continue to sell all the dreams in the world because they want to make sure the money our country is making stay out of it by making the expat look like the victim but it is all lies
TheObjectiveVoice 11 years, 3 months ago
When I read the article, I was sure that it did not go down like that. Just because my common sense would say that officers would not just show up at Atlantis like that without some kind of directive from their supervisor or O/C. Plus, despite what people are saying about police these days, let's give them some credit. I don't think they would have done that on the Atlantis property and in front of tourists. I was waiting for someone who actually was there to come forward and give the real story. Let's give our people some credit.
Stapedius 11 years, 3 months ago
I understand your frustration. Bahamians are so afraid to be who we are and we always find ourselves pandering to tourist. I really don't see what the big shock is about. We mull and ruminate over these things too much in the Bahamas. The right way, the wrong way blah, blah blah. Funny, I don't hear the same outrage when Cubans and Haitians are being packed in a bus far away from the prisitine pools of Atlantis. Oh but I forgot, we view them as people without skills or relevance. Bahamians are truly mentally screwed up. You should have a read of France Fanon. He clearly explains how the tourist industry can erode the national drive and focus of a country. We always pander to the tourist and can never give ourselves credit for anything. What a messed up commentary in our 40th year as a nation.
banker 11 years, 3 months ago
@Stapedius -- unfortunately there is nothing else except tourism. The entire focus is to attract direct foreign investment in creating mega resorts. With little else in the way of employment for a burgeoning, unskilled population, there is no other hope but tourism. If there were some long term planning in economic diversification, there would be hope. However the only way to get elected in this country is by short term promises that counter the long term common good. Can you imagine a political party saying "We have a recover plan but it will take 10 years and millions of dollars. We have to retrain a majority of the population, and until then, there will be nothing but blood, sweat and tears?". Another party would come along and say "I will pay your rent for month, give you a ham, turkey and tee shirt, and free booze at the constituency office if you wote for me." Who do you think will win?
Stapedius 11 years, 3 months ago
@ banker. I agree with diversification, but we need to be sensible with how we judge our own. The prevailing attitude that Bahamians are stupid, uncultured and unprofessional is really demoralizing to the psyche of a people. If we keep saying it people will begin believing it.
JohnDoe 11 years, 3 months ago
@Stapedius, I would recommend that you read Frantz Fanon as well. What you will discover is that Frantz Fanon was an avowed unrepentant Marxist and the central tenet to his work was class and race warfare in the context of colonialism. Though some continue to use this framework to explain the Bahamas today, its relevance with respect to our current issues, in my opinion, is doubtful at best. Nevertheless, if you are saying that there is no difference between an investor who has invested over 2 billion dollars in our economy and the individual unskilled Haitians and Cubans immigrants then we should prepare ourselves to be the next Haiti in the hemisphere.
Stapedius 11 years, 3 months ago
Noted, and you are correct he was a Marxist. But it cannot be denied that even within Marxist theory there are lessons to be learned. One of the issues most people who are readers of political theory is we try to demonize one theory and praise the other. I'm not suggesting that Fanon was correct in all of his theories but I can appreciate where he' coming and within context.
Futhermore no one is suggesting that Atlantis has not made a valuable contribution to our economy. But are you suggesting that the collective contribution of Haitians, or Haitian-Bahamians is not more or equal in value to Atlantis? As far as I'm concerned Haitians have made invaluable contribution to our country and economy. My concern is the contrast in treatment of an illegal from Haiti vs an illegal such as the described in this article. So my point is there needs to be fair treatment across the board. I repeat. Bahamians have a really messed up way of thinking.
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
Ask yourself these questions???
Who win by putting the Government on Blast? They do!!They want to renew her work permit using any tactics possible but there are many Bahamians at that facility who can do her job that deserve her position.
Is she really the TOP trainer?? No!!!She is one of 13 TOP trainers there there are over 80 trainers on staff . She is not above any of the other top trainers there at the facility. SOOO PLEASE STOP SAYING THAT
Was guest around when they(immigration) came?? No they were no where around as she was in the back where the birds are kept, she doesn't even participate in sealions interaction any more. We found this article to be so funny when we read this because Atlantis is making up lies upon lies
jo 11 years, 3 months ago
Thank you for telling us what really happened because what was reported sounded like something from Law & Order
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
if Atlantis does not feel they need her why would they pay 10,000 a year for a permit ,,last time i checked Atlantis is operateing as a capatalist business that wants to make as much money as possible
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
yes you are right Atlantis but when Human resources only take the word of one person and just like most people being ignorant accepts whatever they say
hj 11 years, 3 months ago
We can't have it both ways. If we want to be a tourist destination we have to treat tourists with respect,(treating someone with respect does not make you inferior,as some people with psychological issues may believe). If not,let's find other ways to survive. Mind you,it would be nice to have other industries in addition to tourism but all we hear is talk,and talk is cheap. So if anyone is serious about making efforts to diversify our economy let him do it and not talk it.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
WELL SAID
jo 11 years, 3 months ago
I haven't read through all of the comments yet but to those who are concerned over what the tourists think, many of them have been praising the Bahamian government and saying that the US government needs to do the same as well. Just check out the comments from this article:
http://news.yahoo.com/bahamas-permit-cr…
oasistechgroup 11 years, 3 months ago
You're right.
"We should do the exact same thing....is there an American that can do this job??? I"
"Every other country can do something like this but here in the U.S. ? Don't even think about it!"
"America should follow their lead."
""It is a simple question. Is there a Bahamian available for this job? If there is a Bahamian available for this job, then a work permit will not be granted." Sounds like the usa should think and do the same for us Americans!"
"Many nations will start to enforce these laws. Folks, these people are not neuro surgeons. "
"We need ICE in this country to get that aggressive with criminals."
"You mean to tell me The Bahamas enforces its immigration policy better than The United States?"
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
PLEASE DON,T FORGET THESE COMPANIES PAY 10,000 A YEAR FOR THESE SKILLED WORKERS PERMITS ,WE ARE NOT TALKING ABOUT ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS IN THE U/S THAT WORK FOR LESS
jo 11 years, 3 months ago
Yes I understand that but I posted the link because I saw several comments of people basically saying "Oh no, now the tourists are going to go home and tell everyone not to come!", when these tourists are actually saying applauding what was done. Every time something happens that's all I hear "Now the tourists are going to tell everyone not to come!". I guess that's what happens when you allow yourself to become a slave to tourism.
A few people (who I guess actually work at Atlantis) have stated that what was reported didn't actually happen the way it did and that there are indeed Bahamian trainers who are not only capable of doing the job but they in fact had to teach this trainer in question because she had no prior knowledge. If this is true, why would you pay for a permit in this instance, especially if she is no longer working with the sea lions?
Also I saw earlier where you wrote that Bahamar and Atlantis have both stated that they need to permits for waiters and painters. I will admit, I'm a bit ignorant in both areas but exactly how much "skill" is exactly needed for these jobs? These aren't exactly high paying jobs correct? For the record, I'm not against permits (if they are actually needed) but I do feel as though sometimes we bet against ourselves because we feel as though we are incapable.
Right242 11 years, 3 months ago
Kick out all the ex-pats & lets watch this country implode on itself. This new government is going to kill the Bahamas. Anybody that lives here knows that most Bahamians are lazy & incompetent. Take away the added gratuity from restaurants & make the waitstaff actually WORK for their tips. Instead of waiting an hour after sitting down to get a menu. Ignorant Bahamians are scared of ex-pats because they know they are higher quality workers. This isn't a racial issue. Bahamians are scared of letting in Haitians because they know Haitians work their asses off. Anybody in their right mind would hire a Haitian instead of a Bahamian for any job. Even the last minister of foreign affairs said he would like to hire Bahamians to clean his house but they never show up!! Kerzner was smart to sell Atlantis when he did. Brookfield is now thinking of selling Atlantis again because of all this. And Baha Mar is thinking the same. This is not the place to invest anymore. And not worth visiting either.
pilgrimagerock 11 years, 3 months ago
Well said. Bahamians are going to learn the HARD LESSONS of how valuable is FDI. If Year One is causing this much problems, I can you imagine what Year Two, Three, Four and Five would be like.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
i,ve worked around tourist all my life and i hate that 15% on the bill and pooling tips ,,its the worst thing that we did ..i always average 20 to 25 %,,,you make less w/ the 15% b/c people say its on the bill and you got to split it with our slonkers ,,i like alot of what PING did ,,but auto gratuity ruined us
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
XENOPHOPIA IS A BIG SELLER ,,THIS IS A SHOW TO DISTRACT US FROM THE FACT THAT THE NUMBERS MAN BOUGHT OUR PARLIMENT ,B BETHEL VISITED NYGARD AND HE CAN NOW DO WHATEVER HE WANTS ,WITH OUT THE PUBLICS INPUT WE GA DRILL FOR OIL ,AND WE KILLING ONE ANOTHER LIKE FLYS ,,,WHEN THINGS GET TOUGH THE PLP ALWAYS RESORTS TO " BAD WHITEY ,BAD FORIEGNER "
c_h_e_e_k_i_e 11 years, 3 months ago
Out of the so called 80 trainers there are now 3 expats in the department. Yes all 3 are senior staff. Agreed if there are Bahamians to fill those posts then by all means do so. However, at the position they hold there are few here in the Bahamas who can and even fewer in the department. Over 75% of the staff there presently began with no prior knowledge of the field and there are countless entry level positions being filled. So to bring up her past is not relevant. Where almost all of the current sea lion staff started off their training or basic training training dolphins. Let's not forget that those trainers were trained by trainers who were trained by trainers (all beginning with no experience period). There are persons trying to now sugar coat what happened to the trainer but sad to say the damage is done and they now have the attention of the entire world. The selfishness of this scheme to "get rid of the white people" was thought up by people who forget that they work without a college degree with a starting base salary some will never see with out a degree. The sea lion team is currently seeking staff inhouse but you will not see these persons offering their knowledge and years of experience which is equal to that of the female trainer to transfer from training dolphins to training sea lions. They instead bully the staff to not train sea lions, bad mouthing the senior staff and management. So by removing a seasoned senior sea lion staff you have now cut the team of the actual staff capable of performing interactions. Now as to her performing interactions...as a senior staff they are not required to participate in more than 1interaction a day. This allows for other responsibilies to be completed. There are a few who actually participate in multiple interactions daily. Then there are those who plan on " getting rid of the white people" who would not venture outside should they be allowed to do so. So once again this too is not relevant. Here is my question...if her permit was expired, and her service was not needed in the department, why was there an appeal made in her name? Let us not forget that we too have Bahamian trainers residing outside of this country for the exact same reason. For some this is all they know and to loose it over petty reason with this raid as a smoke screen will be heartbreaking to all employeed there, not just trainers.
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
REALLY senior trainers only work 1 program a day look who is throwing up the smoke screen now. This sounds like another "Atlantis" statement. When you say 3 senior staff is there any Bahamians above all the expats or are they above them and is there anyone in this country who can do their job?? So the plot to give a promotion to this individual when there are qualified Bahamians is this going to happen. How do we give promotion to expats?? We talk about money. Thats a laugh. Now you are saying that the other Bahamian trainers make more than her??? I think not. In the US what is the starting salary for trainers WITH degrees?? No wonder we come running to the Bahamas when Atlantis pay triple to the expat. This is really a good read for a good laugh. Thanks for being so entertaining@ c_h_e_e_k_i_e
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
once again Atlantis is as capatalist company that has to ans to its shareholders ..why would they pay a foriergner 3 times as much and 10,000 for a work permit if they could find it here ,,,that flies in the face of capatalism ..remember its not only qualfication ,its work ethic and additrude....i,m sure you also call the Atlantis "greedy " so why would they throw money away if they could find it here at a better cost ,,DUHH
jo 11 years, 3 months ago
A shareholder is only interested in how much money the company is making. They don't care about foreign vs native workers and who gets paid what because quite frankly, that isn't their responsibility. You would be surprised at how much money some of these big companies throw away because they don't want to make changes in certain areas.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
i,m sure these big companies know alot more about running large tourist destanations than us ,,believe me they look for the most cost effective ways to do things ,if they could get the same qualified person with the proper additude and worh ethic for less they would ,,these are not goverment corps or charitable organizations ,,
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
wait a minute.......... did ANYONE say anything about trying to get "rid of the white people"....nope simply stated that there are qualified Bahamians who can function at the capacity of the expat. There a few whited Bahamians that are also trainers in the Bahamas so are they trying to get rid of them too. Its good you brought up the topic of degrees. Are you saying at that facility or all of the others that there are NO Bahamians with degrees for that field?? And by the way DID SOME RESEARCH on those salary
Salary SimplyHired.com listed the average salary for marine trainers as $45,000 in 2011, though this is generally considered on the high end of the marine mammal trainer salary range.
While the Bureau of Labor and Statistics (BLS) does not separate marine mammal trainers out from the general category of animal trainers, a 2010 study found the mean annual animal trainer salary to be $31,110. The lowest ten percent of animal trainers earned less than $17,240 while the highest ten percent earned a salary of more than $53,580.
The three states with the highest number of available animal trainer jobs were California with 1,240 jobs, New York with 750 jobs, and Florida with 730 jobs. The mean annual salaries for these states were $36,710 in California, $30,630 in New York, and $37,770 in Florida. So when the expats come to the Bahamas and make double this amount which you can pay 2 Bahamian with the same experience you can understand why the Gov't feels the way it feels.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
once again these are capatalist enterprises ,if they could get the same qualified employee w/ the same worth ethic and additude for less they woould ....they are not charitable organizations or goverment corps ,there alliance is to profit ,,they don,t give a s,,,,t about nationality ,colour ,or anything else ..
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
picture this scenario :Days upon days you would see a black man walk out and is asked to open his bag over and repeatedly by security but a white man drives in or out in he is automatically accepted but no one saw the gun that he brought with him.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 3 months ago
xenophopia and racism are big political sellers and great distractions from the issues at hand ,,,the gov don,t seem to mind that white fellow in Lyford digging up the seabed and planning to shoot up rich folks w/ stem cells to slow aging ...
divestream 11 years, 3 months ago
Here again we attack the gov't! Take the Gov't out and stay focused on the real problem......Is the boss your friend where you are employed??Well maybe this one is. These people all worked with each other and were friends before this company came to this country
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
once again these are not charitable organizations ,,they are highly effectively run multi national corps that study every angle of productivity and efficiency ,,if they could get the same employee,with the same work ethic for less they would be liking their chops ,,,do you know any business on Nassau from a conch stall to Awarak homes that willingly over pays people b/c of friendship ,,,come on Atlantis is a billion dollar business that runs at the height of effiency in the tourist market ,,they don,t care about nationality or colour ,,they only see green ,,
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
THE PLP MESSING W/ ATLANTIS AND BAHA MAR IS A SHOW FOR THE UNDEREDUCATED MASSES ,,THE BIG INVESTORS WILL GET ALL THE PERMITS THEY NEED OR THEY WILL LEAVE ,,ISN,T THAT WHAT SANDALS BASICALLY TOLD PGC IN EXUMA ..
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
all that noise the PLP made prior to elections about sandals in Exuma and foriegn managers ,,when PGC came down here after election to tell Sandals pay more and cut the number of foriegn managers what did Sandals say " we are not making money and don,t know if we going to stay open " basically we need the productivity of our foriegn managers to make money ...now not a peep from PGC ,and sandals says goverment is working with them......i,m into reality ,not politically manufactured xenophopia to distract from the run on the cookie jar ,,,,and our parliment being bought by the numbers bosses ,,,,
divestream 11 years, 2 months ago
Atlantis a multi-billion dollar operation.......run by expats from all around the world...next to them are their friends that can tell you that because of their "friends being there that the company is running more efficiently when really and truly the line staff are the ones being very productive, we as Bahamians beat all Bahamians with the same stick...Oh Bahamians are lazy( look in the mirror) they nasty(look in the mirror) when you say these things about you own people you say it about yourself. You can beat around the bush with this Corporation mumbo jumbo all day long if you wish but the fact of the matter is that is does happen in major corporation. A few year ago I recall a major corporation in this country going through 2 COO in a space of 3 years due to monies being filtered into their pockets but because the CEO of the company were close with these two individuals they were given the opportunity to resign and not be place down as fired to keep their names but ohhhhhhhh they are sooooo quick to fire the Bahamians. At the very same company a senior director was also told to resign because the VP could not see eye to eye with him but again you tell me they dont make poor decisions and make it public notice of how and why the person is let go. How fair is that to Bahamians hearing this but before giving them that respect to save their names nooo they say you are fired.
concernedcitizen 11 years, 2 months ago
ok i,m a bahamain looking at myself ,,i,ve have had meduim size business that i built from scratch and finally got tired of the hassles ,,the lazyness ,the pilferage .the bad atdditudes ,,and i always paid well having been labour myself ,,i will no longer do anything that i need more than one helper ..i live on a family island and take care of foriegners homes ,all of them have money and love to dine out ,none of them will anymore b/c of the lousy srevice and bad additudes ,,i,m am 51 and have worked around tourist since the Tropic bird plyed nassau harbour when i was 14 .. we keep dropping the standards in our schools and still our grade average is a d ..i took a course to renew my captains licsene ,,the passing grade was 70% and you got 30% for attending ,,would you like to be on a boat where the captain only needs to know 40% to have a liscense ,,and still the young men couldn,t pass ..our schools are graduateing sullen ,incompitants that think just b/c there bahamian they deserve a job ,,i have been in this business for 36 years ,,get someone from MOT to show you their exit surveys ,,they are horrible ,,we spend more and more to attract less and less stopover visitors ,,yeah we are doing 5 million a year but only 1,35 stopover ,,since the recession when people have been looking for better value and service the other players in the region have improved their stopover , Jaimaca,DR , etc ,ours has lost points ,,,so ride that xenophopic train all you like ,,,,,Cuba is doing 3 million stopover w/ out the U/S ///THIS is purely political nonsene to make the little man feel good ....
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