The Tribune

By RICARDO WELLS

Tribune Staff Reporter

rwells@tribunemedia.net

FNM Leader Dr Hubert Minnis yesterday said the government’s intent to appeal a Supreme Court ruling on overtime pay for police officers sends a “confrontational type message” to a group that is already low on “morale.”

According to Dr Minnis, the government’s hardline stance does very little to ease the continuing dispute, but works to “destroy morale”.

“I think it sends a confrontational type message. The government is there to help its people, not to confront or challenge its people.”

“I think the Police Staff Association (PSA), their executives, took a very mature approach when they said they would like to sit down with the government to come to a resolution. That is what you do.”

Last month, the Supreme Court ruled that the government should pay overtime to police officers who worked a 12-hour shift or give them the equivalent time in days off.

State Minister for National Security Keith Bell, once a police officer, has labelled the Supreme Court ruling as a “hollow judgment”. He recently said the government intends to appeal the decision.

However, Dr Minnis said the Christie administration should deal with the issue out of court.

“(The PSA) is prepared to work with respect to funding as well as time off, I think you can’t ask for anything better than that and that is what the government should do – sit down, come to a resolution to help build the morale of individuals and not destroy morale.”

“Mitigation is always better than litigation. In the case of the PSA the government should never appeal such a decision. Sit down. As you know the PSA represents the entire force, and the morale of the force is low and you can imagine what something like this can do,” he added.

Shortly after the Supreme Court ruling was announced, PSA Chairman Dwight Smith acknowledged it as a game-changer for law enforcement agencies. At the time, Mr Smith said the ruling had important implications for not only police officers, but for officers who work in correctional services, the Royal Bahamas Defence Force and the Department of Immigration.

“I sit in a position where I hear horror stories from prison officers, defence force officers and from police where people are losing their families because they are spending too much time on the job and losing their youthfulness to these jobs, so this is a vindication for us all and a move to give all the award they deserve,” he said.

Estimations indicate that if it was ordered to, the government would have to pay out millions of dollars to officers who worked overtime between separate periods in 2013 and 2014 in connection with the force’s 12-hour shift.