'Freaka Call for Sa Twrompts BIU Hty Legislation

SUPPORT YOUR VOTE FOR EUGENE LABOUR PARTY COX SEPT. 21 L,AI\IDIDATE IN THE AND GIVE SANDYS SANDYS NORTH PARISH ANOTHER BY-ELECTION . GOOD MAN! Vol. 6 - No. 1. HAMILTON, BERMUDA - FRIDAY, AUGUST 27, 1976 Price: 15 cents RBITRATION of the dispute between the image is cherished and fostered by the Amer A sanitation workers of the Public Works Div MINISTER FAILS ican Arbitration Association. ision of the Bermuda Industrial Union and the The Minister's action in this case should Bermuda Government began last week and is bring home to the workers of Bermuda that now in the hands of the Arbitration Tribunal. TO APPOINT arbitration in Bermuda is designed to suppress The Arbitration Tribunal is headed by Mr. and repress trade unions, using 'community Lawrence E. Seibil, an arbitrator from the Unit IMPARTIAL interest' as a cloak to hide his (Or her) Gov ed States, assisted by two employer-orientated ernment's real intentions. persons: Messrs. E. T. Sayer (former editor of The Chairman of this Arbitration Tri The Royal Gazette) and John I. Pearman (Man TRIBUNAL bunal has allowed himself to be put in an in ager of Holmes, Williams & Purvey Garage and vidious position which must raise doubts in Vice President of the Employers Council). The question may well be raised as to the many minds as to his own impartiality. The fact that there are two labour repre position of the Chairman, who has obviously If the Bermuda Government wishes ar sentatives on the Panel — chosen by other consented to sit with this type of a Tribunal. bitration to be an acceptable method of re Unions—has been completely ignored by the The Bermuda Industrial Union is well solving disputes then it must cease in its at Minister of Labour and Immigration, who, on aware that an Arbitrator is supposed to be an tempts to suppress and repress workers and this occasion has blatantly shown the extent impartial person who should not only be im restore the trade union rights which have been of his own bias. partial, but must be seen to be impartial. This destroyed by the present Labour Legislation. j^w^^î^^^^^^î^»^^^^^^^»^«^^»M^»^»M^»^^»M»^»»s»N»«i^^^^^^^^'''i^'''^^'^^^^^^^^^^*^^^^^^^^»/^^^>^^^^^^^^^^î^^^^^^-"^>^^^^^* This photo shows the crumpled crane boom which crashed down on the 'FreakA twrompts BIU site of the Provident Bank building recently. This is one of the accidents that prompted the BIU to call for Call for Sa hty Legislation safety and health legislation. The second industrial accident within a "A letter received yesterday from the Min opinion that your job is unsafe, then you week has prompted the Bermuda Industrial istry of Labour and Immigration informed us should bring the matter to the attention of Union to repeat its call for safety and health that'. the incident at the bank was merely a your employer or raise a grievance with your legislation. The BIU has been appealing to Gov freak accident, therefore in the circumstances shop steward before risking an accident. ernment for many years for some type of law the Minister does not think that a special com "The Bermuda Industrial Union is press o to protect workers on job sites. mission of inquiry is likely to add any more ing for health and safety legislation and, as Following the two accidents which oc pertinent information than is already known'. such, it has an important part to play in acci curred recently, the BIU President, 0. A. Sim "In view of the Ministry's decision re dent prevention: but it isa fallacy to think mons, last week appealed to employers and garding this incident, the Bermuda Industrial that it is a panacea. We should point out that workers to check on machinery and working Union is making an appeal to all employers passing a law does not prevent a man from conditions, He said: and workers to please carry out a thorough ex contracting a disease or becoming involved in "Yesterday's (August 16) accident at amination of their machinery and general work an accident. The first prerequisite of acci the Waterlot restaurant further exemplifies ing environment, to ensure their safety and dent prevention is safety consciousness on the urgency for human safety at the work health. the part of all the people working, from the place. "To the workers especially, we appeal to managing director down to the youngest em "The Bermuda Industrial Union, only vou to ensure that your jobs are safe from ployee. a few days ago, called for a special commiss the possibility of industrial accidents and oc "To this end, the Bermuda Industrial ion of inquiry into the causes of the accident cupational diseases. If it is your reasonable Union will endeavour to print short articles in at the Provident Bank site, where it was re The Workers Voice, in order to increase this ported that a worker almost suffered a fatal See "Guidelines To Safety" - Page 7 consciousness of safety and health among em accident. ployers and workers." 2 THE WORKERS VOICE, Friday, August 27. 1976 ******* »^î^^«*^^** * • * • • **i"i"i~i~"i~i~"'~'~'~*'*i'v'M'V'VVV^~M*w'V'«*u-uTj>ru-u'\j'\r_ruri>»jx/\riL^^ n The Workers Voice Compulsory Arbitration Following is a definition and explanat PUBLISHED AND PRINTED BY cause of deadlock on one or more issues, the THE BERMUDA INDUSTRIAL UNION ion of 'Compulsory Arbitration' from the law directs that government intervention UNION STREET, HAMILTON, BERMUDA International Confederation of Free Trade Un should impose compulsory arbitration on Editor Barbara Bali ions (ICFTU) Trade Union Handbook:- both parties, whether or not they like it.... Assistants Lionel Pearman, Doreen Lightboum "Although many trade unionists regard "Compulsory arbitration contains sever \-> General Council Representatives: the use of the right to strike as a method of al dangers, such as the temptation for Gov George Baisden, Kenneth Young and Austin Thomas lubricating the wheels of industrial democ ernment to dictate the award of its own arbi Telehone 2-00445-6-7, Ext. 19 racy, there have been attempts from time to trator, the danger of corruption of govern ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ time, by wily and other-minded persons or ment arbirtrators by parties to a dispute, and groups, to reduce the principles and extent of the ever-present danger that trade union lead strikes by resort to compulsory arbitration. ers will be displaced by lawyers. In countries Compulsory arbitration simply means that where compulsory arbitration is either absol Financial when a labour dispute arises between the em utely or partially the rule, it is notable that ployer and trade union, and when it has been lawyers form a fairly large portion of the found impossible to resolve the dispute be- trade union leadership, inasmuch as winning Si"t-îniAi>%'>i'S^lN^^kAâ^^^M^VM^"> labour dilutes means spending much time Double Talk pleading cases before labour courts or gov ernment-appointed labour relations comm Our Finance Minister, Mr. David Gib ittees. bons, must feel extremely confident about "Subjection of collective bargaining to his party.s continuing in office for many judicial action in formal courts tends to stunt years to come. Otherwise, he would never the growth of trade unionism, particularly as have made the statement contained in the union members believe that all the union has Sun interview of Saturday, August 21. to do is hire a slid< lawyer or two and let the In this interview, the man candidly lawyers fight their problems in court! Further admits that the $30,000 per year which more, the growth of voluntary arbitration in the Financial Secretary receives would not many countries has represented a very real be sufficient for his (Gibbons) needs. He moral gain for democracy, in that employer states quite blandly that he has three chil and union, including government as an em dren abroad in secondary schools. Why? •fe ployer, resolve their disputes andmethods of Aren't the local secondary schools good '%> arbitration by mutual agreement and without enough for them? 'Af tha necessity of any intervention on the part Then, to add insult to injury, he of the law. calmly states that Bermuda's economy is recovering, and will recover further, IF the workers of Bermuda are content to ask for no more than 6% increase in their wages! i^-, --i:-!*.--. It would seem that David Gibbons and his ilk are so above and far removed from the daily lives and problems of the vast majoMiv in these islands, that his govern WHY COMPANIES MAKE ment's claim to being representative of the people of Bermuda would be laughable, if AN ISSUE OF UNION DUES it were not basically tragic for the hopes of the workers of Bermuda. In the same interview. Gibbons gives Pey Cheek his smug views on the average man in Berm:- WHhoutUiaen uda, and what he is doing. He states, "There is no doubt whatever that due to the low rate of inflation and the average increase in wages, there has been a real increase in in come for those who have been working." What about those who, through no fault of their own, have not been working? It is informative to note that, during the worst period of recent world inflation, both the governments of the United States and Great Britain, considered, the use of 'artificially induced unemployment' as a possible cure. The United States govern ment appear to have shelved this idea, (may be because it is election year), But, from re ports received from that country, it appears that the British Labour government (to their everlasting shame) may well be using unem ployment as a threat and a weapon to sub due the worker^, demands for better living Aft«r paying union diMS; standards.

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