Months after Bahamas Supermarkets Limited (BSL) closed its final City Market location, millions owed in severance and pension are still outstanding.
"As of March 30, the company has been suspended and we are now into June and there has still been no financial compensation for former BSL employees. Despite having five meetings on this matter, the company has issued no money," according to Wanslaw Turnquest, former inventory control auditor at City Market.
Turnquest confirmed to Guardian Business that hundreds of former City Market employees are owed in excess of $3 million in severance pay.
"We are going after that money. We plan to get every single dime that is owed to us, as the matter has yet to be resolved. This is outrageous, as BSL is a publicly traded company and certain procedures should have been followed," he explained.
The former employees are also looking to be paid monies from the company's pension fund.
Turnquest said it is now a matter before the courts, as legal action has been filed against the supermarket chain's original owner, Winn Dixie.
"There should have been a lot of money in the pension fund. The last transaction on the pension fund was reportedly made in 2006. There has been no additional money added to the fund. The only thing that has been accrued over the years is interest," he said. "If there has been no financial transaction on the pension fund, that makes it null and void. If an international company has sold shares to a local company, there has been no regard for the disbursements of that fund to employees. Dissolve it and pay out all benefactors immediately."
Earlier this month, National Insurance Board (NIB) Director Algernon Cargill told Guardian Business that he coordinated with the Ministry of Labour and Social Development to create a "one stop shop" to make the application process more efficient for Bahamians seeking benefits. City Market locations have been boarded up for weeks, and now those unemployed workers should have a way to make ends meet.
Applications could be made at the NIB headquarters on Baillou Hill Road.
"From what I understand, they are effectively terminated and unemployed. Once [they] are unemployed, they are eligible for benefits. Apparently there was some reluctance to formally terminate. We don't know why that would happen. Our role is to provide some income replacement," Cargill told Guardian Business.
Former City Market workers have access to 50 percent of their weekly wage.
The benefit, he explained, lasts for 13 weeks. However, that benefit period must be immediately terminated if the workers are subsequently hired by Super Value or any other employers.
Turnquest said the workers are grateful for the unemployment benefit provided by NIB, as it helped to cushion some of their liabilities like mortgages, loan payments and other bills.
Alberta Rahming, a 13-year employee of the supermarket chain, has a different perspective.
"It's been tough. You have some people that could survive and there are others who can't. National Insurance is only paying us based on the last year of our employment. We are not asking for something that doesn't belong to us, some employees have worked more than half of their lives at City Market. If it is a penny, give it to us. The company has already been sold, so where is our money?" Rahming noted.
Scores of frustrated former employees lined the exterior of the Clarence A. Building yesterday. A meeting was scheduled for union representatives, labour officials and BSL to resolve the outstanding financial matters for the struggling supermarket chain.
Guardian Business has learned that the sale was finalized on May 31, but this has yet to be confirmed by BSL officials.
Several calls were made to BSL's president Mark Finlayson, but none were returned up to press time.
Stephen Turnquest of Callenders & Co is representing the workers on the severance issue, and James Thompson will be representing those in Freeport.

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