To Labour or not to Labor...

In PR land, August is commonly known as 'silly season' due to the lack of hard news it generally generates. Here in Bermuda there's been plenty of silliness to populate the summer season but a surprising abundance of real news centring around a number of labour disputes. You can't blame a worker for picking this time of year when the weather is at its sweetest to wanna down tools.

Unfortunately it is also the time of year when the island is at its busiest with tourists, ready to be inconvenienced and put off for vacationing here for life. Not a great way to go in a struggling economy Bermuda!

There was an eight-week bus strike after drivers were up in arms by the sacking of a colleague who refused a drug test after an accident that injured a passenger. This rather shady grey matter is finally expected to be sorted through arbitration. Then came a strike notice from City of Hamilton workers disgruntled by the sacking of two colleagues. A ban on overtime for dockworkers as a cost-saving measure has led to delays in food shipments that come into Bermuda on Sundays reaching supermarket shelves and restaurants. As if the lettuce wasn't limp enough already! Then it was the prison workers threatening a strike over 'sub-human' conditions as they claim to face more dangerous criminals than ever before. With many of the island's working population off-island on vacay, it begged the question who was on the island and functioning last month. Would the last one to leave the island please turn off the light!!

As we hit the Labor Day holiday on Monday, September 5, most the disputes had reached some sort of resolution. Oh the irony, if they had continued over this U.S. celebration of the economic and social contributions of workers. However it wasn't all best foot forward towards as unions threatened to boycott this very day's festivities, marking the 30th year that the date has been observed in Bermuda. The unions felt it was "counterproductive” to participate in celebrations as they see International Workers’ Day on May 1 to be “the true Labour Day.” I've gone cross-eyed, isn't it counterproductive to strike about something so seemingly trivial in the first place?! Come on people, let's sit down and settle this over a nice tea break. 


All this silliness led me to make the most of the day off rather than spend it pounding the pavements with a placard. I went off to Chicago, which certainly lived up to expectations that it would be my kind of town. Skyscrapers, shopping, sunshine, Starbucks washed down with more than a few cheeky vinos, cosmos and slices of deep pan to the sounds of ja-aa-azzz. I learnt that Chicago is actually known as the 'windy city' for its political uncertainties as a swing state rather than the high winds off Lake Michigan as often assumed. 

Back on the island we're are in the full throngs of dealing with physical winds. We missed the lovely Irene on the way out by a mere few days, only to be greeted by the far too friendly Katia on our return. Luckily she turned out to have more pout than puff for this little island. Now Maria is hot on her heels this week, but it's too early to tell whether her she will strut her stuff this way and make a swing for us with an over-stuffed handbag. Nevertheless I'll be hurricane-force super-glued to the highly addictive www.stormpulse.com once again...