Minister of Tourism Obie Wilchcombe said yesterday he has intervened in a labor dispute at the Gaming Board and believes he has diffused the tension between Gaming Board Chairman Dr. Andre Rollins and Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) President John Pinder.
Wilchcombe said he met with Pinder on Friday, a day after the union leader demanded that Prime Minister Perry Christie remove Rollins from his post.
Pinder claimed Rollins was micromanaging the board and wrongfully terminating staff.
"I think we're under control," said Wilchcombe, the minister responsible for gaming.
"I think we have a very sound relationship with the president of the union.
"And we have had opportunities to sit and talk about the situation that arose and I think that we have found an amicable way to deal with it and we will put it all to bed and move on."
When asked about the mounting tension between Pinder and Rollins, Wilchcombe said despite an apparent rift both men "are on the same page".
"We all want the best for our country," he said.
"We want Bahamians working. We want to have an advancing Gaming Board. I think we are all after the same things."
Last Thursday, Pinder threatened to campaign against the Progressive Liberal Party (PLP) if the government does not remove Rollins, and other heads of government agencies who "are not labor friendly".
He said the union would do whatever it can to change the management style of the Gaming Board.
"If we have to disrupt the casinos so that the government can understand we are not playing with them...then so be it," said Pinder outside the Gaming Board's offices on Collins Avenue.
"We can't wait for election to get rid of him [Rollins]. We need him to be moved forthwith, now. If the government doesn't follow suit they will feel the pinch come next election."
Pinder was outraged because three Gaming Board employees were recently fired and another was suspended for 10 days without pay.
He claimed one of the employees, the Gaming Board's deputy secretary, was fired because she and another employee switched shifts.
The deputy secretary took court action on April 1 and was granted an order by Supreme Court Justice Ian Winder to return to work.
Gaming Board officials did not allow her to remain on the premises. Rollins said the board was not trying to disobey a court order but had to verify the document first.
The employee in question was allowed to return to work on Friday, Wilchcombe said.
Last week, Rollins said he is working in the best interests of the Gaming Board.

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