top of page
Search

News report: Chamber needs latest BNSI data to determine new minimum wage

Published by Youri Kemp, The Nassau Guardian, September 23, 2025

Peter Goudie, labor division head of the Bahamas Chamber of Commerce and Employers’ Confederation (BCCEC), told Guardian Business yesterday that the chamber needs the latest information from the Bahamas National Statistical Institute (BNSI) in order to make an informed judgment on an increase to the national minimum wage.


Goudie, responding after Minister of the Public Service and Labour Pia Glover-Rolle said that the government will move forward with an increase in the minimum wage in a “responsible way”, said that he is encouraged by Rolle’s approach to the possible increase and sees her comments positively.


Goudie, who is also a board member of the National Tripartite Council (NTC), said: “We don’t have good new information from the BNSI, and so we don’t really have the information we need to even look at it. We’re not going to use old information to try and extrapolate into what it is now.”


The BCCEC and NTC would need up-to-date labor force surveys, cost of living surveys, and wage surveys completed by the BNSI, so they could have up-to-date information to make an assessment of what is an appropriate minimum wage increase that both employees and employers would be comfortable with.


Goudie added: “We believe that the minister is being very fair and responsible, and we always have to remember that whatever the bottom line is, that is the same bottom line for the government.


“I don’t think the government wants to be increasing taxes right now with all the other issues that are going on, like BPL, and the cost of living, and Trump’s tariffs.


“I think the BCCEC and the National Tripartite Council (NTC) support her views. Once we’re able to access accurate information, which we can’t get right now, we will then take a look at the minimum wage, and eventually the living wage.”


She added that the established process for the government in instances like these starts with recommendations from NTC, which includes government stakeholders, union representatives and the BCCEC.


The minimum wage was last increased in 2022, moving from $210 to $260 per week — the first change since 2002.




ree

Comments

© 2025 by Bahamas Chamber of Commerce |  All Rights Reserved.

bottom of page