The Tribune

By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The Chamber of Commerce is preparing a last-ditch appeal to the Government to withdraw and “reconsider” its labour law reforms, with “not one employer” yesterday said to be in favour of the changes.

Edison Sumner, the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation’s (BCCEC) chief executive, said the private sector was especially upset that it had not received copies of the Employment Act and Industrial Relations Act amendments prior to their Wednesday tabling in the House of Assembly.

Reiterating the Chamber’s opposition to “most” of the changes, Mr Sumner warned that their impact “can be quite catastrophic” for all Bahamas-based businesses if they become statute law.

He argued that the Christie administration was “using a broad stick to beat the entire private sector”, and that it should instead deal directly with employers over specific labour-related situations, rather than introduce all-encompassing legislation.

And, while repeating his argument that the Bills were “ultra vires” or illegal, since they were not unanimously approved by the National Tripartite Council as required by its Act, Mr Sumner said the body still represented the best mechanism for resolving labour-related disputes.

He added, though, that the Chamber only found out on Tuesday night that the Government planned to move forward with the tabling of the Bills for their first House of Assembly reading the next morning.

“We did not see the final draft Bills. We did not have an opportunity to see the Bills as they were framed before they were presented,” Mr Sumner told Tribune Business.

“One of the things we were disappointed about, and wished had worked out differently, is that we didn’t get an opportunity to see the draft amendments; not as they were presented in Parliament.

“We thought there should have been some level of professional courtesy to ask the Tripartite Council, including the employer representatives, to review the draft legislation before it was presented in Parliament.”

Employers have been united in condemning the proposed changes to the Employment and Industrial Relations Acts, warning that the increased costs and bureaucracy they will create could “cripple” and “bankrupt” businesses across all sectors.

They fear the reforms, which many see as an election ‘ploy’ designed to attract trade union and worker votes to the governing Progressive Liberal Party (PLP), will further undermine the Bahamas’ economic competitiveness and ‘ease of doing business’

The increased costs and ‘red tape’ associated with redundancy will also deter businesses from hiring, with many in the private sector believing the Bills will ultimately prove self-defeating.

They argue that the subsequent business community reluctance to invest and hire will frustrate efforts to increase the Bahamas’ tepid GDP growth rates and reduce a ‘double digit’ unemployment rate that was 11.6 per cent in November 2016. Both these objectives are stated Government priorities.

Acknowledging that the Chamber has its “work cut out” to prevent the Government from moving ahead, Mr Sumner said it would appeal to the Government to reconsider prior to the planned debate on the Bills next week in the House of Assembly.

“We are going to make an appeal to the Minister and the Government that these Bills should be reconsidered and taken from the table until more insight into them is given,” he told Tribune Business.

“We think we still have some opportunity to have further dialogue and discussion with the Government on them. Our discussion now has to be elevated to the next level to have these amendments recalled before they become law.

“We understand the debate is to begin next week. We know our work’s cut out for us, but we will implement a strategy to approach this very directly and get those responsible for passing legislation to listen to what we’re saying and hope there’s a change before the debate begins.”

Key among employer concerns is the 67 per cent, or two-thirds increase, in the Employment Act’s redundancy pay ‘cap’.

Line staff are currently entitled to a maximum 24 weeks or six months’ redundancy pay under the Employment Act, gaining two weeks for each year they have been employed up to the 12-year ‘cap’.

However, the Bill requires the ‘cap’ to be increased to 32 weeks (16 years) immediately upon enactment of the reforms. And, ultimately, the ‘cap’ for line staff redundancy pay is to be increased to 40 weeks some two years after the amendments are passed.

As for managerial staff, the existing 48 weeks (12 months/one year) redundancy pay maximum that they are due currently under the Employment Act is to be immediately increased to 64 weeks. Should the proposals pass, the ‘cap’ will ultimately be lifted to 80 weeks after two years.

Mr Sumner reiterated that the Chamber’s opposition was especially strong over the redundancy and Ministerial ‘notification’ proposals, with both the Government and union representatives on the Tripartite Council in favour.

“I can tell you that there is no single private sector employer supporting these amendments; not one,” he told Tribune Business. “I’ve had numerous e-mails and calls expressing concern today.

“There is not one employer supportive of these amendments, because they recognise the impact it will have for our businesses.”

Mr Sumner pointed out that the private sector was the major wealth and job creator for the Bahamas, including the Government and its taxes, and needed to be sure that the regulatory and legal climate was “conducive” for its efforts.

He added: “The Chamber continues to hold its ground, and we believe some of the amendments, if allowed to pass, are going to be challenging for the private sector.

“I think there’s going to be an adverse impact on the level of employment in the country. We’re going to have difficulty attracting new employers when they’re hit with such onerous responsibilities to shell out so much money in the event of redundancies.”

Mr Sumner said the same deterrent effect would apply to foreign direct investment (FDI), and he added that the Chamber would now undertake economic impact assessments to determine the effect if the reforms became law.

Appealing to the numerous businessmen in the House of Assembly and the Senate, he said: “Any business person sitting in Parliament should have challenges and difficulties in approving these amendments.

“You’ve got to live with the laws you enact and pass. These amendments may look good in the short-term, especially on the labour side, but the long-term implications can be quite catastrophic for the business community.

“Our position is that these amendments are not the best solution for the country, and they should be reconsidered. The Chamber is going to be leading the charge to ensure the Government reconsiders.”

Most of the proposed reforms appear to be a direct response to the situation at the Melia Nassau Beach Resort, where the hotel is no longer collecting union dues and paying them to the union, plus Sandals Royal Bahamian’s termination last August of its near-600 strong workforce - an event some regarded as ‘union busting’, although this was denied by the resort.

Mr Sumner yesterday argued that the proposed reforms were an overreaction to these situations, and said the Government should have addressed both matters directly with the employers involved.

“You cannot use a broad stick to beat the entire private sector because of mishaps and misgivings with a few who operate in the country,” he told Tribune Business. “There should be mechanisms to deal with these companies directly.”

Still, Mr Sumner defended the National Tripartite Council as “a wonderful tool” for resolving labour-related matters, even though the latest recommendations are “ultra vires” or violate its own Act, as they were not unanimously approved by its three partner members - the Government, trade unions and employers.