By NEIL HARTNELL

Tribune Business Editor

nhartnell@tribunemedia.net

A Cabinet minister last night said the recommendation that all Bahamian employers pay for 'redundancy insurance' for their staff is "not ready for implementation" and requires further consultation.

Pia Glover-Rolle, minister of labour and the public service, in a message to Tribune Business, likely eased the fears of businesses who previously branded the proposal as "dangerous" and "untenable" by saying that "we all agreed" at this week's Town Hall meetings that it needs further work.

"Redundancy insurance is one of hundreds of recommendations being considered as a part of our consultative process with all stakeholder groups. At the Town Hall meetings we held this week, we all agreed that this particular recommendation required further consultation and was not ready for implementation," she said.

Describing the labour law reforms process as a "collaborative, tripartite process that the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers Confederation (BCCEC)" and wider private sector have "been very involved with since day one", the minister added that the Government and policymakers "welcome the feedback" received.

Mrs Glover-Rolle added: "This is how effective policies are made and fine-tuned to the needs of the people. I encourage more stakeholders to provide their input, noting that they can always reach out to our reform strategists directly with their suggestions and concerns.

"This week, we had two very well-received Town Halls in both New Providence and Grand Bahama. In fact, we received positive feedback from multiple members of the BCCEC on the reforms. We are taking the data collected and incorporating it where we can to ensure that we have the strongest possible legislative drafts ready to go when it's time to roll out the full slate of reforms.

"This is an historic reform process that will move us closer to our goal of providing decent work for all workers in The Bahamas. We are fully committed to delivering the best possible version of these reforms to significantly improve the local labour environment."

Odecca Gibson, executive director for the Bahamas Hotel Restaurant and Employers Association, which acts as the sector's bargaining agent in industrial negotiations with trade unions, recently branded the requirement for businesses to pay a "bond" or finance some form of "redundancy insurance" for their workers as "perhaps the most controversial" of the Government's planned labour law reforms.

Addressing the Bahamas Hotel and Tourism Association's (BHTA) quarterly directors meeting, she argued that resorts, tourism operators and the entire private sector "are literally left defenceless" because no information has been provided on how such redundancy protection will be implemented or operate in practice.

Warning that time is running out for the Bahamian business community to challenge the proposal, Ms Gibson said the proposal will heap another "unnecessary cost burden" on employers - many of whom are struggling to survive.

And she also cautioned that imposing a redundancy "bond" or insurance will effectively act as a tax on employment, potentially deterring companies from hiring at a time when the number of unemployed workers increased by almost 9,000 over the seven months to January 2025. The requirement, if implemented, would likely force companies to set aside thousands of dollars.

Obie Ferguson KC, the Trades Union Congress (TUC) president, first called for a national 'redundancy fund' to be set up in the wake of the Royal Oasis' abrupt closure in September 2004 following hurricanes Frances and Jeanne.

Some 1,200 Bahamian staff lost their jobs, while Driftwood (Freeport), the property's operator, fled the jurisdiction with around $22m in storm insurance proceeds and leaving massive multi-million liabilities - including to the workers.

"We're backing the Government 100 percent; we're supporting the Government 100 percent on that issue," Mr Ferguson told Tribune Business of the 'redundancy insurance' concept. "That's something we are glad they have accepted the position we have been advocating. For about 15-20 years we've been trying to get that in. They've come around, and are at least giving it some serious attention.

"If you recall, that was a position we had advocated several years ago from the Commonwealth of The Bahamas Trades Union Congress. We took the view that, with most of these companies that go belly up, there's no protection for the workers.

"While these companies are making money and doing extremely well, we said 'x' amount has to be put into an escrow account or redundancy fund. What we're saying is that it just seems reasonable that, when a company goes belly up or goes into liquidation, when it goes into liquidation that sometimes takes years to be resolved," Mr Ferguson added earlier this week.

"In the meantime, we know what happens to the workers who are affected. The home mortgage is gone, the car payment is gone, any medical assistance or insurance is gone, and the children's school fees are gone. Everything is cancelled and the worker has to start over again; they are struggling unless they find another job with equal pay quickly."

Reforms such as extending maternity leave to 14 weeks were also discussed during this week's public consultation. Accommodations have also been made for adopting and breast-feeding mothers, while it is proposed that fathers will be able to take two weeks' paternity leave "once every three years".

Other changes to the Employment Act propose introducing "mental health wellness leave" of three unpaid days per annum, while a paid daily work "break" will also be mandated. And, while an employer and employee can agree to the latter working up to 10 hours per day, overtime has to be paid for two hours as this exceeds the standard eight-hour day.

A requirement for a minimum eight-hour break between shifts is also included in the proposed reforms. The Employment Act revisions also "eliminate" the current distinction in section ten concerning overtime for workers who receive the majority of their pay in tips, while managers and supervisors will now "be given time off for overtime hours worked".

As for the Industrial Relations Act, the proposals include strengthening the "conciliation process" involving employer/employee disputes by giving the Department of Labour "more power to address those matters that really have no merit proper to being referred to the minister and, subsequently, to the Industrial Tribunal.