The Bahamas National Alliance Trade Union Congress (BNATUC), was launched on Sunday, less than a week after the National Congress of Trades Union (NCTU) confirmed that one trade union had informed of its decision to break away from the umbrella organization.
The BNATUC comprises six unions and two associations including the Bahamas Hotel Catering and Allied Workers Union (BHCAWU) that had informed the NCTU of its intention to leave. The new entity joins two existing ones — the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and the National Congress of Trade Unions (NCTU).
President of the Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT), Belinda Wilson, who heads the new umbrella grouping, said among the key priorities of the new body would be advocating for fair and improved working conditions for its affiliates and providing recommendations for a minimum and liveable wage.
“Our motto is protecting workers’ rights,” she said. “We did not choose this umbrella by a mistake, but it was intentional because we pledged to cover and protect all workers in the Commonwealth of The Bahamas.
“Our priorities are to assist affiliates with the successful completion of negotiations for new industrial agreements. We are going to monitor the labour legislation in this country as it relates to the industrial relations act and the employment act.
The other unions in the BNATUC are the Airport Airline and Allied Workers (AAAWU), Bahamas Financial Services Union (BFSU), Bahamians Public Service Union (BPSU), and Bahamas Taxi Cab Union (BTCU), the Police Staff Association and Correctional Officers Association.
Wilson said that the new body will also participate in the national tripartite process and will examine the components of the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed by the government and unions.”
She said the BNATUC will also focus on training and professional development and seek to re-establish a labour college for young trade unionists and that the members are no longer affiliated with other umbrella union bodies here.
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