By RASHAD ROLLE

Tribune Senior Reporter

rrolle@tribunemedia.net

PRIME Minister Philip “Brave” Davis said he has asked Atlantis to reconsider its requirement that employees pay for weekly antigen tests if they are not vaccinated.

Atlantis’ policy took effect on October 1.

“Atlantis has not changed its stance as it relates to non-vaccinated team members,” the resort said in a statement to The Tribune on Tuesday.

The resort’s comment came less than a week after Labour and Immigration Minister Keith Bell told reporters the resort agreed to hold off on the policy after discussions with labour officials.

Following yesterday’s opening of Parliament proceedings at Baha Mar, Mr Davis told reporters he met with the president of Atlantis recently and discussed the issue. He reiterated his administration’s intent to implement free COVID testing, which he says may mitigate the issue.

“She explained to me when I raised the issue of the (testing) being paid for by the employees that this was a compromise that she arrived at with the corporate office,” he said. “She advised that all employees of Brookfield, all their properties, wherever they work, are required to be vaccinated. Vaccination is mandatory for anyone who wishes to continue their employment with Brookfield.

“She appreciates the concern we have about mandatory vaccination and she reached a compromise with her corporate office that at least if they were to ask persons who wanted to continue to work with Atlantis that they pay for their testing that might encourage them to get vaccinated. When we left the meeting they were going to revisit the issue of whether they continue to pay but at the same time we did indicate to her our desire to put in place free testing which we are still working on the logistics as to how we can get it done and so that may fall away in respect to the cost to the employee.

“We are still working on that so it will take some time so we’ve asked them to reconsider whether their employees ought to pay but it was designed one, to keep people on the job having regard to their corporate mandate and they want to also be compliant with the wishes of the government not to mandate vaccination and thirdly they wanted to ensure that persons appreciate the need to be vaccinated and so that is the conversation we had, the deputy prime minister and I with the executives of Atlantis.”

Mr Davis said the administration is concerned that paying for tests will be burdensome for some workers.

“Our concern with respect to that was not every employee is working seven days,” he said. “They are being rotated two, three days a week and so when they get whatever that salary is, to deduct a cost of a test from their salary leaves them with very little. It eats into what they can do with their income, particularly in light of the challenges they have with not having a full pay for a full week and the challenges they have with being furloughed for so long. I think Atlantis took on our representations in respect to the workers and we will continue to monitor that issue in respect to that.”