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Volume 45. No.94 Wednesday, January 6, 2016 Price 50 cents

V ICE

e Bermuda Industrial Union is onrecord in 2012 just before the GeneralElection in December of 2012 sayingthat the One Bermuda Alliance (OBA)is going to be supporting business at theexpense of everyday Bermudians. eOBAhadsaidatthattimetheBIUwaswrong.

However you can be the judge as towhat has happen since once the OBAwas elected in 2012.

Term limits - were eliminated in the firstsix months of the OBA Government

Gaming – e OBA promised areferendum on gaming however oncethey became the Government theychanged their mind

Work Permit Policy – e OBAwanted to create a work permit policythat would allow persons on a workpermit who have children, to allowthem to apply for Summer Student jobsover Bermudian Children. is policywas later withdrawn after the Ministerof Home Affairs received push backfrom the people.

America’s Cup – e OBA Govern-ment used $77 million of the tax payersmoney to finance the America’s Cup,while seniors benefits have been cut,education benefits have been cut, etc; etc.

PRC – e OBA Government has ex-ploited the “sleeping provision,” in theimmigration policy that provides a pathto allow about 1400 PRC’s to apply forBermuda status.

Comprehensive Immigration Reform– e OBA Government had made acommitment to comprehensiveimmigration reform but have nothonored this commitment. e OBAGovernment instead appears to haveadopted a process of piecemealingchanges to immigration reform.

Hiring Freeze – e Government hasimplemented a hiring freeze in order toreduce the cost of running the Govern-ment. is is causing a problem inproviding quality services in certain areasfoe example, Parks, the Postal service,Sanitation services and PublicTransportation, all of which are understaffed and therefore cannot provide thequality services that are required.

e 2015 Labour Force SurveyExecutive Report that was released inJanuary 2016 has highlighted some veryconcerning information.

e One Bermuda Alliance Govern-ment has been saying that they areputting Bermudians back to work yoube the judge as to who they are creating

jobs for, based upon the report itcertainly does not appear to be Bermu-dians based on the facts contained in theinformation that is being released by theBermuda Department of Statistics.

On January 21st 2016 the Minister ofHome Affairs in a written pressstatement says the following;“As you will recall, the Bermuda JobBoard, which launched in November2013, is an online, user-friendly platformavailable to Bermudians seeking employ-ment. e induction of the Bermuda JobBoard has significantly enhanced the jobsearch process for Department ofWorkforceDevelopment clients and the entire com-munity. Likewise, it has assisted employersin indentifying qualified local resources”.On page 2 of the press release the Ministergoes onto say that “there will now be amandatory field on the job board requiringemployers to report on recruitment throughthe Job Board by responding to the question:“Have youhireda candidate for this positionthat applied via the Job Board?” is willenhance reporting on recruitment activity.

If what the Minister’s is saying is true,then why is it we do not see more Bermu-dians being hired? We are seeing thecomplete opposite because theemployment numbers for Bermudians in2013 were 26,316 and now in 2015 it is25,813 this represents a decline of 503

e State of Employment for Bermudiansunder the OBA Government

by Chris Furbert, BIU President

SPECIAL EDITION

4 THE WORKERS VOICE JANUARY 6, 2016

CHART 4

In December 2015 the Minister ofFinance proposed an increase in landTax that went into effect on January1st 2016 below are some examples as

to how this new increase will impactyour Land Tax Cost. You will noticethat some of these examples that rateincreases range from 32% to 103%

which directly impacts the workingclass people’s bottom line once again,while the people who can afford toPAY get a break. (Please see chart 4)

LEST WE FORGET - BELCO 1965

5JANUARY 6, 2016 THE WORKERS VOICE

Bro. Viv MingBro.Bro.Bro.

6 THE WORKERS VOICE JANUARY 6, 2016

Lest We Forget February 2, 1965February 2, 1965, is a red-letter day in theannals of the BIU. It marked the climaxof one of the Union’s most celebrated dis-putes, when the police, and hundreds ofworkers clashed in what is known as theBELCO Riot. Basically, it was a recog-nition dispute between the BIU and theBermuda Electric Light Company(BELCO).

e company then and now, ownedand operated the one and only powerplant providing electricity to the wholeIsland. Among its directors and share-holders were some of the Bermuda’s mostpowerful and influential white men, in-cluding Sir Harry Butterfield, Sir JohnCox, Sir Henry (Jack)Tucker, and Sir Ba-yard Dill. ey along with BELCO’sgeneral manager, Llewellyn Vorley, werethe company’s representatives in negotia-tions. e BIU was represented by Dr.Barbara Ball, General Secretary, EugeneBlakeney, Assistant General Secretary,

Robert Johnston, President; Ottie Sim-mons, Union Organizer,; and a delega-tion made up of electrical workers.

According to Ira Philip, authorof “e History of the Bermuda Indus-trial Union”, the principle issue in 1965was union recognition for 87 outsideplant employees who had recently or-ganized into the Union. ey comprisedlinemen, garage mechanics, drivers,labourers, maintenance personnel andothers.” At that time, BELCO’s total staffcontingency was 231 which includedclerical and administrative staff.

“An application for union recog-nition was made in writing,” wroteBrother Philip. “BELCO returned a neg-ative response. Intervention by Govern-ment’s Labour Relations Officer (LRO)Harold Chudleigh failed to alter thecompany’s negative stance”.

Brother Philip further explained.

“Following an intensive public relationscampaign in the media initiated by theUnion, the company offered to hold aballot provided that all of its 231 em-ployees, including supervisors, partici-pated, with the stipulation that theUnion had to get sixty percent “yes votes’in its favour before the company wouldgrant recognition.”

“is proposal drew a resounding“NO’ from the Union, for three mainreasons: First, it flew in the face of thedemocratic process, in that recognitionvotes were ordinarily determined by asimple majority. Second, the companypracticed unacceptable racial policies. Forinstate, its locker rooms, toilets and wash-up rooms were assigned on race and signswere posted to ensure that no one madeany mistakes.”

At the end of the thirty-four days,the BELCO strike culminated in a

7JANUARY 6, 2016 THE WORKERS VOICE

bloody riot described by Brother Philipas follows “…e police were attackingthe west-gate picket line. Some of thepickets were defending themselves againstan extremely aggressive police force.Johnston (Robert) was being arrested; hepassively cooperated, in accordance withprevious union instructions. Some pick-eters were bloody and looked confused,as they wandered about the road tryingto find their bearings. At the same timea police van was being overturned andsomeone appeared to be trying to set fireto the leaking fuel.”

Brother Ottiwell Simmons has alsowritten on the BELCO strike, and in hisbook “Our Lady of Labour – Dr. BarbaraB. Ball”. Brother Ottie summed up theBELCO strike as follows:

“Following the February 2 distur-bance, much time was taken up with me-diation and reconciliation. esediscussions were headed by the Governor.Also, the Company (BELCO) was busyforming its own in-house union, this

time with the complete cooperation of itsinside-plant employees. e new unionwas named the Electrical Supply andTrade Union (ESTU).

Brother Ottie explained that throughmediation, a settlement was reachedwithin three days in an attempt to returnthe Island to normalcy. ere were twoprincipal points by the parties:

1 ere would be a secret ballot of all130 Company employees, and if theresults indicated a 51% majority foreither union (BIU or ESTU), itwould determine recognition andsole bargaining rights to the success-ful union.

2 Seven of the former Company em-ployees, namely Raymond “Jackie”Durham, Clarence “Sparrow” Trott,Ronald “Eight Balls”Trott, Llewellyn“Bird Bean, Bridge Webb, Hubert“Hubie” Spence, and John Mellowould be made redundant andwould receive a substantial severance

pay based on length of service”.

“It must be noted that the only satisfac-tion that the BIU achieved out of thisagreement was the fact that for the firsttime the Bermuda Electric Light Com-pany would be unionized, although nei-ther the Union officials, nor the memberswere in any way pleased,” wrote BrotherOttie.

On May 14, 1965, a supervised secretballot took place at the Company’s prem-ises. e final result was that the ESTUreceived 137 “yes” votes, the BIU received94 “yes” votes. is result reflected thecomposition of the strikers and the non-strikers. Since that day, the BIU, in spiteof several efforts, has never had any suc-cess in organizing the BELCO workers,except the St. George’s branch whichcontinued membership with the BIU.e ESTU is still in existence today andhas sole bargaining rights, even for theeighty-seven employees who sacrificed somuch as members of the BIU.

8JANUARY 6, 2016 THE WORKERS VOICE

BACK TO THE PLANTATION??Is this a hint OR is this the best plan the OBA can come up with for our people?

THE OBA TRACK RECORD SPEAKS FOR ITSELF….IT IS NOT YOUR INTEREST THEY

ARE LOOKING OUT FOR! THEIR TIME IS UP!!

TUESDAY, JANUARY19th 2016 - Headline: -“DUNKLEY: LOOK TOFARMING FOR WORK.”

is article should be an insult toevery Bermudian that is awake!

e Premier of Bermuda is suggestingthat Bermudians struggling to findwork should look to traditionalindustries that have serviced theIsland for decades for employment,insisting that farming and hospitalitysectors could provide opportunitiesfor those willing to diversify.SO to all our QUALIFIED Bermu-dians, young and not so young, withall your schooling and degrees, youshould know that the OBA Govern-ment is in many ways telling you, youwill never be good enough to work inCORPORATE BERMUDA.

Since when has FARMING beenclose to the TOP of one of the major

16 Industries that employ Bermudi-ans? If anything, it falls in the bottomfour showing figures in 2013, thatonly 274 were employed in theIndustry of Ag/Fish, Forestry/Fishingand Quarrying.

MAYBE…options of TraditionalBusiness in Hotels, Restaurants….butFARMING!!

IS THIS THE BEST THEPREMIER CAN COMEUP WITH?

“I would like to see families andcommunities get more involved infarming. ere is land available andthere are community gardens.”

Is this a suggestion that governmentwill be giving or loaning out land? Forpersons to turnover profits and be-come self sufficient? Would thinkNOT!