By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

The “balance” between Bahamian and foreign labour in the construction industry has “started to shift in the wrong direction”, a prominent contractor is arguing, while calling for a halt to all general labour work permits.

Leonard Sands, the Bahamian Contractors Association’s (BCA) president, told Tribune Business in a recent interview it had become too easy for the sector to obtain work permits even for low-level, unskilled jobs and this was placing Bahamian workers at a disadvantage.

In particular, he argued that it was “unfair” for Bahamians to compete against expatriate workers for “general labour” positions on construction sites that require no specialist skills. Instead, Mr Sands said the industry needed to hire locals for such posts and train them, adding: “The work is there for us to do.”

Speaking after Keith Bell, minister of labour and Immigration, halted the processing and acceptance of all new Haitian work permit applications due to the governance collapse in The Bahamas’ southern neighbour, the BCA chief told this newspaper the move was unlikely to negatively impact the construction industry’s workforce.

“In terms of that decision, I don’t think it’s going to have any real impact at all because I think there are sufficient numbers of persons already on work permits,” Mr Sands said. “From our position, we have more than we need already. Our position is that we do not need to increase that number at all.

“If you look at the number of work permits we have across the board in the area of construction, I think you would find we are quite saturated with work permits. Not to tell the minister how to do his job, but we are very encouraged by his position to hold off on new Haitian work permit applications at this time.

“I think the industry is quite saturated with work permits and expatriates at this time. I think that, right now, those on permits are enough. I can say that the more we grant these applications, the more we continue to put the Bahamians that can work in this area at a disadvantage,” the BCA chief continued.

“While we recognise there needs to be a mix of people from the local community and persons with skills from outside the country in The Bahamas, I think the balance has started to shift in the wrong direction. I think it’s become too easy to make applications for work permits in the sector and get them, so I think we need to look at pulling that back.

“We’re glad the minister has started to look at doing that. If you make it too easy, you will do it that way. If you make it harder, you make it more likely that the contractor will look around the community for workers. If you make it harder to get a work permit, people will look to local labour to fill the void. We welcome that.”

Mr Sands said contractors were “sensitive” to Haiti’s present plight. However, he added that it was dangerous for The Bahamas to rely on a construction workforce that was overweight with expatriates given that they were “transient” employees who can simply pack up and leave.

“There has to be a balance because the industry will fall into a precarious situation where it relies on a workforce that is transient and leaves you,” he told Tribune Business. “You can see the void that creates. You never want to be in the position of relying too heavily on a workforce that is transient. We always have to rely on the strength of the Bahamian workforce, which is the backbone of the economy.”

Mr Sands said construction industry work permits should only be granted for key positions and specialist skills, or in cases where no qualified Bahamians were available and willing to do the work. “I make the argument that there should never an application, or a permit granted, for someone coming for general labour,” he added.

“We have enough people in this country who, if granted the opportunity, can do general labour work. We should not be granting no permits for general labour. They have no skills to bring to the table. They’re in the same position as a 19 year-old without skills leaving high school. Why grant a work permit for general labour? That should be discontinued. It impacts our industry more than anything else.

“If a person from outside the country is getting a work permit with no skills, and someone inside the country is looking for a job but has no skills, they’re competing directly. It’s not fair to the local worker. They should not be competing with someone with no skills from outside the country. That makes no sense. That practice should be discontinued,” Mr Sands said.

“It should not be the policy of any government. The BCA’s position is we believe we can train anyone. If someone comes with no skills we can train them. We prefer to train locals rather than someone with a language barrier. The work is there for us to do. We have a huge responsibility but have to do the work.”

The Government has adopted the position that no new work permits will be processed for Haitians until revised protocols are introduced to ensure the authenticity of documents produced by that country’s government.

Existing work permit applications and renewals will face vigorous review and scrutiny, while existing and new permits to reside applications for Haitian citizens will only be considered on a case-by-case basis. Approvals will be granted in “exceptional cases” only.