Back in the 1980s when labour problems boiled over in the country grinding everything to halt, I recall the US armed forces radio sending out a news headline which simply said: "Bermuda is closed."

It took many years to re-build confidence, and try to regain our tourism momentum. It was a very dark time for labour relations with management, and the effect it was having on the workers who keep the country running.

What took place recently with unions joining hands to protest Government's handling of wage negotiations, brought back troubling memories of a country almost at war with itself over labour issues. The next question was, could this happen again? Perhaps unlikely, but very possible, unless common sense and good judgment is able to override political egos, and positive action is taken to restore confidence in the country.

Surely the Government cannot be blind to the increasing disapproval being expressed up and down the country over their management style. In fact their inner circle of ministers should be very concerned, since some people see them as failures for not taking a stand to alter a negative image, that largely projects Government as being out of touch with the peoples needs.

While Government ministers may argue that nothing could be further from the truth politicians constantly have to battle with how they are perceived by the public. It seems very clear that something needs to change in the negotiating process in order to keep our labour machine alive, and well, and to establish respect between management and the workers.

Too many people see Government ministers as rubber stamp politicians, who are afraid to challenge the Premier, even if they feel all is not right in the way some things are handled. Of course in the political area one has to be careful how this is done without appearing to be insubordinate.

The Premier is certainly not wrong in everything he does, in fact some of his initiatives have been quite helpful. However when things go wrong in politics, memories can be very short indeed. At the moment it appears they have gone terribly wrong with such a negative perception in the air.

It is very easy to blame the Premier, after all he is the leader, but much of the blame should be placed on ministers also, who should be better connected to public sentiment on crucial issues, and have the guts to speak up and defend what they know to be right.

The Premier is a man who likes to get things done, and there is nothing wrong with that, but sometimes the best of leaders veer off course and this is when they rely on advisors with backbone, who will not hestitate in suggesting a change in direction.

The Premier is certainly not a madman who would rather see Bermuda fall instead of reviewing ways to stop the slide in confidence and the way many Bermudians feel about Government's initiatives.

The recent protest march was one of the most powerful statements from the workforce of Bermuda, making it clear that it is time for the Government to move away from fancy phrases like 'things will get better and we will work out the problems' and simply get on with what is right for the workers of the country.

The late Martin T. Wilson was a man who enjoyed his politics so much his little store in Warwick was referred to as Number 10 Downing. Most of the time when you entered the store, a heated debate was either ending or just beginning.

During one labour dispute he was among the picketers as they marched. A reporter asked him what he thought of the situation. His answer was brief. Martin T, as they called him, said: "This is all between the haves and the have nots." Not a lot has changed since that statement was made.

Most Bermudians are aware of the economic world situation and are mindful that asking for the world would be unwise. However they expect the Government to make sacrifices also. Instead there is a feeling that Government can give themselves a raise whenever they feel like it, and spend tax payers money without needing to explain.

Bermudians can be conservative and what they say in public is not exactly the sentiments often expressed in private, especially on important issues. Government needs to eat a little crow, and admit they have not handled the labour situation as well as they could have.

All of those people gathered on the Parliament grounds from various key Government departments were not there to put on a show. Neither were they there to pull down the Government. The point they were making was unless Government gave a better performance regarding the plight of workers in this country, the consequences could be unpleasant and there was no need to reach that stage.

Hopefully the Government will take a very serious view on the entire labour situation, to ensure that no radio station overseas has to again utter those dreadful words 'Bermuda is closed'.