relationships with their workers and the unions.

Both Home Affairs Minister Maxwell Burgess and acting Marine and Ports Director Mike Dolding believe adoption of a binding arbitration in an on-going dispute will lead to a better rapport between the two.

Revealing details of the arbitration deal, Mike Dolding said a five-man crew had been assigned to Faithful tug pilot Kenneth Todd -- the man at the centre of the year-long rift.

On Monday the crew will join Faithful and Mr. Todd will be able to return to active duty -- ending a dispute that led to workers being threatened with legal action after a two-day strike.

Mr. Dolding said the department was pleased with the outcome of the final arbitration session, which followed several previous unsuccessful meetings.

"We want to get back to business. There is a new spirit of cooperation and we want to put this behind us and move on,'' he said.

A meeting was held on Wednesday night by the Bermuda Industrial Union marine section to explain the deal to the members but BIU president Derrick Burgess said it was purely an information session.

Mr. Burgess said the agreement was binding and the union was doing its best to abide by it.

He said he hoped members at Dockyard would abide by it.

Mr. Dolding said he was optimistic the Faithful would be back in work on Monday but warned that disiplinary action or dismissal could follow if workers did not honour the agreement.

"That would be the logical course of action but we don't want that to occur,'' he said.

Kenneth Todd's return to work, after a year-long abscence following grievances after the Xing Da sinking confrontation, sparked a two-day strike by Marine and Ports workers earlier in the year.

The strike crippled the ferry and tug service, but after staff went back to work it took three arbitration sessions to reach Monday's solution.

Mr. Todd has been unable to operate his tug during the disagreement. A bid to find volunteers for Faithful failed.

Home Affairs Minister Maxwell Burgess said he wished both parties well and said it would be the beginning of a new working relationship for them.