for managers.

The row has flared over planned amendments to the Trade Union Act, which would force employers to recognise their employees' chosen union.

Labour Minister Quinton Edness has made it clear the amendments did not cover people in managerial posts. They only related to "lower grade'' employees.

He has declared the International Labour Organisation did not support management and workers being represented by the same trade union.

The ILO took this position because they wanted to protect industrial employees from "undue influence'' by management, Mr. Edness added.

But the Bermuda Industrial Union, Bermuda Public Services Association, Electricity Supply Union and the Bermuda Union of Teachers have taken Mr.

Edness to task.

They said no ILO convention stipulated managers and workers could not be represented by the same union.

Executives of the trade unions met recently to discuss the Trade Union Amendment Act and later released a joint statement.

In it, they stressed the BPSA and BUT represented management and workers in their collective bargaining agreements.

And they added the head of the International Department of the British Trade Union Congress, Michael Walsh, had declared no ILO convention laid down that managers and workers could not be represented by the same union.

"In fact he says it is quite common for one union to represent both management and workers.'' The unions' statement went on to refer to a letter by the Director of the ILO Caribbean Office, Mr. J. A. Williams, which read: "As long as managers and supervisors meet the general requirements of establishing a substantial degree of common interest, they should not only be able to join a trade union, they should be able to bargain collectively.'' "Mr. Williams firmly states `no exemptions are made for managerial or supervisory employees','' the statement continues.

Edness clashes with labour leaders "The meeting felt that this specific amendment was directed solely towards excluding the unions from representing both management and workers.

"As a result the meeting resolved that it will be making a decision on this matter in due course.'' But Mr. Edness fired back, expressing surprise at the unions' statement.

He said the unions were members of the Labour Advisory Council and had been sent a copy of the Trade Union Amendment Act.

They were asked to submit written comment for the purposes of discussing the document in a LAC meeting, added Mr. Edness.

"To issue this statement tends to violate a code of respect necessary for the LAC to function. However, since they have submitted this statement which has now been brought to my attention I feel obliged to comment on several of the points which could be misleading.

"The first is that the ILO does not support a union representing both the industrial staff and management staff in the same bargaining unit.

"The union statement tries to indicate that that is not found in any ILO convention.'' Mr. Edness stressed he had never said an ILO convention made such a statement.

"It is a statement made by the ILO Committee of Experts which is an elected body of the ILO and as such represents the ILO position on this matter.

"This was confirmed to me recently in discussions with an ILO representative and also in correspondence sent to me by the director of the ILO office in the Caribbean, Mr. J. A. Williams, a gentleman that I note has been quoted loosely in the union's statement.'' Mr. Edness then tackled the unions' reference to Mr. Walsh.

"It is correct that no ILO convention mandates that managers and workers cannot be represented by the same trade union, but the ILO Committee of Experts does.'' Mr. Edness referred to a letter from the ILO's Mr. Williams to Labour Relations Officer Glen Fubler.

In it, Mr. Williams said: "...the ILO favours recognition of managerial employees whenever possible. As long as the managers and supervisors meet the general requirements of establishing a substantial degree of common interest they should not only be able to join a trade union, they should be able to bargain collectively.

"However, the ILO supervisory bodies have allowed restrictions on this general right when the issue of same union representation has been presented.

In its 1994 General Survey on the application of Conventions 87 and 98, the ILO Committee of Experts considered legislative restrictions on the rights of managerial staff to join trade unions that are open to lower grade employees or to be represented by workers' unions. These restrictions are found, for example, in the laws of Malaysia and Singapore and are aimed at preventing interference by employers in trade union activities and avoiding conflicts of interest involving managerial staff.'' Mr. Edness said the Committee of Experts took their position "to protect industrial staff from undue influence from managerial staff''.

This was a point, said Mr. Edness, which local trade unions seemed to have missed.

Continued Mr. Edness: "The Government has no objection to managerial staff forming associations and being represented by trade unions, the point being missed is that they must not be represented by the same trade union in a bargaining unit.'' UNIONS UNS