without permission this morning.

Labour and Home Affairs Minister Quinton Edness said last night that his understanding was that ferry services would halt around 9 a.m.

He added: "They have sought permission from the bosses at Marine Services -- permission of that kind is not granted.'' Mr. Edness said he had discussed the matter with Bermuda Industrial Union leader Derrick Burgess on Friday.

He added: "The impression was that whether they were given permission or not, they would leave.'' And Mr. Edness warned that Government workers who down tools to attend the arbitration meeting in Hamilton would not be paid for time off the job.

He said: "It's very irresponsible for anyone to leave their job and go and stand around an arbitration site.

"And I would urge workers not to do this because it will reflect on them as being very irresponsible.'' Mr. Edness said it was not known whether other Government services would be hit by the stoppage.

He said he had been assured by BIU leaders that bus and postal services would operate as normal -- although he added Mr. Burgess had been unable to guarantee that other blue collar services, like pest control and garbage collection, would be unaffected.

Mr. Edness said that the arbitration meeting -- whose decision will be accepted as binding by Government and union -- centred around the way pay increases are paid.

He explained this year's 2.98 percent pay award is paid across the board to all employees.

But he said the BIU wanted a variable rate, with more going to the lowest-paid workers and less to those on higher pay scales.

Mr. Edness added: "It's unfair to say to anyone who has earned the right to be paid at a higher rate, with a percentage increase based on their current salary, that we are going to reduce it and give it to someone else.'' He said that in the past, similar arrangements to the one the BIU were seeking had caused resentment and problems.

Mr. Edness explained: "In the past when more has been taken away from the top and given to those at a lower level, the next time negotiations come along those at the top have the right to fight for a higher increase.

Meeting to halt ferry services "It's my understanding this was done once or twice in the past, but it's not traditional.'' But Mr. Burgess insisted that the union had always negotiated an amount, "the same amount for everybody.'' He said: "It's about trying to change the method of payment of wage increases. The way they want to give it is not the way the workers want it.

"Government wants to dictate to the workers and the workers are not going to be dictated to by them.'' Mr. Burgess added: "I don't know about disruption -- every time workers want to do something, people think it's industrial action. My understanding is that workers want to attend the hearing and they have a right to do that.

"Workers are not prohibited from attending the hearing, so I don't know what Mr. Edness is talking about. It's not unusual for them to attend a hearing.

"They are interested and it's good when people are interested. They want to come and find out what's going on.

TRANSPORTATION TRA