Locals should boycott fast food joints which employ non Bermudians in positions requiring no special skills, said independent Senator Jeannette Cannonier in the Senate chamber yesterday.

Government Senator Michael Scott, however, characterised the call as "irresponsible" and said that Government was, as always, committed to making sure that Bermudians were considered "first and foremost" in the job market.

During the motion to adjourn, Sen. Cannonier pointed out that recently released employment statistics for the years 1996 to 2000 did not take into account the figures for the last 20 months.

"A lot of water has gone under the bridge in the last 20 months," she said. "If you listen to the talk shows... it would appear that all is not well. We heard a call for a register and as ludicrous as that seems it certainly indicates there are problems. All is not well."

Government plans to release on an annual basis "employment briefs" through the statistics department to highlight findings of the Employment Survey.

Stressing that she was not referring to the international business sector, the Senator said employers need to be taken to task for displacing Bermudians in the workplace. She referred to a "specific fast food place" complained of in a recent letter to the editor "where you rarely see a Bermudian" doing jobs like flipping hamburgers.

"What skills are required ?" she asked. "You can count the number of Bermudians in these places on one hand without using all your fingers."

Sen Cannonier added: "Bermudians have the right to complain. You can't hold the guest workers accountable.

"But you can challenge the employers. They are certainly taking jobs away from Bermudians. I challenge Bermudians to go around, look at these places, identify the employer not the employee. The employee is not responsible."

She said enough regulations already existed but that they needed to be properly enforced. She also protested employment ads tailor-made for specific non Bermudian employees, and said she had personally heard from a Canadian waitress whose job had been "prearranged" with her employer through a friend who had come here on vacation.

"Let's hold the employers accountable. It needs to start with Government... in the Department of Immigration," she continued.

"I am urging Bermudians to get out there, take a long hard look, challenge the system. To boycott those fast food joints that are staffed with non Bermudians" doing jobs without any special skills requirement.

Opposition Senator Leonard Santucci supported the thrust of Sen. Cannonier's presentation, although he shied away from declaring his support for a boycott when challenged by Sen. Scott.

Sen Scott said the boycott call was "irresponsible" especially given the economic downturn and the repercussions of the September 11 attacks on the United States.

"Small businesses are businesses," he said. "We don't need disruptions taking place to small businesses - or calls coming from this chamber for it."

He said that his Progressive Labour Party (PLP) had "always supported policies that put Bermudians first and foremost". And there were a "number of reasons why Bermudians fail to apply for these jobs. You have failed to examine the reasons of Bermudians' failure to apply for these positions".

Dramatic changes in the economy since the PLP was in Opposition had led to Bermudians making different choices, he argued.

The statistics show that 70 percent of all jobs are held by Bermudians. "That is a healthy percent... In the midst of these healthy statistics, we continue to be concerned... There is continued activism by the Government to draw attention to these matters."

"I'm sick of these employers who are using every excuse to employ non Bermudians," Sen. Cannonier told The Royal Gazette immediately after the Senate sitting.