Hotel dispute with a secret ballot was rejected yesterday by the union.

BIU leader Mr. Ottiwell Simmons said such a gamble, suggested by Grotto Bay secretary, shareholder and lawyer Mr. Charles Vaucrosson, would "open the floodgates for every other employer to unilaterally decertify the union.

"It would be disastrous to the labour movement in Bermuda by inviting all other employers to follow the evils of Grotto Bay.'' And even if the BIU won the secret vote, Grotto Bay would not have to abide by it because it was not law, Mr. Simmons added.

He was speaking during the first day of a second arbitration hearing to determine whether union recognition exists at Grotto Bay.

Mr. Simmons charged that the chairman of the first hearing, local lawyer Mr.

Michael Mello had "set things wrong''. He also "could have fallen guilty of succumbing to the temptation of bias,'' Mr. Simmons claimed.

The Trade Disputes Board is chaired by Boston-based arbitrator Mr. Arnold Zack, who immediately adopted a no-nonsense approach to the hearing.

Assisted by former hotelier Mr. Gordon Asbury and Senate president the Hon.

Albert Jackson, he refused to listen to anything that was not relevant to the board's terms of references. And he told the parties he did not even need to hear arguments on the issue of union recognition because he had the evidence of the previous Mello and Haughton hearings before him.

The board has also been asked to settle the dispute over the firing of Grotto Bay waiters Mr. Glen Goater and Mr. Junior Williams, on which it will hear arguments today.

Grotto Bay management "double barrelled'' the workers by breaking the collective agreement and imposing its own contract without consulting them, Mr. Simmons said.

He was baffled by Mr. Mello's reversal of the Haughton decision, which he claimed found a collective agreement did exist at the hotel.

Mr. Mello had not heard any new or overwhelming evidence to justify the reversal, he submitted.

"I put it to you that Mr. Mello did not set things straight,'' Mr. Simmons said. "He in fact set things wrong. And I put it to you it was intentionally done because of the political manoeuvrings going on against the BIU at that time.'' Mr. Simmons added Mr. Mello himself had admitted at the start of the first hearing that there may be a possible conflict of interest because his firm represented two Grotto Bay shareholders. It was agreed to allow him to remain as chairman though.

"I'm not saying he did, but he could have fallen guilty of succumbing to the temptation of bias .. .'' Mr. Simmons said. "We ask your board to rule that the BIU has good, proper, legitimate and legal standing at Grotto Bay Hotel.'' He further invited the board to find the hotel was "not under full management. To some extent it is being run by the Board of Directors.'' The management team of Mr. Vaucrosson, Mr. Clyde Darrell and director Mr.

Randolph Dowling claimed the hotel legally stopped recognising the union as of February 24, 1991, when the 1988-1991 collective agreement expired.

The BIU had no business representing the hotel's workers at the hearing, Mr.

Vaucrosson submitted.

He said the Mello hearing had ruled no collective agreement existed between workers and management. But the BIU apparently still failed to understand workers did not have the right to union recognition.

He added workers were apparently happy with their new non-union agreement, which gave them pay increases above union the rate, though scrapping mandatory tipping. Workers had not refused or returned their pay cheques, and they had not requested union dues be deducted, he said.