The Tribune

By KEILE CAMPBELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

kcampbell@tribunemedia.net

PRESIDENT of the Trade Union Congress (TUC) Obie Ferguson said 14 unions are holding strike certificates, signalling their preparedness to take industrial action as unresolved labour disputes with the government persist.

Mr Ferguson stressed that while unions have been patient, continued delays in addressing these matters could force them to act.

“We have outstanding issues. We have communicated to the government, we have committed to the government for the last three years that these matters will be resolved,” Mr Ferguson said, listing unresolved disputes involving customs and immigration officers, the Bahamas Hotel Managerial Association, and national insurance workers.

Highlighting unions’ efforts to resolve matters amicably, Mr Ferguson added: “We thought when we signed a memorandum of understanding as a body, we thought that strikes as industrial action will be a thing of the past.”

In August 2021, the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Congress of Trade Unions Bahamas (NCTUB) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC). 

The agreement, known as the “Workers’ Agenda,” outlined commitments to addressing workers’ concerns, including protecting union influence and improving labour conditions. 

While the PLP framed the signing as a commitment to labour rights, several affiliate unions criticised the process, alleging a lack of consultation and transparency.

Dissent grew within the NCTUB, with some affiliates expressing no confidence in President Bernard Evans and calling for his resignation. Leadership defended the MOU, asserting it had executive approval, but the criticism highlighted internal divisions and challenges in the union’s decision-making processes. 

Some Bahamians, including former Director of Labour John Pinder, viewed the agreement as politically motivated, reflecting a broader pattern of election-period promises often lacking follow-through.

In October 2024, the Bahamas Customs, Immigration, and Allied Workers Union (BCIAWU), under the TUC’s umbrella, announced plans for a strike vote due to grievances over delayed overtime and transportation payments, as well as concerns about the contractual rehiring of retired public servants.

Mr Ferguson said that the BCIAWU remains in a stalemate with the government over these long-standing issues. Despite the union’s adherence to legal protocols, including obtaining a strike certificate, no resolution has been reached, increasing frustration among members. 

The BCIAWU’s grievances are among a broader set of unresolved labour disputes involving 14 unions, many of which are also prepared to take industrial action if their concerns remain unaddressed.

The following month, Mr Ferguson revealed that the TUC and its affiliates would convene to strategise potential strike actions, expressing frustration over unresolved grievances and unfulfilled terms from the Worker’s Agenda agreement.

The union leader reiterated his commitment to negotiation but warned that unions are ready to act if necessary. 

Mr Ferguson said: “We will do what we have to do. We tried to avoid taking strikes. That was the last thing we agreed not to do. Instead of doing that, we sit around the table, we would negotiate and bring it to head. But that ain’t happen.”

Reflecting on the importance of the labour movement to the country’s progress in light of recent issues, Mr Ferguson said: “Some of our people who made it, we tend to forget who caused us to be where we are. We just accept that man so because of the working people involved, that’s us, and that is reason why I’m so committed to do what I have to do, to bring some other people along.”