By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

SUSHI Rokkan co-owner Michael Scott is standing firm against the backlash his restaurant has received to its mandatory vaccine position for employees, telling The Tribune “if they feel that strongly about it, someone should sue me”.

The restaurant in Old Fort Bay Town Centre has mandated that employees receive the COVID-19 vaccine by June 30 or they may face reassignment or termination unless there is a valid medical reason.

A trade union leader has compared forcing Bahamian workers to take the vaccine as a condition of their continued employment to “taking us back to 1942” and the Burma Road riots.

“We have a constitution, you know,” Obie Ferguson, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) president, said earlier this week. “That’s a supreme authority in this country. I know some people believe they can treat people any old way and because they don’t have the means to sue them they get away with it. No, it’s illegal, it’s unconstitutional. The constitution of this country does not provide any mechanism for an employer to vaccinate a worker outside of their agreement.”

When contacted yesterday, Mr Scott hit back at the backlash.

“Well, if they feel that strongly about it someone should sue me, but you know that’s not likely to happen because it’s just a case of people you know, running their mouths and as far as I’m concerned what I’m doing is in the public interest... protecting the public,” said Mr Scott.

“If you read the Health and Safety of Work Act Sections 4, 5, and 7 it is clear to even the most innocent of human beings that there is the duty on the part of employers to protect employees in the workplace as well as members of the public visiting that place. So, I don’t understand what the fuss is all about. It should be welcomed by the public. I should not be the butt of sarcasm or controversy or being publicly abused this way.

“Quite frankly, people have threatened to boycott the restaurant but I can tell you for every idiot that boycotts the restaurant, there are two intelligent people (that have) become customers.”

When asked about an update about the restaurant’s new vaccine policy, he said “things are going ahead”. He preferred not to give the figures on how many workers have indicated they have been vaccinated.

“The fact of the matter is that most people want to be vaccinated maybe except those who may (have) allergies to vaccines,” he said.

Last week, Mr Scott told Tribune Business he had “smoothed out” any concerns at a recent staff meeting with Sushi Rokkan’s 30-40 workers, making it clear “we’re not going to force” people to take the COVID-19 vaccine if their doctor advises against it while warning that they should “find another job” if other excuses are invoked.

Director of Labour John Pinder has said it is not legal to mandate people get vaccinated for COVID-19 as a condition of continued employment.