The Bahamas is a nation that is highly dependent on tourism. Hence, the government of the Bahamas has undertaken extensive marketing to attract visitors, to its warm climate, the beauty of the beaches, followed by the diversity of hotel facilities. According to Dean W. Collinwood, "Since the end of world War II, tourism has become the unchallenged engine of the Bahamian economy." (Dean) Ramesh Ramsaran has gone so far as to assert that the industry has "affected every faucet of economic life in the country." (Ramsaran) To this end, the Bahamas government has invested heavily in increasing the number of new hotels and resorts leading to more persons being employed in the hotel industry. These hotel workers are the key that keeps the tourist
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They could be moved from one property to another. So too can the hotel worker if its owner owns a chain of hotels. The slave owner might without notice sell them to someone else. The hotel owner can "sell" the services of an employee to another hotel or use the term you are being "transferred" to another property or "plantation". USI –Understanding Slavery Initiative –Plantation Life state, "slaves found themselves removed, in an instant to a distant, unknown location, leaving behind family and loved ones, friends, and community". (Understandingslavery.com) Many Bahamian hotel workers may have found themselves in similar positions of having to relocate to a family island to fill a position as the government is now focusing on these islands as tourist attractions. Again, for hotel workers the feeling of refusal may result in job termination. The Tribune Freeport Reporter, Denise Maycock, wrote in a newspaper article on June 10th, 2014 that Mr. Kirk Russell, Vice President of the Bahamas Hotel Management Association, when addressing the workers at the annual Labor Day march said, "Casual workers are not entitled to certain benefits such as pension, vacation and sick pay. He said they do not qualify for bank loans and fall within the poor working class." Denise Maycock also noted that Michelle Dorsett, President of Commonwealth Union of Hotel Services and Allied Workers agreed with Mr. Russell. She said, "Workers are being treated like slaves." (Maycock) Persons might argue that Hotel employees cannot be compared to plantation slaves because they actually have a union to collectively use their strength for workers to have a voice in their workplace. Through the union, hotel workers have a right to impact wages, work hours, and benefits. Plantation slaves had no voice and did not have an organized group of workers to support them. However, is the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and
They could be moved from one property to another. So too can the hotel worker if its owner owns a chain of hotels. The slave owner might without notice sell them to someone else. The hotel owner can "sell" the services of an employee to another hotel or use the term you are being "transferred" to another property or "plantation". USI –Understanding Slavery Initiative –Plantation Life state, "slaves found themselves removed, in an instant to a distant, unknown location, leaving behind family and loved ones, friends, and community". (Understandingslavery.com) Many Bahamian hotel workers may have found themselves in similar positions of having to relocate to a family island to fill a position as the government is now focusing on these islands as tourist attractions. Again, for hotel workers the feeling of refusal may result in job termination. The Tribune Freeport Reporter, Denise Maycock, wrote in a newspaper article on June 10th, 2014 that Mr. Kirk Russell, Vice President of the Bahamas Hotel Management Association, when addressing the workers at the annual Labor Day march said, "Casual workers are not entitled to certain benefits such as pension, vacation and sick pay. He said they do not qualify for bank loans and fall within the poor working class." Denise Maycock also noted that Michelle Dorsett, President of Commonwealth Union of Hotel Services and Allied Workers agreed with Mr. Russell. She said, "Workers are being treated like slaves." (Maycock) Persons might argue that Hotel employees cannot be compared to plantation slaves because they actually have a union to collectively use their strength for workers to have a voice in their workplace. Through the union, hotel workers have a right to impact wages, work hours, and benefits. Plantation slaves had no voice and did not have an organized group of workers to support them. However, is the Bahamas Hotel, Catering and