Dear Sir, 

I hope The Bahamas Utilities Services and Allied Workers Union (BUSAWU) has sufficient funds in its account to reimburse all the Water and Sewerage Corporation employees who will be docked pay because they have joined the illegal strike of the Company.  I’m sorry, Mr. Woods, but a deliberate withdrawal of labour during the work day is a strike, so don’t be cute with this asinine reference to “withdrawing enthusiasm,” and WSC will be totally within its rights to “withdraw” pay from all those who were involved.

It might also be a good idea, Mr. Woods, if you were to educate yourself on how a trade union is supposed to operate.  It does not call meetings during the working day, unless you and the members are prepared to lose pay for the time they are not doing their paid employment.  Instead union meetings are held on the employee’s time, something Ms. Belinda Wilson, of the Teachers’ Union, knows full well, calling their meetings during the teachers’ breaks.

An even better idea, Mr. Woods, is to not call industrial action in support of a WSC employee who deliberately contravened written corporate regulations saying no personal property should remain on WSC premises when those offices are closed.  As an aside all that employee had to do was politely request permission to leave his vehicle on the premises until he was able to move it the following Monday; if he had been denied then, and only then, Mr. Woods might have had an argument.

Another matter for thought was Woods ludicrous call for Chairman Gibson and GM Donaldson to not interfere in human resources at the company.  I’m very sorry but Messrs. Gibson and Donaldson are very senior management and have every right to discuss human resource matters, much more so than Woods and his Union. 

Finally I understand Mr. Woods maintains his Union offices within the WSC compound(??!!)  Is this so he can conduct Union business while he is supposed to be gainfully employed by the WSC and receive payments from both organisations; I wonder, perhaps just a minor conflict of interest? 

Thank you,

Harry Strachan

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