THE FACTS BEHIND THE EMPLOYMENT ACT, MINIMUM WAGES BILL AND THE HEALTH AND SAFETY AT WORK BILL

Nearly two years ago the Coalition of Private Sector Organisations was formed specifically to review a series of proposed labour-related bills in order to present views and recommendations as one voice to the Government. Government and the Prime Minister welcomed this approach by the private sector since it presented an organized way to address the multiple issues surrounding the proposed bills.

A technical task force was formed by the Coalition, which literally spent hundreds of hours reviewing the details of the bills and discerning recommendations for presentation to Government. Position papers were presented to Government and a series of meetings were held with the Prime Minister and Minister responsible for labour - most extending beyond six hours and involving considerable debate and discussion.

Clear Understanding Developed Between Business and Government

As a result of those meetings, we had a clear understanding of areas where the Government was willing to compromise its position - recognizing the economic sense behind our arguments. We also had a clear understanding of issues that the Government was not willing to compromise.

At a meeting on the Employment Bill with the Prime Minister last August, he expressed his intention to move forward with enactment. We believe at that point that a balanced bill had been created which addressed the issues of all parties concerned. At that meeting the Prime Minister also indicated that he would move shortly thereafter with enacting the Minimum Wages Bill and the Health and Safety at Work Bill.

Earlier discussions on the Minimum Wages Bill reflected our mutual understanding that a minimum wage of $4 per hour or $150 per week would be set and that special consideration would be given to provide exceptions for some categories of businesses and employees.

Among those exceptions was a mutual understanding that tipped and commissioned employees could be compensated at an hourly rate lower than the minimum wage in consideration of their tips or commissions generally far exceeding the minimum wage level when factored in with their lower hourly rate.

On behalf of the employer community, we agreed that in those instances when a tipped or commissioned employee's earnings in any given week were lower than the minimum wage level - employers would make up the difference. The Prime Minister concurred with our recommendation.

Labour Bills Put On Hold After September 11th

The House passed the Employment Bill early in September, at which time the bill went on to the Senate for full adoption. The events of September 11th struck before the Senate addressed the bill.

The economy went into a tailspin and a request was made to the Prime Minister to delay enactment for three months at which time we agreed that we would consult with him again for consideration on possibly extending the delay. This was done primarily in concern for the added costs of doing business from the redundancy clause in the legislation. In return for providing the delay, the private sector organizations agreed to encourage employers to retain employees.

Employment Bill Adopted Without Advance Notice

Less than a week before Christmas we learned that the Senate would address the Employment Bill the following day. The next day it was passed. This took us totally by surprise since it was not in line with the understanding that we had in September. A letter of concern and request for a copy of the passed legislation was immediately sent to the Prime Minister and the Minister of Labour, the Hon. Earl Deveaux, M.P.

It was two weeks after the Senate passed the Bill that we were provided with a copy. Our greatest concern was the enactment date of the legislation, particularly with regard to the redundancy provision. Government told us incorrectly that the enactment date would not occur until February 28th. We learned on December 28th that the enactment for all provisions of the legislation except the Standard Hours of Work would occur on January 1st, 2002.

Minimum Wages Bill and Heath And Safety At Work Bill Proceeding Without Employer Representation

During the holiday period we were told by the Prime Minister that the Minimum Wages Bill and the Health And Safety At Work Bill would be introduced to Parliament in short order. A meeting was requested to discuss these two Bills, but the Prime Minister refused.

He stated that the amendments made to the Bills were the concerns and recommendations made by employers. We requested a copy of the amended Bills, which we received on January 4th, by which time these two Bills were passed by the House and sent to the Senate.

Minimum Wages Bill Dramatically Changed Without Consultation

The Minimum Wages Bill was nearly amended in whole. Exceptions for tipped employees (primarily affecting restaurants whose workers would be guaranteed minimum wage if their tips did not make up the difference), service station attendants, student workers, and handicapped workers - all exclusions that were previously agreed to - were struck from the Bill.

During negotiations with the Prime Minister on the Employment Bill, it was agreed that inspectors would be removed from the Bill. While this was done with the Employment Act, the Minimum Wages Bill provides for inspectors, who not only have the power to inspect provisions of the Minimum Wages Act, but to inspect provisions of the Employment Act as well.

EMPLOYERS AFFECTED BY CHANGES TO MINIMUM WAGE BILL URGED TO SEEK AMENDMENTS

The legislative technical committee of the Coalition of Private Sector Organisations has acted earnestly and in good faith on behalf of the business community and has sought to keep employers informed of developments and details of the legislation as they evolved. We are deeply disappointed in the manner with which Government has handled these changes in recent weeks and urge affected employers to convey their concern and request for further amendments to Senators and Members of Parliament. The Minimum Wage changes in particular will affect employers and employees in a negative way.

When the current form of the labour legislation was first announced in March of 2000, The Bahamas was riding high on an economic boom that had been going on for years. Although there were signs of a global slowdown in the economy from the second quarter of last year, little regard was given until the bottom fell out of the economy as a result of the September 11th terrorist attacks in the United States.

Today we are in an economic slump that was on its way, but made worse by the events of September 11th. Many businesses are reporting sales levels 20% to 40% lower than the same period last year and the outlook for January is bleak.

To pass legislation that increases the cost of doing business at a time when many business houses are finding it difficult to remain solvent will likely result in the exact opposite of what the labour legislation drafters intended - job losses, higher consumer prices and economic hardship. Add to this the fact that FTAA is only three years away. What will be the true legacy of the labour legislation five or ten years from now?

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