By LAMECH JOHNSON

Tribune Staff Reporter

ljohnson@tribunemedia.net

“CAN you imagine a Bahamas where there were no labour laws?” Labour Minister Shane Gibson asked the hundreds of workers and unionists who marched in a parade on Friday’s holiday, which was renamed in honour of the late Sir Randol Fawkes.

Speaking at Clifford Park to the participants of the parade, organised by the Bahamas National Congress of Trade Unions, Mr Gibson praised the work and efforts of Sir Randol.

“If you look at the way some employers treat employees today, even with the labour laws in place, imagine if we didn’t have labour laws in place,” the minister said.

“So we really don’t give persons like Sir Randol the kind of credit he deserves because at a time in the history of our country, he was out there by himself.”

“But he didn’t mind single-handedly charting the course to make sure that future generations of Bahamians can enjoy all of the benefits that they were entitled to.”

Mr Gibson publicly thanked the Fawkes family for their sacrifices before noting the significance of the renaming of the Labour Day holiday.

“What is even more significant than naming this after Randol Fawkes, is the fact that this is the first time that we have a holiday, named after a Bahamian.”

“A Bahamian hero, who even before we knew what redundancy payment was; before we knew what sick leave entitlement was; before we knew what proper vacation entitlement was; all of these entitlements that we enjoy today, that we take for granted, that we don’t give credit to the person responsible to make sure we put these things in the law, Can you imagine a Bahamas where there were no labour laws?”

Labour Day, which is celebrated on the first Friday of June, was renamed Randol Fawkes Labour Day this year when the Government enacted legislation for the renaming of the public holiday in honour of a man known as “the Father of Labour”.

His son, Francis Fawkes, expressed his thanks to participants for their support and participation in the historical occasion.

“I am very thankful,” he said, “that all of you have supported us with the legacy.”

“And I’m very thankful to all of those that have memorialised him in naming this day, Randol Fawkes Labour Day.”

Sir Randol was a young lawyer who returned to the Bahamas from New York in 1955 to become a union organiser. He formed the Bahamas Federation of Labour and a year later, was elected to the House of Assembly along with Sir Lynden Pindling, who was also a young lawyer returning home at the time.

Both were a part of the Progressive Liberal Party that was founded in 1953 under the leadership of the late Sir Henry Taylor. In January 1958, Sir Randol played a key part in the three weeks general strike that saw hundreds of public and private sector workers walk off their jobs, shutting down New Providence.

“He was known as the ‘Father of Labour,’” Sir Randol’s son noted, adding that “he played a pivotal role in bringing Majority Rule into existence.”

A number of union presidents shared their views about the significance of the day, and Sir Randol’s contribution to the union movement.

John Pinder, president of the Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU), expressed his gratitude for being a part of history and to the government for allowing it to happen.

“I want say how proud I am to have been a part of history in the making this morning. As you know, for many years, we were trying to have the day named in honour of our father of Labour Day, Sir Randol,” said Mr Pinder.

“And so we are thankful that the government has seen it fit to cause this day to be named in his honour.”

Bahamas Hotel, Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) president Nicole Martin, also thanked the government before calling for unity among members and sister unions.

“In the spirit of what I believe our father wanted, is not for us to hold hands on labour day for a few hours and sing Kumbia,” she said.

“Yes it would look good, yes it would make a beautiful headline, it would actually make us look like we are together, but I believe in the true spirit of what he stood for.”

“Because when I think of him (Sir Randol) when he was refusing the cheque, and when I think about everything that he stood for, he was a man of principle. He didn’t do anything he didn’t believe in.”

“So I believe if the movement is to move forward, upward, onward, together, we must work hard on uniting.”

Nelerene Harding, Airport, Airline and Allied Workers Union (AAAWU) president, said that level of participation in the parade showed that “Labour still stands strong regardless to what is being said.”

“For those of us that have a job or don’t have a job, your participation means so much.”

Ms Harding added that though not all persons that seek their union’s help are members, “it’s good to know that this organization, as big as it is, as small as it is sometimes, look out for you who are not unionized.”

“And I think that’s what the trade union movement really needs to be about. Look out for those whose benefits are not as good as the ones that we fight for.”