A former Club Med worker yesterday rejected suggestions from Shadow Home Affairs Minister Michael Dunkley that Premier Jennifer Smith secured redundancy money for ex-employees for political reasons.

Mr. Dunkley claimed the Premier had over-stepped her authority by using a bill which had not even passed the House of Assembly to pay the 11 workers a total of $88,000.

He said the money was owed by Club Med, not Government, and questioned whether the pay-off from the tax-payer was to ensure Progressive Labour Party supporters in her St. George's constituency vote for her at next week's PLP conference.

PLP supporters at the last election promised the 11 staff at Club Med -- who were kept on after the hotel closed in 1988 until 1997 -- would get their redundancy money.

But former Club Med worker Grace Furbert said yesterday that she could not see any political motivation behind Government -- rather than Club Med -- paying the workers.

She told The Royal Gazette : "I can't say a deal was struck with the Premier for supporters in St. George's because most of us don't even live in St.

George's.'' She added: "When the PLP was canvassing in the area, one of the things they said was we would get our money.'' And she dismissed Mr. Dunkley's claim that the 11 workers had been taken on on a part-time basis after the hotel closed down in 1988.

"We were full-time, we never worked less than 40 hours, and we paid our union dues all that time.'' She said Quinton Edness, the United Bermuda Party Home Affairs minister when the row over unpaid redundancy erupted, had admitted Club Med paid all its debts to Government, except redundancy money to those workers.

"The UBP should have made sure Club Med made sure their staff were taken care of before Club Med left the Island,'' she said.

"Why did they allow them to leave the Island without paying us? The Government allowed them to go and they should be held accountable.

"Quinton Edness said we were owed that money so we kept fighting for it and we never had any intention of giving up.

"Even if the UBP had got back in, we would have kept fighting. If you believe something you keep faith, and the staff would like to thank all of those who supported us throughout those years.''