By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A former Immigration minister yesterday said the director of labour's plan to link work permit approvals to the hiring of Bahamian understudies is "good in theory, but very onerous in practice".

Branville McCartney, who held the post during the last Ingraham administration, told Tribune Business that such a policy must be looked at on an "individual case-by-case basis" depending on the company and application's circumstances rather than applied "across the board".

The ex-Democratic National Alliance (DNA) leader, while applauding the "intent" behind John Pinder's proposal, warned it would be "very difficult to put that plan into practice" - especially if there were no qualified Bahamians available or willing to be trained as an "understudy" to expatriate labour.

Warning that it could be "very costly and onerous" for companies to hire and pay an understudy, in addition to financing the work permit and foreign worker's salary, Mr McCartney questioned if applications would be rejected when firms were unable to find Bahamians who could be trained up to take over.

Citing the pharmacy industry, in which his family's Wilmac's Pharmacy has retained a presence for many years, the former Cabinet minister said The Bahamas had suffered from a shortage of qualified local pharmacists for years.

Revealing that annual work permit fees for expatriate pharmacists had recently increased from $7,500 to 9,000, Mr McCartney argued that the government would impose "a bit of a strain" on the private sector if it forced local understudies to be recruited as well.

He confirmed that, when minister of state for Immigration, he looked at plans similar to those outlined by Mr Pinder but ultimately decided the practical implementation difficulties rendered it impossible - not least because it meant the government was potentially interfering with companies' hiring practices.

"The intent is good," Mr McCartney told Tribune Business of Mr Pinder's proposal, "but in many cases these are persons who are hired in sectors where we don't simply have the expertise, or those coming up don't have the expertise, to be an understudy."

"Where there are persons, that's very good, but certainly - more often than not - there are Bahamians who are just not in that field or struggling in that field or not in the country. I understand it, and it's well-intentioned by the director of labour, but I think that's going to have to be on an individual case-by-case basis depending on the company and availability of Bahamians, and not across the board."

Mr McCartney spoke out after Mr Pinder was quoted as saying that labour certificates, which confirm there are no qualified Bahamians willing or able to take a particular job, will only be issued to companies that provide evidence they have identified a Bahamian "understudy" who will be trained to replace the expatriate worker once their work permit has expired.

The director of labour suggested this will be a "mandatory" policy from January 2020 onwards, with companies given until the 2020 first quarter end to develop their training programmes. He added that the Department of Labour would conduct interviews and inspections to ensure these requirements were being.

Mr Pinder also threatened that, while only a policy, it would be upgraded into statute law if there was too much resistance from Bahamian employers. However, as a concept, what he has suggested is nothing new given that the two Christie administrations also promised to introduce the same scheme only for it to fizzle out.

While the goal is to ensure that Bahamians are equipped with the skills necessary for upward mobility in the workforce, and that qualified local workers obtain jobs that match their qualifications once they become available, Mr Pinder's comments are likely to have been received with alarm by some in the private sector.

Employers may view his plan as an unwarranted government interference in their hiring practices, and also be concerned as to whether they will still be able to hire the specialist and skilled expatriate labour that they need for the smooth running of their operations.

"It has come up before, and I looked at it many years ago," Mr McCartney told Tribune Business of the plan floated by Mr Pinder. "The problem is you cannot deny a company or business because they can get the expertise elsewhere but not here.

"The reality is if a company comes for a work permit for someone who has expertise that we don't have in The Bahamas, more often than not - but not all the time - they're coming because we don't have persons who are qualified or in position to fill that post.

"I think the director [Mr Pinder] will find it's going to be very difficult to practically put that in place or into practice. What that means for that particular business, they have to look outside the country to fill a particular position and, at the same time, look for someone in The Bahamas to be an understudy," he continued.

"That puts a bit of a strain on the company to hire someone to understudy a person. In theory, it's very good. In practice, there's going to be some challenges. I read what the director said, but practically in the business world you have to see if it truly makes sense. It could lead to hardship for a particular business; hiring someone, paying an extra salary to someone not qualified and keeping them on for a period of time to understudy someone."

Mr McCartney said such apprenticeships typically lasted for more than two years, and there was no guarantee that the Bahamian understudy would remain in place as they could move on to other jobs - something that companies have told Tribune Business happens all too frequently.

Citing an industry he is very familiar with, Mr McCartney said The Bahamas had suffered from a lack of trained local pharmacists "for some years now". And, in addition to the lack of local talent, retail pharmacies have also been squeezed by rising work permit fees.

Questioning how Mr Pinder's plan would treat work permit applications if no local understudies could be found, he told Tribune Business: "You need to find that Bahamian, and that Bahamian needs to be willing to work, which we have a difficulty with in this country.

"Everyone wants a job, but doesn't want to work. I've experienced that too, especially during this Christmas season. Everybody is calling in sick, can't find a baby sitter or missed their Bahamasair flight. That's the excuses I got today and yesterday. More often than not they're probably hungover or have to do last-minute Christmas shopping."