Bahamian workers were urged to stop "pressing government" for salary increases without thinking about how it could affect the country's economic performance. This came from Huedley Moss, president of the Bahamas Utilities Service and Allied Workers Union (BUSAAWU).
Mr. Moss went on to say that workers need to adopt a "new thinking" on helping the country prepare for The Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA) and the price competitiveness and efficiency this would demand.
"Increases in salaries and wages ought to be based on certain factors," Mr. Moss said. These factors include accounting for inflationary measures like the retail price index, the strength of the industry and the cost of operating a Bahamian business.
Mr. Moss also said that employee remuneration should not be based on the union's bargaining power but on the individual's performance in the workplace.
"If we were to negotiate increases in salary without attaching any significance to these factors, all we simply would be doing is making our country less competitive and sooner or later, the bottom will fall out," he said.
"The world is placing emphasis on trade, efficiency and competition. If we are providing services, but are not as efficient as we should be, we are undermining ourselves."
