‘Reflect On Sacrifices Made By Our Forefathers’
“We encourage everyone to celebrate Labour Day this year by taking the time to reflect on the sacrifices made by our forefathers to establish the rights, protections, and benefits that we are afforded today,” Bermuda Public Services Union [BPSU] President Armell Thomas said.
Mr Thomas said, “It is important now more than ever to celebrate labour especially given the devastating impact that the pandemic has had on economies worldwide and the future of labour in the workplace. Lay-offs, terminations, redundancies, and loss of benefits are but some of the serious consequences of this pandemic.
Members of BPSU Executive, General Council & Secretariat greeting commuters today:
“While Unions have been challenged like never before, the Bermuda Public Services Union [BPSU] has remained steadfast in our commitment to both our membership and the wider labour community. The BPSU’s resilience lies in our ability to adjust, our willingness to collaborate, and being solution centric.
“The BPSU takes this opportunity to recognize and acknowledge the thankless efforts that are being made by all workers; we honor and salute them. Throughout this crisis, public sector workers have been responsible for treating the infected, monitoring our borders, contact tracing, Covid testing, waste management, financial assistance, and a wide range of other public services. At times, however, public sector workers have, unfortunately, been criticized and abused by the very same individuals they are trying to serve.
“The BPSU would like to encourage more social dialogue within a tripartite forum that can stimulate discussion between government, the private sector and unions whereby constructive processes can be established that maximize the impact of crisis responses to the needs of the workers, the economy, and the wider community.
“It would be remiss of me not to mention the decertification legislation. The BPSU has articulated our approach to address the matter of decertification through extensive correspondence to our membership.
“This Union will continue to effectively represent our workers and protect their rights by maintaining the BPSU’s Vision: “to being a proactive and respected union which promotes the active involvement and development of its members, maximizing its resources to foster a culture that embraces bottom-up decisions, facilitates open communication channels and embraces collaboration with stakeholders for the betterment of its members and the community.”
“Based on this Vision, the BPSU looks forward to the continued consultation and open dialogue with our bargaining units, both in the public and private sector, our social partners, and, most importantly, our sister unions.
“We encourage everyone to celebrate Labour Day this year by taking the time to reflect on the sacrifices made by our forefathers to establish the rights, protections, and benefits that we are afforded today.”
This is absolute nonsense. The executive should have been embarrassed to take part in this ridiculous and disrepectful display of defiance. The Labor day celebration has nothing to with the dispute between government and the BIU so choosing not to take part in Mondays labor day march is completely inexcusable. The purpose of Labor day is to recognize and celebrate the work and contributions of the labor movement. This unfortunate and distasteful decision by the BPSU demonstrates poor leadership and Mr. Thomas’ presidency should come into question. I hope BPSU members take a stand of solidarity, for labor, and show up for the labor day march on Monday.
Yes, the past inspires and informs us but it is our actions in the present that will determine our future.