PAGE 4, Tuesday, March 21, 2017
THE TRIBUNE
The Tribune Limited NULLIUS ADDICTUS JURARE IN VERBA MAGISTRI “Being Bound to Swear to The Dogmas of No Master”
LEON E. H. DUPUCH,
Publisher/Editor 1903-1914
SIR ETIENNE DUPUCH,
Kt., O.B.E., K.M., K.C.S.G., (Hon.) LL.D., D.Litt .
Publisher/Editor 1919-1972 Contributing Editor 1972-1991
EILEEN DUPUCH CARRON,
C.M.G., M.S., B.A., LL.B. Publisher/Editor 1972-
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The frightening consequences of labour amendments MAKE NO bones about it, the political season is upon us. It was ushered in by a slew of amendments to the Employment Act and Industrial Relations Act tabled last week in Parliament, amendments that were clearly conceived to win votes among the masses who, the Progressive Liberal Party believes, will equate dictating higher redundancy and termination pay with finding the Holy Grail. Tragically, the real consequences of the proposed amendments are more like The Last Supper, celebratory dining before the betrayal that befalls the very individual being toasted and celebrated. The amendments do not strengthen the position of the worker. On the contrary: they weaken it by making the employment environment more taxing and unstable than it already is. They are a punishing slap in the face to business so it is no surprise that businesses large and small – hotels, restaurants, wholesale and retail, manufacturing – have come together to say they will fight the proposed amendments with everything they have. And the timing could not be worse for proposed amendments that increase termination costs, redundancy pay caps and include such idiocy as requiring an employer to notify the Minister of Labour if he or she plans to make a single position redundant. So if a fuel station operator or a hair salon owner wants to make a cashier or receptionist position redundant because they no longer need a night cashier or a second receptionist, do they really have to seek permission from the Minister of Labour? The potential for bureaucratic bungling boggles the mind. Further increases in the cost of doing business make absolutely no sense in an economy slowly recovering from a lengthy recession at a time when companies are still reeling from hikes in business license fees. Those hikes came shortly after they swallowed the Value-Added Tax (VAT) pill, including the extra expenses incurred by having to retain an accountant to certify returns, while still paying Customs duties that consultants advised should be abolished once VAT was introduced. Additional increases in the cost of doing business will only serve as a disincentive for investment, both domestic and foreign, further slowing what is already an abysmal rate of growth. Specifically, increasing the redundancy pay cap 67 per cent within a two-year period - from 24 weeks to 40 weeks for line staff, and from 48 weeks to a maximum of 80 weeks for management - could have
one of several effects. Employers who are considering making a position redundant are likely to speed up their decision, acting now rather than later to avoid higher costs, so the immediate effect could be more people left jobless. Some businesses may move to outsource greater shares of their production or sales or hire more part-time staff to reduce eventual liability through either termination or redundancy. Many of the small- to medium-size businesses in the Bahamas struggle weekly to keep their doors open. They are already mired in a conundrum of having to retain existing staff no matter how unproductive they are, or how recalcitrant, or how slack, because letting them go is too costly. It is easy for someone who is not in business to say that such a condition is just the result of poor management, but the reality is that a business that is operating at bare bones, paying its bills relatively on time and hoping for brighter days ahead may not have the $20,000 or $30,000 that it costs to let a single employee go. So they retain them until retirement. The high cost of termination or redundancy also chokes and suffocates the freedom to recruit new, young talent. By loading business with the burden of retention till death or retirement do us part, the proposed labour amendments stifle the ability to inject fresh blood, an objective that is highly desirable not only for the business to remain competitive but to reduce the extraordinary youth unemployment rate that hovers around 30 per cent. With nearly one of every three young people on the unemployment roll, how can a country expect to make the most of its talent when there is no place for that talent to go? How can it expect to solve its crime problem when nearly one-third of its youth population has no pay cheque at the end of the week? There is also the matter of how the proposed amendments were tabled, which the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers’ Confederation argues is in direct conflict with government’s policy that a tripartite council agreed. While the Chamber agrees that it was consulted during the drafting, it did not agree to the amendments it reviewed and said there were last-minute changes in the version tabled. If the poorly-conceived labour amendments are any indication of the type of politics the present government plans to offer, Dr Hubert Minnis’ lack of charisma may look like a small price to pay for a thoughtful and safer regime.
Banks in the Bahamas
EDITOR, The Tribune. I am moved to write following a recent article whereby the Royal Bank of Canada announced that it was closing branches in Treasure Cay, Harbour Island, Spanish Wells and Bimini. Apart from the pain of adding Bahamians to the list of the unemployed what was the motivation for such an announcement? Is the Royal Bank of Canada saying that it is not making any profit in these locations? Is that the key to motivating the closures i.e. PROFIT, PROFIT PROFIT? It is only recently that all the banks substantially increased their bank charge fees causing an outcry for some form of price control. I can only assume that the motivation to increase bank charge fees was for profit, profit, profit. I am very much against Government getting involved with price control as not only is it none of its business but it eliminates the very essence of competition. It is only when competitive forces are “in play” that the public benefits.
GRAND BAHAMIANS ARE FED UP WITH MICHELLE RECKLEY AND HER PLP ANTICS EDITOR, The Tribune. FEW people outside of Grand Bahama would recognise the name Michelle Reckley. But on the island of Grand Bahama, everybody knows her. Reckley was on ZNS at a PLP event held at a mega church based on Grand Bahama on March 17 imploring Bahamians to give her party another opportunity to govern. She is the Iron Lady of the PLP who calls the shots on that northern island. She seems to wield the same kind of authority as Grand Bahama Minister Dr Michael Darville. It has been rumoured that she was instrumental in securing the Central Grand Bahama nomination for Julian Russell over former Port Authority executive Ginger Moxey. Moxey told the media that PM Perry Christie called her on the night of the nomination to inform her of the party’s decision to go with Russell. Reckley, the former assistant secretary-general of the PLP on Grand Bahama, now heads Urban Renewal, despite not having the academic qualifications. Urban Renewal 2.0 has been a catastrophic failure at reducing crime. With 600 plus murders under Christie’s watch, any chatter of the FNM’s tinkering of Urban Renewal being the reason for the hundreds of murders committed under the Ingraham government must now be put to rest. Reckley stirred up quite a bit of controversy in 2013 when she directed Urban Renewal employees to dress in the PLP colour, yellow. Listening to Reckley those, you wouldn’t know that FNMs also pay
taxes in this country. She is perhaps the most partisan PLP in the country. She used to be a school caterer. They are saying on Grand Bahama that not only does Reckley at times cooks for the PM, but that she also has his cell phone number. When Darville and Moxey told the media that Freeport was booming, they weren’t lying. What they failed to do, however, was to say who exactly was experiencing this economic boom. With a jobless rate around 19%; the International Bazaar in rundown condition with about four existing businesses operating outside of a slew of churches located there; the closures of the Memories Resort, Breaker’s Cay at the Grand Lucayan Resort, Butler’s Food World, the International Sewing Centre, Animale, Treasure Bay Casino, BETCO, Savemore Food Store and the impending closure of The Jewellery Box, it all underscores the severity of Freeport’s economic drought. There are plenty more businesses which have failed in Freeport. The closure of these businesses have directly contributed to Freeport’s excessively high jobless rate. Thousands are jobless with over one thousand plus set to enter the anemic job market this June. There are reports of families sleeping in the old abandoned Princess Resort and Xanadu buildings. There are also rumours that homeless people are living in the International Bazaar. Darville, his family, close friends and relatives are experiencing an economic boom. The PLP Iron Lady and her family are experiencing an economic boom. They get to eat the fat of the land while
many Grand Bahamians are living in abject poverty. So when Darville and Co says it’s booming in Freeport, they really mean to say it’s booming for a select group of PLPs. Grand Bahamians have a right to know how is it remotely possible for a high ranking PLP official to secure the school bus contract? With her government salary, how was this PLP able to purchase the buses? Further, are rumours true that this PLP is in the process of building a massive house in an upscale area of Freeport and has even purchased a shopping complex in the Freeport City area? Grand Bahamians are talking. There are even rumours that this PLP has bragged that her goal is to see $1 million on her bank account during this term. The PLP is atrocious when it comes to governing, but is very good when it comes to taking care of its cronies. Grand Bahamians are tired of the PLP. Even rank-and-file PLPs have abandoned the party on account of the PLP Iron Lady. They are fed up with Reckley and her PLP antics. Reckley is an albatross around the neck of the PLP. She is one of the main reasons why thousands of Grand Bahamians are eager to vote out her scandalous government. I predict Grand Bahama will be going red this election season. T HE WHISTLEBLOWER Nassau, March 19, 2017.
LETTERS letters@tribunemedia.net When someone like a bank is in operation, especially in a foreign country, it forms part of the social fabric of the society. As such there are, or should be, both moral and ethical considerations each of which should be a factor just as much as profitability. In the case of the Royal Bank of Canada they have been in operation in the Bahamas since 1908 and should have a corporate indebtedness to the Bahamas where they have enjoyed privileges for over 100 years and have without doubt the lion’s share of providing banking services throughout The Bahamas. Where was our Government in this decision process? Did they not remind the Royal Bank of Canada of their corporate obligations and the favourable treatment that they have been afforded over the many years? I must confess I wondered about the change in structure about five years ago when the operations in The Bahamas were structured under a separate corporate umbrella as opposed to being a branch. The significance of such a change meant that the corporate entity had to rely upon its own capital and reserves instead of those of its parent. Even though the new structure appointed a veteran Bahamian Banker as its Chief Executive Officer I rather believe that he has limited overall authority and I very much doubt that the branch closure decision was taken by him. I believe that the decision was made in Canada and he was asked to implement same. These are very disconcerting actions – (i) the change of corporate structure and (ii) the closure of well-established branches – are these the signs of the Royal Bank of Canada withdrawing from the Bahamas? Is the Bahamas market considered too small in the Global world? Will their next announcement be their withdrawal from The Bahamas?
Unfortunately all the Canadian based banks seem to be following a similar pattern when it comes to a reduction of overall banking services in the Bahamas. Many functions have been transferred from the Bahamas to other jurisdictions in the Caribbean. This outsourcing has also contributed to the number of unemployed while the quality of service has dropped dramatically. Is anyone in the Bahamas challenging these actions and defending the country’s best interests? – it would appear not. My other concerns relate to who will fill the void created by the branch closures of the Royal Bank? I sincerely hope that it will not be the Bank of the Bahamas attempting to open branches in these locations. Their operations are highly questionable and lack credibility. The continual “bail-out” of their past indiscretions by Government who takes money from the people (in the form of National Insurance) is highly unethical and immoral. Another alternative could be the “numbers houses/web shops”. As these “numbers houses/web shops” are not able to deposit their takings with the major banks they are exploring other avenues for their excess cash accumulations. It seems that they are looking into other activities such as banking and investing. As the “numbers houses/ web shops” were contrary to the Public Referendum, the Government chose to ignore the results and proceeded to “legitimised” their operations. These entities are already seeking protection from competition and exclusiveness and thus it is highly conceivable that we could have a banking system that will not be regulated by The Central Bank which in turn will do The Bahamas even more reputational damage – especially with outside agencies such as IMF, World Bank, OECD, etc., FAIR & BALANCED Nassau, March 20, 2017.