workplaces.

But have they been replaced by glass ceilings thwarting the ultimate ambitions of blacks? A snap Royal Gazette survey this week confirmed whites still dominated boardrooms at most large businesses.

But there appeared -- at least with some employers -- to be a rising number of blacks at middle-management level.

And with Telco and Belco -- the acclaimed models of integration -- the ceiling to top senior management has been cracked by some blacks.

The overall management picture, however, in no way reflects the racial make-up of the Island.

Many bosses blame the old days of segregation for leaving blacks well down the promotional ladder.

Our phone-around followed the impassioned three-day House of Assembly debate on the Judge Tumim report, and, in particular institutionalised racism.

Amid the fall-out, Delegated Affairs Minister the Hon. Sir John Sharpe claimed Government may confront big employers about their racial hiring records.

It would appear to be a clear-cut issue of black and white.

But our survey showed, approach a company and a large wash of grey enters the picture.

There are recurring refrains ... "We don't do quotas of black and white'' ..."We hire on ability, not colour'' ..."We are proud of our record.'' ..."We put Bermudians first, black or white.'' Some businesses, too, found the issue rather prickly. "No comment,'' was the quickfire response.

Neither Telco nor Belco could give explanations why their records were better than most.

Telco general manager Mr. Ernest Pacheco said: "We are very proud of what we have accomplished in the Bermudianisation of our company.

"We have done this over a number of years and have reached the point where we are almost totally Bermudianised.

"There are, however, three or four non-Bermudians in our data processing area.'' Although Mr. Pacheco is from Portuguese stock, there are two assistant general managers on the executive who are black.

These include Mr. Collington Perinchief and Mr. Eugene Saunders.

Out of ten senior managers, responsible for various departments, seven are black.

"These are top positions,'' said Mr. Pacheco.

Mr. Pacheco said a large amount was spent on in-house training, teaching staff about technology, as well as how to manage.

Belco president Mr. Alf Oughton also emphasised training. More than one million dollars was spent on it last year, and it will be the same in 1993.

The company also has a $10,000 engineering scholarship, which is attracting more and more hopefuls.

"We don't have any racial hiring practices. Our practice is to look for Bermudians and try to hire the best.

"In the highly technological field we do have a few expats, but we do try to replace them with Bermudians.'' BELCO, TELCO LEAD THE WAY Of the top senior Belco executives, three out of 10 are black. This includes Mr. Oughton's assistant, Shadow Finance Minister Mr. Eugene Cox.

"I would be a fool if I did not admit institutional racism was a possibility,'' said Mr. Oughton.

"I don't know how much is associated with the skills that are required.

"It could very well be there are bright young blacks who are not getting the opportunity to move forward. But not in this organisation.'' Often bearing the brunt of criticism from Opposition MPs are Bermuda's two Banks, which used not to hire blacks.

The Bank of Bermuda has an all-white executive, which includes two overseas senior managers, and eight here.

The Bank of N.T. Butterfield's executive is dominated by whites, but not completely.

But both banks maintain there are black managers rising up the ladder, several just below executive level.

Mr. Louis Mowbray, executive in charge of personnel at the Bank of Bermuda, said hiring was based solely on ability.

This was essential if the bank was to hold its own against international competition.

"There are blacks coming up the line, and if you go back 10, 15, or 20 years you will see a steady rate of progress.

"The bank is not a political organisation. We are an organisation going back over 100 years.

"You can't just fire everybody and start again.'' Mr. Mowbray said he had difficulty understanding what was meant by institutional racism.

"I think it means what you want it to mean.'' Mr. Victor Garcia, general manager of personnel and administration at the Bank of Butterfield, also highlighted the historical perspective.

"Back in the '50s neither bank hired blacks,'' he said.

Mr. Garcia doubted whether people had stopped to think how long it took to rise up the ladder to the executive.

"The fact is there are blacks in senior positions here who don't have high visibility, but they do have senior responsibilities.

"I don't keep a count of them, so I can't say how many. They are department heads.'' Mr. Garcia stressed the bank had a strong commitment to hiring and training Bermudians.

The lack of blacks at executive level is also noticeable in hotels.

The Horizons hotel group -- Coral Beach, Horizons & Cottages, Waterloo House, and Newstead -- has no black managers.

But blacks dominate the lower-paid hotel jobs.

"We do have black waiters and chefs, and blacks in the housekeeping department. The head housekeeper is black,'' said Mrs. Maureen Davies, secretary to the general manager of Horizons.

Mrs. Davies said Immigration officials had recently called for training programmes for Bermudians.

"This will mean fewer work permits,'' she added.

Mr. Clyde Darrell, resident manager at Grotto Bay Hotel, declined to comment when approached.

Bermuda's premier department store chain, Trimingham Bros, also has an all-white five-man executive.

It includes president Mr. Eldon Trimingham, his brother, and his son, as well as the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Merchant.

Said Mr. Eldon Trimingham: "We have quite a number of black managers. We have black buyers, and black department managers.'' The computer operations manager is also black, he added.

"One area, however, where we do have a problem is that most of our managers are women.'' Mr. Trimingham believed there was roughly a 50-50 split between black and white managers.

"We have a very broad spectrum of people. It is a very well mixed group.'' Mr. Trimingham said hiring was carried out regardless of ethnic background.

And he praised the open debate on racism, saying lack of discussion had been one of the problems in the past.

Mr. Trimingham pointed out many businesses, like his own, were run by a family, with the father passing the mantle on to his son.

This tended to perpetuate a white or black executive line.

Mr. Keith Jensen, general manager of The Royal Gazette Ltd, said the paper was an equal opportunity employer.

"We pick people based on ability, and not colour. We also put Bermudians first.'' The paper has never had a black editor but it has a black sports editor, and only one of the seven news reporters is black. However, several of the black journalists in the Bermuda media trained at The Royal Gazette . Blacks dominate the newspapers' sports and advertising departments.

Mr. Michael Woods, partnership secretary at top law firm Conyers, Dill & Pearman, said: "We just hire the best person for the job, with preference for Bermudians.

"We try not to apply for work permits. We are totally non-racial.'' Mr. Woods said he had heard the Parliamentary debate on institutionalised racism, but felt his firm had a proud hiring record.

"We are a 60-year-old firm providing work for Bermudians. We certainly don't discriminate on colour.'' MR. ERNEST PACHECO -- `very proud of what we've accomplished.' Mr. Alf Oughton Mr. Louis Mowbray Mr. Victor Garcia Mr. Keith Jensen.