The point I made about the tvs, ipods, etc was that I have sold these items on emoo cheaply to MIGRANT WORKERS.People are talking as if these migrant workers don’t have many of the same tastes we do. They merely bargain shop for it on emoo. I’m not talking about Bermudians buying these things and then claiming impoverishment…. so you missed the entire point again of what I said.

as for ipods, tv’s video games, the original point made was that you shouldn’t be buying these things and then saying you are impoverished. so wherever they are buying from doesn’t even matter…

Also, the Government offers interest free education loans as well. Well they did a few years back last time I checked. But I believe that they are still available.

As I said at the start of this thread, obviously things haven’t got bad enough for Bermudians yet or they’d be applying for these jobs.

Like it or not, every employee is part of the machinery that makes a company work. If that company cannot support istelf it will go bankrupt. There is no just adding on taxes like the Government does.

Employers would much rather hire local. There is no hassel of dealing with Labour & immigration. There is no hassel of finding accomodation. There is no term limit of employment when the whole time consuming process has to be repeated. There is no language barrier. The list goes on. However, there is a point where all of this is the easier way to go if a reliable, willing to work, local cannot be found. Businesses need people to be on the job when they are needed otherwise the company machine stops working.

There needs to be a groundswell shift in the attitude towards working. Employers are not charities.

My problem is that there are some people who can get a job but decide not to because:

a) That job doesn’t pay enough (according to their expectations)
b) Don’t want to work and/or for foreigners

Not all joblessness in Bermuda can be blamed on the poor work ethic of the unemployed. That it is a given. But there are individuals ot there that expect a job to be given to them for the simple fact that they have a Bermudian passport. I have, as have many I imagine, encountered this attitude on more than one occassion. They apply for a porter position but expect to be paid an executive chef’s wage just because they are Bermudian. Nowhere in the world does it work like that and just because some say Bermuda is Another World, doesn’t make it so.

For me there is a big difference between people who were unemployed before the economic crisis/downturn/collapse and individuals whose jobs became victims of the economy. I feel for the latter but don’t want to hear the former complain about all of a sudden they can’t get a job either.

My point essentially is that the conditions that make it possible for migrant workers to ‘survive’ in Bermuda do not apply to many Bermudians, especially those with families. What conditions are those? Mainly that a Bermudian supporting a family certainly cannot share an apartment with 5 other people in order to split the rent. I think we all know this is very prevalent, and as a homeowner with an apartment I can tell you I’ve been propositioned quite a few times by foreign workers who wish to rent my studio by splitting it between 3 people. It’s quite easy for 3-4 ‘porters’ making 30,000 each to split rent 4 ways, do most of their ‘shopping’ at thrift stores and on emoo, and send money overseas. The effect on our economy is that we’re hiring a lot of foreign labor for menial jobs who aren’t investing lots of money into the local economy, but instead sending it overseas.

Now, I would say that if you are presently not working, making 35K certainly beats making $0 so I certainly am not in favor of people not applying because the job isn’t ‘good enough’ for them. Just making the point that 35K isn’t a sustainable income for a Bermudian, whether single or especially married with children. The cost of rents eats up most of one’s salary, before taking into account utilities.

It recently received its accreditation as well as offering free tuition to high school graduates.

Just a general observation of the mindset of some in this island…

Something doesn’t go your way they seek to place blame on others for their misfortunes…

It’s always someone else’s fault…

They make it here by sharing apartments, sometimes up to 4-5 in a 2 bedroom. Obviously a Bermudian with a family can’t do that. Where do they shop? Try the Barn and Salvation Army, or emoo. How do I know this? Because I visit both places often looking for books or making donations and I see them there in droves. I’m also a big emoo seller, have sold ipods, tvs, video game systems, you name it. Guess who most of my sales have gone to? You guessed it…. migrants from the Philippines and India etc. Case in point, I sold an ipod touch a month ago to a Southampton Priness migrant worker which I had advertised on emoo.

Let’s not act like many of these people don’t like the same things we do. The only difference is, we go downtown and buy it, or import in and pay customs duties. THEY buy it off emoo and try to talk you down in price, therefore they don’t spend much money in the local economy besides necessities like food and that’s because food isn’t something you can buy off emoo and you’re sure as hell not going to import milk, eggs and bread. THEN, they can send their money overseas to take care of their entire family. Healthy long-term situation? Not at all.

The work is out there. People are just too lazy to work but are the first to complain about the migrant worker who shows up every day ready to work without a bunch of personal issues. Some are beginning to hear the wakeup call. For those who think that society owes them a living perhaps Social Assistance should be limited to a few months for those able to work but obviously don’t want to.

During the boom years people earned good money (read overpaid) doing unskilled jobs. Those years are gone. Bermuda is competing with the rest of the world. Just wait for Cuba to reopen to US visitors. The final nail in our tourism coffin.

Not long ago I had a potential tennant show up in the big car, child in tow etc. to look at the residence. When asked about employment the answer was “Oh I don’t have a job right now.” I mean…are you serious??? This person could not understand why there was no hope of me renting that apt to them. Unbelievable.

i think the government already knows that and will not push for it.

Bermudians who who have incomes at this imaginary level of poverty ($70k) need to to go on a financial diet. That is – deciding wants verses needs.

I want a big assed flat screen. But my old TV works fine. Get it? If you’d done this all along you’d be OK now.

And yes 411: I am a parent.

tough you-know-what. life is hard, deal with it. i worked my way into a a position where i hired and employed bermudians. i can’t tell you how many came to work with the attitude that they were doing me a favor and if i asked them to do something well within their job description, they took an attitude like i asked them to donate a kidney.

don’t get me wrong- i’m well aware of serious issues within the workforce, and some of the injustices that exist, many of which i can’t even begin to disclose here. but these complaints being mentioned with regards to the kitchen porter positions are simply ridiculous to me. work your tail off and you can be the maitre’d one day if you have the right attitude and you’re smart.

so many young bermudians have NO clue about work ethic and how the real world works. they act as if their job is forced labor. they also think they should be paid twice as much as they’re paid, to do half as much work. i could go on for days about this, you wouldn’t believe how bad some young people are in particular.

while we’re on the topic of poverty though, i’m not saying people should be punished or abandoned by society…..but how about we start teaching people the consequences of their actions? in other words, let’s remind people that having numerous children out of wedlock is something THEY did and they should stop carrying around this attitude as if the world owes them something….as if they woke up one day and someone had dropped 3 kids on their doorstep! accidents happen and we’re all human. but if you’re dumb enough to keep popping out kids you can’t afford to raise, you need to understand that you are condemning yourself and them to a lifetime of poverty. OBVIOUSLY it is critical that we have systems in place to assist people particularly these poor children. but i’m just saying that we need to stop accepting that having lots of kids outside of a committed relationship is OK.

shoot, even for 2 married people who never split up having kids is damn expensive. so let’s start making better decisions and don’t have more kids than you can provide for. sure, things happen in life- your child’s mother/father could be sick, disabled, killed, walk out on them, etc. but i’m willing to bet the majority of people who find themselves in these situations could have done a lot more to prevent it getting to that point. i remember a case a few years ago where a girl in her early 20′s had 5 children and was complaining about how nobody was helping her. for goodness sake, a person with a good paying job can’t afford kids like that. so why the hell would you keep having kids like that?

life is about choices and i’m sorry to say that a lot of the problem results from people making poor choices. no doubt, there are still other people who legitimately need help and who are struggling. i’m not talking about them. but let’s not pretend a lot of what i just said isn’t a big part of the problem.

one last thing- i had a young guy complain to me one time about “how hard it is for a ghetto yute like me.” he said this to me with his chain, watch, and rings blinging in my face….tens of thousands of dollars worth. yes, there are people who legitimately have it rough and i don’t want to dismiss that. however there’s also a lot who are in that position who conveniently have a blackberry, nice clothes, jewelry, go on a nice shopping trip every year etc etc. these things are not necessities but we treat them like they are! PRIORITIES PEOPLE! bermudians are too proud and are trying to keep up with their neighbor. if they can’t, a lot of them cry poverty and how corrupt the system supposedly is because they can’t have what they want or what their neighbor has.

a huge part of the problem is the spoiled bermudian attitude that i seem to come across FAR too often.

I have assisted a number of Bermudians into getting these jobs as Porters and each and everyone has told me the same tale of woe.

I have been a PLP supporter over the years, and yes a UBP supporter.

As of this date this reminds me of the individual with a credit card and all they pay is the minimum. There still in debt up too their eyeballs.

As for Graemes “$20 minimum wage”….please……sounds great. So we all make $20 an hour ( others more) wheres the influx of monies. No tourists, Hotels are empty, room availability is down due to the afore.

Open that great Steak and Ale, Conch Stew & Rum, Lobster Weed (pot) resturant. Pay your employees $20 an hour……

Walk down Front Street, check out those cruise ships, check out those conventions at Afairmont, Grovling for Money Bay, …….

Then go check out a local bar in Hamilton and see the last of the Expats eating and drinking and wispering.

Hell, garbage collectors make more more than most. Guess what……..even that is becomming less. Go figure.

Bermudians clearly don’t know what real poverty is. If they did, they’d be applying for these jobs.

Agreed. All one has to do is look at how the UK’s beenfit system has been absolutely raped by scroungers whose main argument that it was more profitable to remain on hand outs then actually take up meaningful work. Providing handouts with little to no restrictions just encourage people to rely on others in order to get by in life. Freebies just creates complacency and laziness. Just ask the UK…