Mr Furbert appeared to offer an olive branch yesterday. Mr Pearman said a referral to a labour tribunal “in theory” should get staff back to work while the case was examined.īut he added: “The BIU contests Government’s referral, contending the health and safety stoppage does not amount to a labour dispute capable of referral.” “We remain hopeful common sense will prevail.” “We have discussed the stoppage with both government and the BIU, encouraging all parties to reach a solution.
Mr Pearman added: “The Opposition does not wish to add fuel to the fire. “Today is the12th day without buses on our roads, a failure amplified by additional ferry stoppages.” Mr Pearman said: “We urgently need to resolve the transport work stoppage. Scott Pearman, the Opposition transport spokesman, said BIU staff should get the bus service back to normal while their grievances are looked at.
DONT DO DMG LOL DRIVERS
The One Bermuda Alliance yesterday urged bus drivers to return to work. Mr Scott added: ”We anticipate that the bus service will return to the regularly scheduled service tomorrow.“ The Government has called in private minibuses to provide a skeleton bus service since yesterday, when Lawrence Scott, the Minister of Transport, said he hoped that a settlement would be reached. Officials insisted the stoppage illegal and that drivers should not get paid. The Government claimed that, although drivers’ concerns were valid, they did not follow regulations laid down in 40-year-old laws on labour disputes. The union said drivers had a right to withdraw labour until they were satisfied that their working environment was safe. The BIU maintained that the stoppage was caused by health and safety concerns and was not a labour dispute. Those concerns were satisfied five days later, when Government demonstrated that buses and work places were cleaned to a standard “above and beyond” the requirements of the Department of Health.īut a fresh row broke out after drivers argued that they should be paid for the time off work during the initial stoppage. Drivers, represented by the Bermuda Industrial Union, asked for assurances that their working environment was safe. The dispute between bus operators and the Department of Public Transport started on September 17 over concerns that Covid safety protocols were not being adhered to.īus operators refused to show up for work after more than 30 staff had either been struck down by the coronavirus or ordered into quarantine because of close contact. He insisted that bus drivers had no alternative but to down tools over fears about potential Covid-19 exposure in the workplace. Mr Furbert maintained the union’s position that the industrial action was not “a strike”. He confirmed that ferry pilots from the Marine and Ports division of the union had also stayed off work today in support of bus drivers. He said that the dispute was at “a stalemate”, and that there had been no communication with the Government. Mr Furbert added that a meeting would be held today to discuss the next steps. The Government referred the dispute to arbitration on Monday in the hope that, with any further work stoppage ruled illegal, bus drivers would be forced back to work.īut Chris Furbert, the president of the Bermuda Industrial Union, confirmed that drivers had stayed off the job for a 12th day - and would continue to do so until the dispute was resolved. The bus dispute remained in deadlock last night after negotiations stalled. Bus chaos: public transport disruptions look likely to continue tomorrow (File photograph)
0 kommentar(er)
