PRESS RELEASE
LESLIE N. MOSS, UNEMPLOYED, HIGHLY QUALIFIED, BAHAMIAN FATHER


“WHEREAS I have exhausted ail resources at my disposal over the past EIGHTEEN MONTHS to secure gainful employment in my chosen career, in my own country, I am holding this peaceful demonstration against the Minister of Labour, Vincent Peet, and the Director of Labour, Harcourt Brown, for their failure to enforce the government’s Bahamianization policy in the offshore financial services sector in The Bahamas.

Shortly after being named Minister of Labour, Mr. Peet, in a public speech, said that if Bahamians were equally qualified, he saw no reason why they should not be on the same level and compensation plan as their expatriate counterparts. I wrote to him in response thereto and we met shortly thereafter. Mr. Peet spewed political rhetoric and paid nothing but lip service to his own words. This was confirmed when, within a few months, I applied for and was denied a job with UBS, a local offshore Swiss bank. Since the corresponding work permit was being denied, the head of that bank went to see the Minister. Despite the fact that the bank admitted to lying on their work permit application, Mr. Peet not only granted one work permit but TWO. His verbal explanation to me was that he had to balance the need for foreign investment with the concept of Bahamianization. Further, I was told that the job for which I applied would be mine in 2 years. Not only was that never put in writing but also the time has passed and I am still unemployed. The Minister never acknowledged or responded to my letter to him in that regard. Furthermore, Royal Bank of Canada, which terminated me some 18 months ago, has privileged access to the Minister, securing numerous work permits for jobs for which I am qualified. I was replaced by an expat.

Next, there is the Director of Labour. Way before I lost my job in the industry and during my almost year and a half of unemployment, Mr. Brown has given his approval for at least 12 jobs for which I applied. Most notably amongst these was a job at Dartley Bank & Trust, a private local offshore bank. Just as with the Minister, the head of that company had a private meeting with Mr. Brown that resulted in me losing the job to a foreigner who was already earmarked for the position even before that bank applied for the corresponding work permit. Again, I was not even given the courtesy of an acknowledgement or response to my letter to the Director in that regard.

Not only is Bahamianization an official policy of the Government, but the Constitution of this Commonwealth also preserves my rights as a citizen. Our independent nation is also a member of both the United Nations and the International Labour Organization, the Charters of which clearly put the onus on the Government to safeguard certain human and labour rights of its citizens. As a citizen of this country, I called on the Attorney General’s office on at least TWO occasions and even wrote to the Prime Minister himself in an effort to have my rights protected. Again, no acknowledgement, no response. I am therefore demonstrating today and calling for justice to be done so that I may provide for my family. I am also calling for an investigation into possible conflicts of interest that exist as regards these questionable and clandestine meetings between the Minister, the Director and many of the banks that practise this blatant discrimination against Bahamian workers. Are the Minister and Director servants of the people or do they serve other masters, the foreign investor and worker? A further investigation into possible corruption and the influence these banks are having in the affairs of a supposedly sovereign Bahamaland should also be made.”

Copies of the aforementioned documents, along with my CV, are available upon request. I call on the press to do its duty to the Bahamian public rather than continue to yield to fear or favour.

I hear you on this, same thing is happening in the field I am in. Hope it works out for you.

Rory

It is a sorry thing you have been put through Mr. Moss particularly in view of the fact that we have a "Bahamianization program."

Let me ask you, why do you think that some people would rather hire foreigners than Bahamians?

because there are alot of ignorant business owners and employers, who automatically think a foreignor will do a better job, while I agree, there is a majority of Bahamians with bad work ethics and attitudes, that cannot allow an employer to bias every Bahamian, and believe that every foreignor is a good worker, because it is not, I have worked in the UK and the US.

because there are alot of ignorant business owners and employers, who automatically think a foreignor will do a better job, while I agree, there is a majority of Bahamians with bad work ethics and attitudes, that cannot allow an employer to bias every Bahamian, and believe that every foreignor is a good worker, because it is not, I have worked in the UK and the US.

Hi Rory, I agree with this, but I don't know that "there is a majority of Bahamians with bad work ethics and attitudes". If this IS so, then it would be useful to understand WHY it is that way. Is it that Maybe, just MAYBE, because Bahamians have been taken so much advantage of on their jobs for so long? Maybe, just MAYBE, this is why we have developed poor attitudes, have lost our working minds and resorted to drugs and other crimes! During my 40 years of working, I saw shoddy, disgusting treatment being dished out to Bahamians almost daily, even by a highly regarded international corporation!!!

This is why I can fully sympathise with Mr Moss. God knows I myself have been through hell and high water during my working years, fired for nothing many times and many times just quitting jobs out of frustration and disgust because of messed-up minded employers. And on top of that being broke and not even knowing where the next job, if any, was! It is a life-long puzzle to me to understand why the job sitauation in the Bahamas is in such a mess, ie, why do they treat us natives so badly!?

[Even if Mr Moss was not quite candid in his statement, I WOULD BELIEVE EVERYTHING HE HAS SAID -- I have seen this type of ill treatment so often].

Mr Moss, I wish you well and certainly hope you secure a job position you deserve. Don't give up, even if you have to accept a lower level position and eventually be upgraded to a higher level. God bless.

No, its just the attitudes on a whole, in and out of work.

Its called Ghetto attitudes, you find them all over the world, not everyone has it, but Nassau has alot of ghettos. And its not a color thing, all races and creeds have the same issue.

Hi Rory, I agree with this, but I don't know that "there is a majority of Bahamians with bad work ethics and attitudes"....

Well, yes there is.
I heard something the other day. I can remember where I hear it but it was on TV. It went like this, "Why strive for excellence when people pay so well for mediocrity?"

Well, yes there is.
I heard something the other day. I can remember where I hear it but it was on TV. It went like this, "Why strive for excellence when people pay so well for mediocrity?"

A more common saying, you get what you pay for, if someone is paid $175 a week, they are more likely not to work as hard as if they were paid $350 a week, or its not as easy to find an employee with the skills that will work for the lower wage. Alot of salaries here are under $200, with the cost of living well above normal.

Mr. Moss,

I really sympathise with you. Please see my post in a similar thread at http://www.bahamasissues.com/showthread.php?t=999

If a foreigner is qualified for a job that there is no Bahamian qualified for, then I understand that if a firm hires that foreigner, a suitable Bahamian is supposed to be trained to take over the position. However, it doesn't seem as though this "system" ever works!

I do hope a good job opportunity comes your way soon.

Best wishes,

Mr. Moss I really admire your relentlessness :tup:
I carry that same spirit with me on a daily basis and it works for me.
You were fighting this battle a long time now but I say keep it up and don't let go of the vision you have. A man with a good vision is very difficult to defeat.

If a foreigner is qualified for a job that there is no Bahamian qualified for, then I understand that if a firm hires that foreigner, a suitable Bahamian is supposed to be trained to take over the position. However, it doesn't seem as though this "system" ever works!




I been there, seen that.

This "system" actually consists of naming an employee to replace the work permit holder. Might as well be the janitor because no checks are done to even verify that the trainee has the education to replace the work-permit holder, or that he works in that area.

You shold read the article by Catherine Kelly in Today's Punch(Julyu 26, 2004) as it reports on the number of work permits in the financial industry against the number of jobs held by locals.

Actually, I have always suspected that my employer's soon realized what I mentioned above and increased the number of applications for work permits three folds. One could laugh at the positions they ask for work permits for.

To Mr. Moss, I say, you have hit a glass ceiling, and will probably be much happier in changing your field of employment, and perhaps searching for a place where your contribution will be appreciated.

so, when did politicians start caring about people?

I hear you on this, same thing is happening in the field I am in. Hope it works out for you.

Rory

Thank you. May I ask which is your field?

It is a sorry thing you have been put through Mr. Moss particularly in view of the fact that we have a "Bahamianization program."

Let me ask you, why do you think that some people would rather hire foreigners than Bahamians?

What a question! How can I answer that in a simple way? CAN'T! My answer has to be tied to our past, going back to Slavery, and the consequences thereof.

To Great Demos et. al: thanks for the vote of confidence and encourgaement. I will admit that I debated over posting the Press Release because of the calibre of repsonses and attacks I faced when I 1st brought "my" cause to this forum over a year ago. We need to unite against this terrible wrong. I, for my part, am now moving to dialogue directly with the ILO, UN Human Rights' Commission, etc. to have this scourge attacked from the OUTSIDE. There is far too much corruption in our land.

Mr. Moss,

I really sympathise with you. Please see my post in a similar thread at http://www.bahamasissues.com/showthread.php?t=999

If a foreigner is qualified for a job that there is no Bahamian qualified for, then I understand that if a firm hires that foreigner, a suitable Bahamian is supposed to be trained to take over the position. However, it doesn't seem as though this "system" ever works!

I do hope a good job opportunity comes your way soon.

Best wishes,

Thank you! I did indeed see your post, which emboldened me to put mine up. The next step, in my opinion, is for us to UNITE.