Clearly the CEO’s explanation of what is the cause of this out weighs a employees rant on a talk show. That’s the bottom line, so all your spin is worthless. Instead of feeding off of misfortunes like this why not try to develop a plan of your own and stand by it?

And I am not “PLP in Panic” is that you new line when your empty of points? We are not panicking we are working on helping the people.

If you are a major shareholder in that company what would suggest??

That is the point Im trying to make, it has nothing to do about the materialistic habits of SOME Bermudians.

FYI some of us who dont go on trips, dont have children, whom are educated professionals find the cost of living too high, so dont generalize about your experiences of the few… It makes me realize how out of touch with the average person some of you really are.

If Govt reduced taxes, then with some breathing room, business could then compete better with lower pricing. In doing so they could sell more product with the same profit and therefore make larger revenues.

Bermuda competes in the sea that is the rest of the world. Bermuda is not the only isolated settlement in the world. Everyone is part of the price spiral that has gone unchecked for years. The days of getting paid more for less are over. The days of shorter work weeks, & not getting paid for that day off, are here. The exception being if you work for government where the belief is still that money falls from the sky.

The days of multiple trips a year, a new car every few years, the latest cellphone, weekly trips to get the nails done, the latest & biggest home theatre system, children that you know you cannot afford etc. etc. are over. The dream years of Bermudians really believing that they are something special & entitled are over.

Bermuda has never had a high cost of living. Bermudians have a problem with the cost of living high.

Prices have already fallen. The value of real estate has fallen. People are upsidedown in their mortgages. Rents have fallen, especially top & middle markets to what they were 5 years ago. Many places sit empty with owners unable to meet mortgage payments.

Meanwhile we have a PLP Government, largly responsible for this sorry situation, which has no plan, no clue as to what to do.

This task needs to be tackled immediately. In fact the question should be asked of every international company that has left Bermuda, or greatly reduced their staff size in the past 2 years. I suspect that the vast majority of companies have left for exactly the same reasons, and what we need is for our Government, whichever political party is in power, to actually listen and respond – urgently – otherwise it will be too late and our economy will be in freefall.

This suggestion is not intended to paint a negative picture, but rather, to have Government show that they are in tune with the problems facing these international companies and are willing to taken urgent action to get us through these very difficult times.

It is the system we live in and I don’t see it changing anytime soon, so we have to adapt to make sure we get the most out of it for our people.

You actually think if Govt reduced ARVs landlords would reduce their rents?? LOL

But I will always believe that shareholders play a large role of the big decisions of IB companies not the CEOs and employees that work here. Those shareholders just see financial reports and try to find ways to cut costs/expenditures.

Jobs in IB require skill and education/degrees that many Bermudians do not have. Education is key and particularly Math and Stats.

Cost of doing business is far too high and hiring an average skilled worker is far too expensive compared to most other places in the world. I could hire a fresh Phd for $80k in most places, while in BDA….well you know!!

60-40: You need to get rid of this, to attract investments coming in.

One CEO even used a comparison of bread prices between A1s and Tesco in London.

Why are you people ignoring this? Why are you not on businees owners and landlords to slightly decrease their profits/rents to make things a bit less expensive for IB employees?

Also the PLP is very devisive and “anti white” “anti foreign” when you judge them by their statements and actions, these companies are hardly likely to feel welcome as a result.

Businesses and local people really need to re-evaluate strategy.. i.e. Decrease their profit margins to cut down on costs..

Will Marketplace suffer if the decrease their profit margins slightly? Will landlords who own their homes mortgage free lower rents to make things more affordable for EVERYONE, not just Bermudians? Its sacrifices like that people need to start thinking about.

Let the world know we are open for business. it is our only hope.

As a Government you are PATHETIC beyond all belief.

For clarification, and in case anyone doesn’t understand, NOW means immediately, straight away, at present. Not tomorrow, not next week, not next year, but NOW.

If further clarification is needed, then you should not be allowed to run a bath let alone a country.

This entitlement mentality, that says some how, someone owes us a job, if for no good reason, just because we are Bermudian. I know that this is what the Government have been preaching for many years but they have lied to you, you should only get a job if you are the right one for it, whether you are a Bermudian or a foreigner.

Spending and saving habits will change. For years, we have lived beyond our means, spending more than we make and not saving a penny. The recession would not feel be so bad so soon if most of us had a years salary saved up to tap into. Unfortunately some of us are still in denial and have not changed our spending habits, just because we still have a job.

I am here to tell you all that you need to pay attention, because if history was to repeat itself and it usually does, we may be in for far worst than what we are seeing now. America is in a very similar situation as it was in, prior to the Great Depression. Around that time, the wealth of America was concentrated at the top and in the same or similar proportions. The top 1% owned and now owned 25% of the wealth and the top 25% owns 85 % of the wealth. So if they were to sink into another depression, were do you think that would leave those of us, who thinks our jobs are safe. Even if a second depression did not transpire, a double dip recession in America will send us in a tail spin.

The next to be fixed it this bad attitude, which is driven by the sense of entitlement. Those of us in the service industries that can’t change that rude behavior, will be weeded out. It just sickens me, when you enter an establishment, where they are supposed to be serving you with a smile and all you get is someone with an attitude, acting like they are doing you a favor. Those folks will not fare well in the new Bermuda to come.

The longer we take to change, the longer the recession will last. Right now the politicians are digging their heads deeper in the sand and not facing reality. Why do I say that, I say that because they are doing the total opposite, of what they should be doing. Instead of forcing employers to hire incompetent people, they need to open the market right up, which will force us to be the best we can be. Right now, a lot us cannot compete on the world stage, which is what we will need to be able to do, if we are to survive in the new Bermuda. They need to tell us that SOME of us, have not been good at what we do and have not been doing our best and if we are to make it in the new Bermuda, there are a lot of changes that we most make to our personal and professional lives.

I say, stop lying to the people, it will only make the medicine harder to take and prolong the ailment. I have no doubt that we will change but if we and the Government refuse to proactively change, then the market forces will effect changes like you never see them before and it will be on it’s terms, not yours.

Also, don’t let anyone fool you as to why all this is happening. While I do believe that we and the Government, have made it harder for ourselves by our wasteful spending habits, this would have hit and all we would be able to do, is to go for the ride. This was precipitated by greedy investors and an deregulated American financial system that allowed greed to reign unchecked. This correction was inevitable because nothing that was happening was sustainable. The right wing extremist would like us to believe that this was all the fault of the poor people living above their means and buying property in an highly inflated market, that was just the symptom, not the disease.

The disease is greed. they would like us to believe that this is capitalism, maybe, but capitalism without socialism is bound to fail. There must be balance and counter balance. Equilibrium is the name of the game in nature and when that’s out of whack, thing fall apart.

Your point may be valid however, you seem to make to want to make the people believe that if the UBP/OBA was in power, this would never happen?

The uncompetitive price structure in Bermuda didn’t come from specific policies, it comes from the fact of our location. Rents and wages are high, electricity and other items cost a fortune. Your answer seems to be “get rid of term limits” and this will stop. That is not true and you know that is the case.

Bob, instead of using events to place blame, how about you propose solutions that may actually change the game, unless your only solution is abolish term limits, which will not solve the problem.

This

OK, got it.

The real question you should ask, is when are the PLP going to take their heads out of the sand and act. Our rudderless ship, our leaderless island is sinking fast and all we gt is Minister Wilson making beds at The Fairmont and “consulting” with the recently redundant. It’s not action.

CEOs of Catlin and Hiscox have stated that it is expensive to do business here. Hiscox CEO Charles Dupplin stated:

“When you take on a junior accountant, it’s much more expensive to do it here, than in London, and more expensive again than Lisbon, where we also have an office,” Mr Dupplin said. “Bermuda is three to four times more expensive than Lisbon.”

He conceded that “if a loaf of bread costs $7 in A1 and 59p in Tesco’s in London, then of course, you have to pay people differently”

He added: “The cost of employing people here makes it difficult for me to justify to my own board, if we needed ten more staff, that they should be taken on in Bermuda.”

Like most businesses, the bottom line is cost. So what can be done to drive down costs?? Have greedy landlords lower their rents?? Nope, according to some people need high rents to pay mortgages.

ask Grocers to lower profits to make groceries cheaper? Nope that will never happen…

The Bermudians people/businesses who are exploiting IB to make a profit, play a role making IB leave.

Its much easier to blame immigration policies and Government, but yet I guarantee people will overlook what these CEOs are saying and but the blame on Government. The cost of living here is not just too high for locals but for particular expats and who is to blame for that?