Labour issues at The Pointe continue

Labour issues at The Pointe continue
Minister of Labour and Senator Dion Foulkes

Labour Minister Dion Foulkes revealed yesterday a possible loophole in government’s heads of agreement (HOA) with The Pointe Resort.

The agreement calls for a 70:30 ratio of Bahamians to Chinese workers, but Foulkes reasoned yesterday that the wording can be left to interpretation.

“The heads of agreement can be read two different ways,” Foulkes said.

“Whether you will remain at 70:30 at all times, or at the end of the project the minimum has to be 70 per cent.”

The government, Foulkes admitted, is following the interpretation that the overall project has a minimum of 70 per cent Bahamian labour force.

“We met this agreement in place and we don’t blame the previous administration… we just follow this because at the end of the day governments are continuous,” he said.

“There has been a significant increase in the Bahamian workforce and next summer it will be over 70 per cent … At the end it would be over 70 per cent that is how the government is interpreting it. We are looking at the end result. We want the project to finish so that 600 persons can be permanently employed.”

Foulkes added that another review of the workforce has been completed and results will be forthcoming by Labour Director John Pinder.

About Genea Noel

Genea Noel is the news director and weeknight TV news anchor at Eyewitness News. She began working at Eyewitness News in 2018 as the newsroom editor and was subsequently promoted during her tenure. As a household name who graces the screens of thousands of Bahamian homes each night, Genea has racked up an impressive five Bahamas Press Club awards, including “The Cyril Stevenson Award for Outstanding Political Journalism” (2020), “Best Studio Live Producer” (2020) and “Best Newscast” (2018).