By KEVA LIGHTBOURNE, Guardian Senior Reporter, kdl@nasguard.com

A brief walk-out by immigration officers last Friday proved to be enough to force management's hands at the department to speed up the process of completing a long-awaited list of promotions.

Bahamas Public Services Union president John Pinder told The Guardian yesterday that if everything "went well." The officers could look forward to receiving their promotion letters by June.

"I am satisfied that after speaking with the Acting Permanent Secretary for the Public Service Department and the Director of Immigration on Monday, all efforts were made to complete the necessary documentation for the promotions exercise," he said.

"They have assured me that everything will be packaged and sent to the Public Service Commission for their meeting on Thursday, and they assume that probably after one or two sittings, the Public Service Commission should have those promotions completed, and hopefully, by the end of the month it will be completed so persons should start getting letters by June," Pinder said.

Dozens of placard-carrying Immigration officers left their posts on Friday, to protest working conditions, promotions and security concerns.

According to Pinder, the former government had promised to address concerns regarding promotions four years ago. He said a promotions list had been forwarded to the Public Services Commission in 2006.

However, the promised promotions were not carried out because the required performance appraisals had not been completed.

According to officers who participate in Immigration roundups, they often went on raids without guns and bulletproof vests. They claimed that they frequently had to transport foreign convicts from prison to the Detention Center without police escort.

In a telephone interview yesterday, Pinder described Friday's walk-out a "success".

"This is something we have been trying to get completed from November of last year, and now they have worked overtime and over the weekend, and they have put all the necessary efforts into ensuring that the assignment is now completed," he said.