While thousands of Bahamians are struggling to find jobs to support their families, cellular service provider Aliv is bringing in foreigners to fill positions that Bahamians are qualified to hold.
The foreign workers were seen in bucket trucks working on utility poles in areas around New Providence.
Six foreign Aliv technicians were also spotted running lines on the side of the road in Southwestern New Providence community Adelaide this afternoon.
Despite an unemployment rate in the double digits, Bahamians are still forced to compete with foreign workers in their own country. This problem was compounded when Hurricane Dorian and the COVID-19 pandemic put thousands of people out of work.
The Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) has estimated that the unemployment rate in The Bahamas is 18 percent.
Aliv’s parent company Cable Bahamas has been criticized in the past for its disrespect for Bahamian workers.
As far back as 2014, the Bahamas Communications and Public Officers Union (BCPOU) slammed Cable Bahamas.
Then-Union President Bernard Evans said at the time, the union had “enough” of the company’s “blatant disregard for the laws and disrespect for the workers of the Bahamas.”
The Union fought for years to represent the rights of the company’s workers but it said it was met with roadblocks.
“They’ve been sitting down with us now for the last 12 to 15 years, seemingly trying to negotiate a contract,” he said. “One negotiation every six months is not good, and while this is going on they’re at liberty to do what they want with the workers at Cable Bahamas. To entreat whomever they want to entreat without any structure,” Evans said.