Hotel Employers of Bermuda president Mr. Dennis Tucker was "mistaken'' when he said the collective bargaining agreement it threw out last February was not reinstated, BIU leader Mr. Ottiwell Simmons MP claimed yesterday.

Mr. Simmons was arguing before the Essential Industries Disputes Settlement Board that the collective agreement was reinstated by the HEB while Grotto Bay Hotel was a member.

However, the hotel's lawyer Mr. Alan Dunch and Mr. Tucker flatly disagreed.

While being cross examined by Mr. Simmons during the hearing into the Grotto Bay/BIU row, Mr. Tucker said the HEB has "never'' reinstated the expired and terminated collective agreement.

He said the HEB terminated it after giving the required three months' notice because it was fed up with not being able to reach an agreement with Mr.

Simmons.

"In fact,'' Mr. Tucker said, "the whole time (Mr. Simmons has been president of the BIU) we have never been able to reach an agreement -- we have always ended up going to mediation or a board of inquiry. We decided if no agreement was reached by February, 1991, we'd put a cap on it and we so advised them.'' However, Mr. Tucker said Government's creation of the disputes board prevented the HEB from walking away from the agreement for good.

Mr. Tucker admitted parts of the collective agreement had been reinstated. But he said just because parts of it were restored did not mean a collective agreement was in place.

However, Mr. Simmons disagreed saying: "The fact is this agreement (the 1988-1991 collective agreement) to this date is the agreement still operating in hotels generally, (or as you say) partially.'' Mr. Simmons went on to refer to an April 2 letter in which the HEB told the Labour Ministry it "will'' follow the terms and conditions of the collective agreement but only for the duration of mediation. But Mr. Tucker said no response was received from the Ministry or the BIU and the offer was withdrawn.

Although Mr. Simmons implied the letter constituted a reinstatement of the collective agreement, Mr. Tucker insisted it did not.

Before concluding his cross examination of Mr. Tucker, Mr. Simmons charged the HEB terminated the collective agreement "unilaterally, "against the union's wishes'' and in an effort to "bust the union''.

This prompted an objection from Mr. Dunch who claimed Mr. Simmons was making the statements for the benefit of the Press.

Mr. Simmons denied he was and suggested the board throw the Press out. But board chairman Mr. Michael Mello said he had already dealt with the Press issue and told Mr. Simmons to continue his cross examination.

The first issues the board is being asked to decide is whether a collective agreement exists between the hotel and the BIU, whether the hotel committed any "unfair industrial practices'' and whether a "remedy'' should be granted.

If it finds an agreement does exist, it must then decide whether three of the hotel's employees were unfairly dismissed.

The BIU's position is a collective agreement -- although expired -- does exist at the hotel but management refuses to recognise the fact.

General manager Mr. George Robinson takes the stand today. The hotel's position is that the BIU has had no standing at the hotel since February, 1991, when it resigned the HEB having given the required three months' notice.

Grotto Bay also says the collective agreement has not been followed in full since November, 1987, when it resigned the HEB.

The BIU argues even if the collective agreement is followed in part it is technically in existence.