Call it a meeting, call it a strike, call it whatever you want: Today's industrial action by the Bermuda Industrial Union which will bring public transport and possibly much more of the Island to a standstill is an act of almost suicidal stupidity.

At the best of times, a strike over the latest dispute between Bermuda CableVision and the BIU would be unnecessary.

But the union could not have picked a worse time to escalate this action as Bermuda is only just beginning to pick up the pieces from Hurricane Fabian.

Students who have already missed a week of school will now be scrambling for ways to get to the classroom. St. George's residents who have benefited from the additional ferries to Hamilton to get to work will now be forced into the gridlock at the Causeway.

Cruise ships which would normally move from one port to another are stuck and visitors who were no doubt slightly reluctant to come to Bermuda in the wake of the hurricane are now deprived of public transport.

If the dockworkers at Hamilton Docks fail to unload the Somers Isles for a second straight day, hundreds of homeowners will be deprived of slate that is desperately needed for roof repairs.

This dispute, which threatens to bring Bermuda to a standstill and shatter the post-Fabian tolerance and sense of teamwork that has been such a shining example of what's best about the Island, concerns the dismissal of one employee at one company.

CableVision believes it was within its rights to dismiss the employee. The union feels he was misunderstood and should not have been fired. There's not much new in this. These kinds of disputes can and should be settled by way of a grievance and if necessary, can be dealt with by a tribunal under the Employment Act or through arbitration.

But CableVision and the union have a long and bitter history and it is reasonable to assume that the union is determined to flex its muscles over this dispute and to try to force CableVision to back down.

Even so, a strike by CableVision's workers, while foolish, might be within their rights. But to have public service and dock workers who are desperately needed by the community stop work now, even for a few hours, is just plain wrong.

Dockworkers are part of an essential service who are required to give 21 days notice before striking. And most of the other divisions of the BIU who were called to yesterday's "meeting" are not involved in the TV or telecommunications industry and thus have no part in this dispute and are banned from withdrawing their labour under the law.

That's why BIU president Derrick Burgess kept insisting yesterday that today's withdrawal of service is for a "meeting" and not for a "strike".

But the fact is, people will be without the public services they desperately need at this time.

Union members who have consciences and a sense of public service must know this and should make the point loud and clear today. If the union believes it has a strong case to make to have the CableVision worker reinstated, it should make it to an impartial third party.

The union cannot think that it will gain public sympathy by taking this action and must believe that an exercise of raw power will force CableVision to back down.

Regardless of the merits of the case, that should not be allowed to happen.

Government and other affected parties should seek an injunction to have the workers who are not parties to this dispute go back to putting Bermuda together again.