A retail company has tightened its belt and decided to stop supplementing its former employees' health insurance policies.

As of yesterday, Trimingham Brothers no longer contributed to the cost of its pensioners' health insurance, although pensioners will have the option of remaining on the company's health insurance plan.

Former Trimingham's employee Bard Davis, of Hamilton Parish, said he was shocked to read a letter from his old employer which stated that it was discontinuing supplementary health insurance payments to its pensioners.

Mr. Davis is currently on a fixed income and is dependent on about eight medical prescriptions.

"I need the medicine,'' he said. "I've got to take it and pay for it.

"Outside my Government pension, my son helps me with groceries. I'm trying to make my Government pension pay for utilities and such, but with this now I don't think I can.

"I feel very hurt by this letter. I feel that the 46 years I put in is not appreciated.

"I'd rather it didn't have to go in the paper, but I thought the public should know this. I'm not going to go to Triminghams. I know they have a story -- they always have a story. I could probably quote it for you right now.

"I've got no malice against Triminghams, but I think fairness is fairness and I deserve a little more consideration at this age in life.'' Mr. Davis retired from Triminghams after nearly 50 years of service.

He joined the firm in 1946, after leaving the Bermuda Volunteer Rifle Corps, and started as a salesman at the company's St. George's store, before being transferred to a sales position in the Hamilton branch. He later moved from the sales floor to the warehouse, where he remained until his retirement.

In a letter from Triminghams to its pensioners, company president Lawrence Trimingham said "escalating costs of doing business from new legislation and higher taxes have forced us to re-evaluate our operating practices''.

Trimingham's human resources director Monica Massey said: "It's a decision that really has to do with the times. We have to figure out how we can stay operational and competitive.'' She stressed that pensioners would still have access to health insurance through Triminghams, which provided them with less expensive premiums than individual insurance policies.

She said: "We are not doing away with insuring our pensioners. Pensioners still have the option of remaining on our plan, but we can no longer afford to contribute to their payments as we had been doing.

"It was not an easy decision. It was something we spent a long time over, but we simply cannot keep paying the premiums. We have over 80 plus pensioners on our plan. The escalating cost of health insurance is not a secret.

"We are one of the few companies that had pension plans since the inception -- that shows you the good faith the company operated in over the years.'' Mrs. Massey also emphasised that Triminghams was among only a handful of companies who provided health insurance to pensioners.

She said: "We are keeping pensioners on the health insurance plan. From what I know, this is not the norm. The vast number of companies in Bermuda do not offer this coverage.

"It's not an easy decision, but the retail business is declining, and we have to find some way to review our expenses. The cost of doing retail in the business sector at the moment is just horrendous.

"There are a number of our pensioners who have called and said they understand the problems and the costs of doing retail today, and have said they are grateful to stay on our health insurance plan as it is less expensive than individual health insurance plans. The premiums are lower as it is part of a group plan.'' HEALTH HTH