By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

AS the Department of Labour continues its investigation into Norman’s Cay development in Exuma, former employees are now speaking publicly about their experiences, alleging unsafe living conditions, managerial misconduct, and retaliatory dismissals.

Mary Hanna, who joined the development in April 2024 as an executive assistant and later became housing manager, was terminated on May 9, 2025. She described a workplace that quickly unravelled due to what she believes was managerial neglect and resistance to addressing legitimate safety concerns.

Ms Hanna said her first red flag was the lack of on-site security, which she said left staff vulnerable during serious incidents. She witnessed a violent altercation in which someone was injured with a machete and recounted a fire that destroyed a staff trailer — allegedly set intentionally after a domestic dispute between employees.

“They had one fire extinguisher that was working, and the other fire extinguisher was not filled. So that led to persons running out of trailers. We had to relocate them, which was difficult given the already limited housing options,” she said.

She further described housing trailers riddled with mould, exposed sewage, and dangerously soft flooring. One of her colleagues even fell through the floor of a trailer. Ms Hanna said she raised these concerns in daily briefings, advocating for urgent repairs, better security, and improved living conditions.

“Each time I went into those meetings, I addressed, I pled, and I advocated for more help, for more assistance with the housing standards, with more assistance in regards to security and with assistance in regards to repairs, and they have all ignored them,” she said.

She said shortly after raising these issues, she was abruptly told via email, without explanation or other recipients copied, that she should no longer attend the morning briefings. She was later dismissed and told the company was “revamping.” She said no performance-related reasons were cited, and she was told she might be called back.

Another former employee, Antoinette Bain, worked in the housekeeping department from January 2024 until her termination in February 2025. She claimed that nearly 30 people were dismissed from her department in a year. She believes her dismissal was linked to a letter she submitted voicing concerns about leadership and working conditions.

A letter obtained by The Tribune stated that “it became increasingly difficult to maintain stability when management team addresses their concerns with dismissive comments, such as, ‘I don’t care, I have bigger problems.’” The letter added that this approach was “demoralising and undermines” staff morale.

Ms Bain, a mother of three, said she accepted the remote position based on the assurance she would be able to stay in contact with her children. But within weeks, management introduced a new cellphone restriction, limiting her ability to speak with her children during the day.

“It was complicated but being a mother, you know, you have goals and you’re there with a focus, with a drive, that you have something that you have set to do. So that was my main thing. You know, I’m here,” she said. “I’m thinking about them constantly at the same time. I’m here to do something, to better myself, to better them, and, you know, to just get it over with. So that was my aim, that was my push. So through all of that, I tried to stay positive.”

She said she was once assigned to clean mould without any personal protective gear.

Ricardo Hamilton, who worked in human resources from July 2024 until his termination last week, claimed he witnessed troubling favoritism in managerial decisions. He cited an incident where four employees were involved in a fight. A manager reportedly attempted to protect a favored employee by lobbying HR to fire only the others involved.

Although all four workers were eventually terminated, Mr Hamilton said the favored staffer was soon rehired as a contractor.

A company representative told The Tribune yesterday: “I would suggest we await the official report from the labour board. Our team will definitely reach out to address concerns brought to us from the official report should the need be.”