Four Bermudians Made Redundant At Catlin
Catlin Insurance Company Ltd. said that “as part of a global business realignment, 4 Bermudian employees, a small number of our overall local workforce, have been made redundant as certain tasks are transferred to a Catlin Group Shared Services Centre in Europe.”
Graham Pewter, CEO of Catlin Bermuda said: “Catlin is increasingly centralising certain tasks to improve the service we provide to our clients around the world.
“The Company’s commitment to Bermuda, our corporate headquarters, and to the recruitment and development of Bermudians remains unaltered, but we operate in a competitive market and must strive to improve operating efficiencies wherever possible.”
Remember the OBA says the economy is getting better. Still believe them?
This case I do not think has anything to do with Bermuda. This one will probably be the first of many this year, as the reinsurance rates continue to fall, and international business is now being forced to cut costs. No major disasters such as 911, Katrina means lower premiums, lower profits. Remember how many new companies were formed in Bermuda after these major disasters.
Yes I do believe the Bermuda economy is begining to improve.
The reinsurance industry has been one of consolidation with the low interest rate environment, low premiums and industry wide capital reduction programs.
The Bermuda economy has little to no direct impact on Reinsurance business.
LOL clearly you do not work in industry. Did you know that 40% of US nationwide reinsurance premiums are ceded to companies located in… you guessed it! Little old Bermuda!
Yes, but the changes in the Bermuda economy have had little direct impact on this.
Please focus.
the reinsurance industry is Bermuda’s economy or at least 80% of it
lets see
some overseas corporate entity is eyeing the global reinsurance market and identifies a need to set up a cat 4 insurer
they compare and examine all of the possible competing jurisdictions to determine which one has the best legislative and infrastructural apparatus
they choose Bermuda and arrange financing
they contact legal and accounting professional services and set up a company
they look for premises to rent
they look to hire staff
they place job advertisements in the local gazette tailored made for overseas staff
recently laid off Bermudians apply
they hire overseas staff as they claim there are no “suitably qualified” Bermudians who have applied
Bermuda’s booming economy at its finest
good luck to the 4 who got laid off you’re gonna need it
would probably have been 10-15 if the PLP were still piloting the ship from the Lido Deck
Please elaborate.
WHAT!!!!!!!! No one blamed de P.L.P. yet?
yeah,, it wasnt the term limits that chased them away this time??? Wow. It wasnt the rude behavior from the PLP that led to them feeling unwanted on the island??? My dear, what could it have been??
This is exactly why opening the local economy by removing the 60/40 won’t work in the long run! You’ll have +8,000 unemployed Bermudians and related serious social pressures. Like 4 people will significant impact on Catlin’s profitability? No! Just money trumps!
A Bermudian company would be more likely to keep’m given the longer term impacts on employment and on quality of life here!
Bob/OBA are smoking the pipe to be pushing relaxing 60/40 in the local economy. It’s not a relic idea…it also to helps protect local employment!
Hope people realize this!
Smiths
P.S. Bermuda cannot survive the globalization game on the local economy level. How many jobs has HSBC shed since it arrived? And they are still laying people off! Last week someone from Toronto called my office to say our Bermuda $ deposit was out of balance. Two years ago (when this happened last) the call was from a local employee. Get the picture!
Bermudians should be wondering what do we on a whole actually get from International Business. Other than those that are employed, and some charitable donations, what does the country get in general? The companies are outsourcing left, right and center. They are displaying little social consciousness in their deployment of jobs elsewhere. Bermuda has enabled many of these high executives the ability to make millions of dollars. Now, when Bermuda needs them the most, they are abandoning any sense of responsibility and shipping jobs all over the place. At least if we charged them a minimal capital gains tax, then we would get some sort of revenue from their presence. Will they leave entirely if they are charged this tax? Possibly but not necessarily. Other areas have some taxes that Bermuda does not have. But we need to have the conversation. Nearly every field has had to adjust their terms and conditions. Yet IB is allowed to do what it wants, and with little to no benefit to the whole of Bermuda. Imagine if Catlin had to pay 1% on their corporate profits to Government – that would be 4.53M into the government coffers.
This is all a classic case of people making record profits and still cutting jobs. Money over people. Greed over people. and just to be clear, while this is being written under Catlin’s article, they are hardly the only culprit.
That takes stupid to a whole new level.
@ watching.
Who do you work for ? Then we can figure out how international busness contributed to you having a job.
I see you picked up on Burt’s whine about corporate taxes.
I guess if that’s how you feel, you must have wondered at the time why Premier Cox extended the tax-exempt guarantee for international companies by 25 years, binding her successor governments to tax exemptions for decades.
Why not do some research into what IB does for us, THEN present something from a place of knowledge, rather than this “I don’t understand the situation, but I think we should do this” thing you’re doing?
Let’s see Chris Furburt try to take on Catlin.
And to first poster, layoffs happen all the time. Why employ 4 people and pay these 4 people when you can just have one person do it for less.
Don’t complain about business and the economy if you know nothing.
AGREEED! do you know how many people they had there that were not essential?! Corporate business is NOT CHARITY BUSINESS!
Bermudians need to stop feeling so entitled. I know alot of people who expect to walk into their jobs at 9am and leave at 5 and get paid an extortionate amount of money while they complain about their work… then they are confused why they are made redundant!! BAFFLING.
Redundancies like this have nothing to do with the economic environment. Its called operations efficiency and profitability. Maybe some people need a refresher on what those mean…
You say it Lois? On the same page there.
You sound like you work at Catlin lol there are some of them there…leave at 5, complain all the time etc.
There is no need to attack someone because they have a different perspective…”I know nothing”. I’ve worked in several different countries and have several degrees… I guess that’s makes me “know nothing”.
Not really…it’s called greed! 60 years ago companies cared about their employees and took care of them! What has changed? The bottom line is now all that matters! 60 years ago Layoff used to be related to end of life cycle issues. Employees were let go at last resort. In addition, the GAP in pay between employees and management was less significant. This mirrors the drop in civility to our neighbors and countrymen. For example, you just called me “you know nothing” is a manifestation of the larger issue! A large shift from more common values!
Justify it as you want! But even as a business person, I have to admit that today’s businesses have less of a social conscious! Unfortunately, that’s the way it is! However, it doesn’t mean it’s right!
Those that cannot see this are perhaps blinded by their pursuit of $$’s?
If you actually read the article, those functions are simply being moved elsewhere in the world. We don’t know what impact that will have on employment levels elsewhere.
And if you look at the job ads, Catlin is advertising for people to join their graduate program – in other words, they are increasing staff on that side and actively working to recruit and train Bermudians.
Sad news for the four people let go and I hope they rebound and find new jobs in a short period of time.
In these circumstances, blaming politicians whether OBA, PLP, or even wannabes like Starling tempting a target as he is, makes no sense. I think this points to the critical necessity of all having to pull together to show IB outfits like this that Bermudians do not expect to be put on some sort of pedestal where less is required of them than imports, and that the workforce here can be as competitive and productive or even more so than any anywhere. Let’s get with the program guys…
These four Bermudians were made redundant while the expats were aloud to keep their jobs.
Maybe the expats could spell?
How do you know?
What does that tell you?
Keep up with that attitude and there will be no company with no jobs for anybody because the owners will set up where they are wanted and respected, which will not be here. In any case, without stating whether or not our guests who are still working fill the same roles as the relieved Bermudians, your comment is meaningless.
If the OBA was so serious about improving the economy they would be looking to broaden our sources of income. They pander to reinsurance, when there are so many other industries that could be brought into Bermuda to encourage growth. All our eggs are in one basket.
What are all these industries that are tripping over themselves to set up shop in Bermuda?
I’m sure the OBA is open to suggestions. So fire away.
For years, we’ve been hearing about the need to expand into other areas so that we are not so heavily dependent on IB and tourism but so far nothing has stuck. Neither the PLP or the OBA have come up with something that will work (and if/when they do it will take years if not decades to meaningful contribution to the economy).
Such as?
Any chance of some elaboration for a change?
“aloud” sic, “allowed”? ed
@FAMILY MAN WHAT ARE YOU MARRIED YOU ONE OF THEM?
Once employers determine positions are going to be eliminated, they have choices about how they do it. I have a problem with calling everyone to a meeting and saying there would be redundancies but not saying who…just that they should return to their desks and wait for a call….that’s torture! Can you imagine the stress you would feel waiting, not knowing if you were going to get a call? And why not allow them to work a notice period? To march them out without notice is just inhumane. I am sure they paid them well but no amount of money compensates for indignity.
How do they have the audacity to do this then in todays paper there is an add on page 30 left side half way down seeking well rounded graduates????????????? I don’t get it and sure as hell would think twice about employment there.
cause and effect…just why do you think this is…I can only surmise somebody sucked their teef..
They are laying off Bermudians because generally are lazy people, abusive of sick leaves, and does not have the educational requirements for most jobs available (experience alone cannot compete with diploma). Ok im ready for the endless bashing…. Reality bites peeps!
The offshore company does not have to find accommodation when they employ local people , there is more to it than meets the eye.
I do not work at Catlin, but I do know the company and its ethics. If 4 people in Bermuda were made redundant it is because they were not doing as good a job as employees in other Catlin locations. The company will have thought long and hard about this as they will have known the negative comments that would come their way – how much easier it would have been to make 4 employees in London, Switzerland etc redundant where the media would not care.
I do not know the individuals, however it is obvious that the cost versus benefit of their contribution to the company versus other employees elsewhere was not working. Some Bermudians in IB do not get the fact that the company is competing globally and needs to have the best/most effective workforce to do that. Some Bermudians need to stop the entitlement attitude and realize that they are competing with global colleagues, not just local ones. If you are the best person for the job, you will get or keep the job.