HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC – Bermuda trade unions were observing Labour Day on Monday, urging the Government to change the date from September to May in keeping with the international observance of the event.
“The Bermuda Trade Union Congress and the BIU(Bermuda Industrial Union) for years have been lobbying successive governments to change September Labour Day to May in line with International Workers Day. To date, we have not been successful,” BIU president Chris Furbert told workers ahead of the annual Labour Day March.
Fubert said that the late Ottiwell Simmons, whose contribution to the labor movement here was being acknowledged, had also called for the holiday to be celebrated on May 1 to align with International Workers Day.
But he said the holiday was established in September after businesses here complained about having two public holidays in May.
“Brother Ottie, with the support of the membership, decided on the general strike 1981 that in May of 1982, we would take a public holiday, paid or unpaid.
“There was no need to take a public holiday with no pay in May as Eugene Cox, the former PLP shadow minister of labor, tabled a Bill that went through the House of Assembly that granted the first Monday of September would be Labour Day, a victory for Brother Ottie and the BIU,” he added.
Furbert said several workers in unionized and non-unionized workplaces took the holiday for granted as “just another public holiday.”
In his address, Furbert said action should also be taken to reduce the cost of healthcare for employees and employers, saying, “This would provide immediate relief for so many workers that it will increase their disposable income.
“This initiative could take place while we are considering ways to reduce Bermuda’s high cost of living.”
Head of the Bermuda Public Services Union (BPSU), Armell Thomas, said workers faced several challenges daily because of the high cost of living, including healthcare.
“Today, we stand at a critical juncture where the need for progress and worker protection is paramount.
“Equal access to affordable healthcare must be the number one priority of this Government. It is long overdue with many worker’s families now at a crisis point,” he said.
He said the introduction of unemployment insurance should also be given “priority status” for the Government and employers to provide a safety net in times of economic uncertainty.
“Our island’s economy must be protected against the rising tide of inflation that threatens worker’s livelihoods,” Thomas said, adding, “a sustainable cost of living ensures that hard-working individuals and families can afford the necessities that allow them to thrive.”
Premier David Burt paid tribute to the sacrifices and courage of those who led Bermuda’s labor movements and fought for workers’ rights.
“They organized at the Naval Dockyard in the 1940s, Belco in the 1960s, and across the island in the general strike 1981. Each time, they put down their comforts and set safety aside to demand more from those in power—more protection for workers, better working conditions, and fairer pay.
“They stood united in solidarity and laid the foundation for the continual fight for better and fairer Bermuda, not just for Black Bermudians, white Bermudians or Portuguese Bermudians, but all Bermudians,” he said, adding, “they built this island that we know and love today.”
He said the ruling Progressive Labour Party (PLP) had worked closely with the trade unions here to help create a more equitable Bermuda, noting the Government’s work to update labor legislation, reduce payroll taxes, and make a minimum wage.
“We know that there is more work to be done to advance workers’ rights and reduce the cost of living, and we will continue to stand in solidarity with our trade unions as your PLP government implements reforms to make Bermuda a fairer society for all Bermudians,” Burt said.
Labour Minister Jason Hayward spoke of the work undertaken by the Government to benefit the workers, even as he acknowledged that there’s still much more to be done.
“We will ensure equal work for equal pay within all industries. We will work to ensure a living wage for workers in Bermuda.
“We will be refining and monitoring the minimum wage that we implemented. We will also ensure that we put legislation that prevents employers from withholding tips, gratuities, and service charges from employees.”
Hayward said the Government wants to increase the working population but also wants to retain all the workers already in the workplace and address the problems that inspire young Bermudians to leave.
Opposition Leader Jarion Richardson said that the rights now being enjoyed by workers result from hard work and sacrifice by workers of the past.
“It is unfathomable how many people put in so much effort. When they launched organized labor in Bermuda, it wasn’t with PowerPoint and computers. It wasn’t in air-conditioned offices. It was in living rooms, homes, community clubs, and sports clubs.
“It was markers and placards. It was people risking everything they had to stand up on a street corner and demand something that the powers that be could have easily quashed.”
and then 