BAHAMASAIR Holdings yesterday announced the signing of a five-year industrial agreement between the airline and the Bahamas Airline Pilots Association, ending two years of troubled negotiations.

The signing represented the third industrial agreement for the struggling national flag carrier in the past year and according to Bahamasair Chairman, Valentine Grimes, signals the shift in the airline’s mode of operation to a united front ensuring the success of the operation.

Mr. Grimes said deals with the Public Managers Union (PMU), the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAMAW) and now BALPA moves to clarify the generosity that the airline has always shown to those that work to ensure its development.

He added that the BALPA deal should have been agreed upon years ago, suggesting that issues between the two sides should have been put aside in favour of more productive and conducive negotiations.

“The bottom line is if you have a five-year agreement, negotiations should not have taken this long,” he told The Tribune.

The low point of negotiations came in December, 2014, when BALPA pilots staged a sick out, grounding flights during peak Christmas holiday travel. Mr. Grimes said issues like that signalled a need for a new means of operation. Both sides have given notice of their intention to work closely to ensure that the current deal does not expire before pressing matters are resolved.

The contract, signed on February 19, will go into immediate effect and is for five years covering January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2017.

Bahamasair is working towards signing a fourth and final agreement soon with the Airport, Airline and Allied Workers Union (AAAWU).

By RICARDO WELLS - Tribune Staff Reporter

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