Employees seeking audience with PM to have the matter resolved
“We have been waiting for a response from them since last December when they dropped their case”
NASSAU, BAHAMAS — Some 24 terminated Gaming Board employees who were ordered by a judge to be reinstated over a year ago are urging the government to immediately honor the ruling.
They described the issue as a “huge injustice” that has resulted in significant hardship.
Meresha Walkes, spokesperson for the group, said yesterday: “Our goal was to get a word to the prime minister to make a call to the good minister of tourism to have the court’s order executed and have the staff reinstated with immediate effect.
“I think if the prime minister intervenes, the employees could be reinstated on Wednesday.”
The former Gaming Board employees took legal action in 2018 after receiving termination letters between November 1, 2017, and December 13, 2017.
They had argued the Gaming Board failed to comply with Section 26A of the Employment Act, which outlines redundancy procedures like discussing steps to avoid redundancy with the relevant union.
The plaintiffs had contended the Gaming Board “failed and/or refused to comply with the procedures required by Section 26A of the Employment Act, 2001, as well as Articles 25, 36 and 40 of the collective bargaining agreement between the Gaming Board and the Bahamas Public Services Union, dated January 1, 2013, to December 31, 2015”.
Justice Indra Charles subsequently ruled in favor of the terminated employees, noting that they were entitled to be reinstated by June 30, 2020.
While the Gaming Board subsequently sought to appeal the decision, that action was abandoned, with Walkes noting that there was no legal impediment barring the reinstatement of the former employees.
“We have been waiting for a response from them since last December when they dropped their case,” said Walkes, who was a senior accounts clerk and chief shop steward in the Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) at the time of her termination.
“At this point, we wonder what their position is and what they intend to do.
“It’s disappointing because the court has made a ruling and persons in authority should show some respect for the rule of law and not be the ones disobeying a court ruling.”
She added: “We could have been reinstated from last year when they withdrew their appeal.
“People are suffering. There are people who got ill, who lost their homes and have been struggling to meet daily necessities. There may have been four or five persons who may have been able to secure jobs.
“If I could call the prime minister, I would challenge him to make this happen. The court has ruled and he would simply be executing the court’s ruling.
“Show us you have a heart. I’m a single mother. There were other single mothers and husbands who had newborns who still haven’t been able to find employment.”
At the time of the terminations, Gaming Board Chairman Kenyatta Gibson had stated that the terminations came following the completion of a manpower assessment of the agency, suggesting it was overstaffed.
Walkes continued: “I believe this is one of the biggest injustices in The Bahamas today. It’s a slap in the face after they have exhausted their legal avenues to still not follow through with the judge’s order.
“At the time of our termination, we had a contract with the government. They just disregarded the contract,” said Walkes.
In an interview early last month, QC Wayne Munroe, who represents the group, said the government must either “pay up” or “reinstate ” the 24 people who were terminated from the Gaming Board in 2017.
Munroe had said he was prepared to initiate contempt proceedings if the government fails to comply.
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