Year opens with a drop of over 1,000 permit holders
(CNS): According to the latest statistics released by WORC, there was a significant drop in the number of work permit holders over the final quarter of last year. Since September, when there were a record-breaking 36,501 individual permit holders in the Cayman Islands, the number has fallen, for the first time since the pandemic, by over one thousand to 35,443 as of the beginning of January. The decline is notable given that during this period, the tourism sector was recruiting ahead of the busy winter season.
Nick Joseph, a local immigration attorney who has been raising awareness over the last few years about the myriad failings of the current immigration system, said he was surprised by the numbers. In a recent update to his clients, he said the decline made little sense given the usual “ramping up” at that time of year in anticipation of the tourism high season.
“The reasons for the reported reduction of work permit numbers are unclear,” Joseph said. “They appear to be across a wide range of nationalities. It could be due to a mix of factors, including a slowing down of the construction industry in particular, as interest rates bite and sites closed for the holidays, or simply (and hopefully) because hundreds of Caymanians (including the summer school and college graduates) have been able to assume many of the positions that would otherwise have been filled with expatriate labour.”
While that might be wishful thinking, a likely factor is that people are also being granted permanent residence and therefore dropping out of the work permit figures. At the end of November, there were 5,865 individual permanent residents recorded, a figure that did not include dependents. There is also anecdotal evidence, especially on social media, that some permit holders have left due to the high cost of living as well as an increase in outsourcing work to other jurisdictions.
The number of domestic workers, janitors and gardeners on permits all fell, which may indicate that families, both local and expatriate, can no longer afford to employ people to help around the home. The only group of lower-paid permit holders that grew is security guards, a possible sign of the times.
The rising cost of living, suppressed salary levels and the government’s failure to increase the minimum wage are also making life in Cayman unaffordable for an increasing number of local people, and there is anecdotal evidence that some Caymanians are leaving too.
While there are numerous variables that could be at play, such as technology gradually changing the job market, the government desperately needs to monitor the trends, Joseph has warned.
The drop in permit numbers may ultimately lead to a slowdown in population growth that might be welcomed by the broader community, but it could impact the government coffers, given that immigration revenue accounts for 10% of core government earnings.
“These factors will hopefully be closely monitored by those setting and giving effect to policy determinations,” Jospeh wrote in an email to his clients, as he believes that growth “remains critical to the operation of Cayman’s economy” but is not necessarily reflected now in the number of work permit holders.
According to the statistics, over 42% of all permit holders are from Jamaica, despite the efforts of government administrations for the last twenty years to encourage employers to recruit from other countries to create a more diverse community and prevent the domination of just one nationality.
Workers are coming to the Cayman Islands from 135 different countries, but Jamaicans still make up the single biggest nationality by a large margin. The next biggest group is Filipinos, who account for more than 16% of permit holders. The British round out the top three biggest nationality groups, accounting for 5.6% of work permit holders.
The points available for permanent residency applicants on the basis of demographics remain unchanged, with Jamaicans and Filipinos receiving no points for their nationality, while British and Indian nationals get five, and all other nationalities, which now includes Hondurans, Canadians and Americans, can all get ten points.
Despite the drop in permit holders, there is no let up on the pressure on local infrastructure, possibly because, as Joseph suggests, a number of people previously on a work permit now have permanent residency.
Not only are the roads, schools and hospitals under strain, but the supermarkets have also been at capacity over the last few months. Cayman has had the same number of large supermarkets for many years despite its huge population increase, though the number of smaller local grocery stores has grown.
The crowded checkouts and empty shelves at the leading food stores, however, show clearly that these establishments have been added to the list of core infrastructure that is past capacity.
“The implications of our seeming inability to prepare for long-foreseen challenges are troubling,” Joseph said. As he wrapped up his update, he stressed the importance of officials interpreting patterns and trends to work out what is happening in relation to the makeup of the population and why.
Demographics of the 35,443 people on work permits, as of 4 January 2024:
| NATIONALITY | NUMBER OF WORK PERMITS | PERCENTAGE OF PERMITS | UP OR DOWN FROM LAST MONTH |
| Jamaican | 14,971 | 42.2% | -230 |
| Filipino | 5,870 | 16.6% | -2 |
| British | 2,004 | 5.6% | -17 |
| Indian | 1,947 | 5.5% | -18 |
| Honduran | 1,176 | 3.3% | -26 |
| Canadian | 1,172 | 3.3% | -18 |
| American | 902 | 2.5% | -30 |
| Nepalese | 890 | 2.5% | -22 |
| Nicaraguan | 716 | 2.0% | -25 |
| South African | 650 | 1.8% | +9 |
Numbers of people holding work permits for the “Top Ten” occupations:
| OCCUPATION | NUMBER AT 5 DEC 2023 | NUMBER AT 3 JAN 2024 | CHANGE OVER LAST MONTH |
| Domestic Helpers | 3,979 | 3,955 | -24 |
| Janitors | 2,216 | 2,175 | -41 |
| Masons | 1,619 | 1,578 | -41 |
| Waiting Staff/ F&B Servers | 1,707 | 1,684 | -23 |
| Carpenters | 1,071 | 1,054 | -17 |
| Gardeners | 1,057 | 1,030 | -27 |
| Kitchen Helpers | 1,020 | 1,016 | -4 |
| Security Officers | 722 | 727 | +5 |
| Cashiers (Retail) | 679 | 675 | -4 |
| Line Cooks | 522 | 506 | -16 |
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Category: Jobs, Local News
I do not believe the report, Something not adding up. Work permits declined and yet income generated from work permit increase. There have been no increase in work permit fees. Can we get the real report from the auditors? I am a bit confused.
Ummmm… work permit fees are vastly different for different jobs. 1 lawyer coming can make up the shortfall from 10 masons, or 50 helpers, leaving…
@6:04
Perhaps we then never d to see a report that shows the various occupations.
It should drop by 10,000 every month till we get down to the right balance then errry lickle thing will be alright.
Unity and patriotism are not luxuries. Survival in an international jungle depends on them. What are dangerous luxuries are the open borders which erode national solidarity. The fact that we are already at each other’s throats over the immigration issue is an ominous sign.
You are right; patriotism in not a luxury. It’s a scourge:
“Patriotism is the last refuge of the scoundrel.” – Samuel Johnson
“Patriotism is the virtue of the vicious.” – Oscar Wilde
“You’ll never have a quiet world till you knock the patriotism out of the human race.” – George Bernard Shaw
“Heroism on command, senseless violence, and all the loathsome nonsense that goes by the name of patriotism – how passionately I hate them!” – Albert Einstein
Samuel Johnson suffered from bouts of extreme depression, characterised by Boswell as “a horrible hypochondria… dejection, gloom, and despair” which left him with chronic tics, possibly Tourette’s Syndrome
Oscar Wilde -Wilde’s trial for gross indecency led him to being sentenced to two years’ hard labor,
Shaw promoted eugenics and alphabet reform, and opposed vaccination and organised religion
And Albert – He left his first wife to marry his own cousin
Not sure quotes from these guys have round in todays world
Arguing the validity of statements based on the faults and foibles of those making them. How straw man of you. Whataboutism is so passé.
We have allowed our politicians and the development cabal that controls them to legalise the importation of cheap foreign labour that drives wages down, drives housing costs up, does not no how to drive lawfully, destroys our social fabric, clogs our roads and other infrastructure, destroys our social fabric. The same imported labour enters into ‘marriages of convenience’, and produces children in order to claim the right to stay permanently in these Islands.
I agree with the previous post. We should start by ending work permits for anyone in the construction sector. That would probably also reduce the need for more and more security guards imported from the same places as the construction workers.
CNS – is that just the table of what WORC considers to be “unskilled work permits”? Surely there is more than 500 lawyers and accountants on work permits.
CNS: It’s the info included in Nick Joseph’s email to his clients. You may be right, I don’t know.
The occupations listed are simply the ten which have the most work permits issued. The skill required to fill the roles is not a consideration.
But that would mean less than 500 lawyers and 500 accountants on work permits. There are definitely more than that.
You may have missed the fact that hundreds of lawyers and accountants have been granted PR and status or have pending applications. They have accordingly dropped out of the work permit figures even though many are still here.
Cayman has no appeal once the blue collar workers gets Status… it’s Adios!
But it’s Shangri-la for the white collars.
For the locals it don’t matter. They to busy looking fish and Bulla in Panama.
The chart is only from the last month? And the only occupation to increase is security officers? Is that telling us something?
Is the image photoshop’d? I’ve never seen a cyclist on the correct side of the road before!
European cyclists tend to be on the correct side of the road; others not so much.
Similar issues are apparent regarding driving generally: only people with European/US/Canadian licences appear to understand land discipline, and how to use turn signals!
Nick isn’t saying that those are the ones who got through it being “new Caymanians”.
This would make me happy if it was actually true. Any of us who live here know that this is the biggest crock of crap ever. All you need to do is look in the Women In Cayman Facebook group and you see literally how many people flock here on a daily basis. Just today there’s a woman posting about how her brother-in-law has been here for a year, but is low on work – asking if anybody needs a chef. If he doesn’t have enough work, then he needs to go back home. Unfortunately, this is what happens they come here and then they solicited illegal business while under a work permit.
Not to mention the companies that charge a fee ($1,500 I hear is the going rate) to people to “take out a permit for them”. Then the employee gets here and get laid off and has to find work. And there is not as much labour work to be found as you might think.
Sick of the lies. I am inclined to agree with you. There seems to be more traffic every month so are the vehicles being driven by ghosts? Immigration/WORC should cross- check all the details and let us know why. Perhaps some are now Caymanians. I doubt that there has been such a drastic change. Perhaps they have been instructed by corrupt politicians to fudge the numbers to fool us. If anyone can get to the bottom of this crap is Nick Joseph. Until he brings us the real reason I will not believe a word of it.
One thing that I will say,is that with this sort of outside influence, we can look forward to a rational change in our society!! I am sorry, but the words of Alexander the Great, “even the soil there is hostile”! Go figure what is ahead!! I could not imagine in Cayman, how the culture clash, could see such a fetish for guns!! My new CoP, please kick down some doors, and get rid of these illegal guns and bring justice to these people that think this is the way to go!!
there’s an underlying message here, everything has dropped except security, –
2+2 = 3
Here is a thought –
If we really want to unclog the existing infrastructure, control development that is destroying the environment, to ensure that development benefits the people of the Cayman Islands, and remove the pressure in the rental market, and then ban all foreign construction workers and only allow Caymanians to work in construction. That would accomplish all of the above almost immediately, and I suspect that it would also reduce the number of semi-derelict vehicles being driven at 80 mph in 30mph zones by folks wearing high vis yellow or orange shirts.
Only trouble is, the new buildings will just fall down then 🙂
It’s the new builds that are falling down. When Caymanians built there was quality work done nut they won’t work for $6.00 an hour.
This has to be sarcasm. Don’t you think if they could find quality Caymanians that they would have done that to save on permit fees?
There’s a reason for hiring Jamaicans.
Not sarcasm at all. Virtually none of current development is not being done for Caymanians. Virtually all the current construction labour is supplied by labour brokers who import cheap foreign labour and poverty. We should develop according to the needs of Caymanians and existing residents and with local labour. That would solve many of the problems we currently face.
The only reason is that they will work for poverty wages and under conditions tantamount to slavery.
Sick of the lies. I am inclined to agree with you. There seems to be more traffic every month so are the vehicles being driven by ghosts? Immigration/WORC should cross- check all the details and let us know why. Perhaps some are now Caymanians. I doubt that there has been such a drastic change. Perhaps they have been instructed by corrupt politicians to fudge the numbers to fool us. If anyone can get to the bottom of this crap is Nick Joseph. Until he brings us the real reason I will not believe a word of it.
There is no reason that Jamaicans are needed for anything.
Philipinos are far better than Jamaicans in all trades, and they bring with them a good work ethic and manners .
No guns, no drugs, no bar knife and machete fights, no robberies and no baby daddies.
9.32am The reason is they work for $6.00 an hour, work 7 days a week, hide the bad work until place is sold and sometimes don’t get paid at all but won’t complain to WORC.
If will surely stop the hemorrhaging of our economy and capital flight also but alas there are forces now here married into our economic prosperity that would rather see us destroyed first before their loyal to their homeland is even brought into question. Pillaging and fleecing of our island continues unabated .
For all celebrating this news and cheering for more, you should consider that if the loss of permits is related to financial services jobs, that it is definitely not a positive change.
Lose the financial services to Hong Kong or Singapore and the economy is doomed.
Judging by that list it isn’t though. It’s the low-wage jobs that are dropping down. Heaven forbid we might have to clean our own houses! shock! horror!
Right?? Quite frankly, I prefer cleaning my own house instead of having workers here who just beg me for my stuff to send back home.
the low wage jobs are going because the financial sector workers can’t afford helpers.
Major shift in offshore industry happening right now, with Cayman losing a lot of funds domiciled here.
Confirmation bias blinds too many of truths like this one.
Lies pure lies Reduce by 1000 what a friggin joke should be 35’000 to reduce the strain on our infrastructure.
If work permit numbers dropped by 1,00O it is because 1,000 expats got Caymanian Status, that doesn’t include their children who can move to our overcrowded schools.
No. Because the relevant Board is not sitting.
I was thinking the same thing 2:37. Those are the ones who are just adding an extra strain on government because you can bet they’re the ones who are going to be hitting up NAU for assistance.
These numbers do not include the temporary permit scam where you can keep taking out temps for the best part of a year then get time until your 1 year is granted or not
We need to stop people or companies taking out permit and not having work for them this is the biggest problem
Praise Jesus!!! Let’s keep dropping those numbers!!
If only it was dropped by hundreds of thousands
True caymathian!
“Two plus two is four
Minus one, that’s ‘free’, quick maffs”
Maths not your strong point.
A turtle wrote this
One reason that Nick doesn’t suggest is the soaring cost of rent. A local restaurant owner told me he was having a terrible time not only hiring trained wait staff from overseas, but keeping them here once they came because of the rent situation. Since wages aren’t keeping up with inflation, it is simply becoming too expensive for those expats not making top dollar to live here. I have no idea how the developers of the four new hotels being built intend to find affordable staff housing, but this situation isn’t going to get any better in the near term.
The problem is hiring a large amount of expats stagnates wages. If you own a business and can hire someone cheaply who isn’t from here rather than paying someone local a fair salary, you will do that. Reduce the number of those on work permits and many industries will become more competitive and as a result wages will likely be higher. Sadly the rent issue is linked with the cost of insurance going up and I’m not sure how that can be reduced.
It won’t stagnate wages when new expats getting job offers do a bit of homework and realize the relative cost of living doesn’t make it worth living in Cayman on current wages.
4:56 You didn’t address my point?
11:02 am That restaurant owner and others like him need to look within these islands and change the overseas hiring mentality. People like him should work with WORC, Labour and local schools to identify and train Caymanians (oh and there are many foreigners with that title now, so lots to choose from!) for service positions in his business.The government of the Cayman Islands need to stop the ignorance of allowing more and more low wage people to be imported here. We are importing poverty and with it comes the troubles that these islands are currently experiencing.
If you think there are enough Caymanians (generational or otherwise) to fill the thousands of hospitality jobs required on this island (and this doesn’t include the thousands of other lower wage earning jobs) you are in La La Land. One hotel here alone has a workforce of over 500 people. Add to that the other hotels, and the hundreds of restaurants. The staff required for all of these ventures is enormous. Working as a waiter isn’t easy work and many Caymanians see it as servitude and don’t want to do. Some do, of course, and thrive, but most Caymanians aspire to better jobs that afford better family lives. I don’t blame them. I couldn’t work in a restaurant myself. But to think this issue can be resolved by hiring Caymanians is nuts.
So true. Immigrants provide valuable labor in literally every modern country with a viable economy.
For example, Americans aren’t working the farms picking produce and veggies for the world, and they won’t.
Nick did address the cost of living(which includes rent), coupled with sometimes artificially low salaries, is making it uneconomic for many workers to remain here. He also pointed out that expatriates are not the only ones leaving in the face of these pressures. Caymanians are leaving too.
11.02 In addition to housing most staff can’t even find parking as our Planning laws are outdated. look at Ritz Carlton built with no staff parking so of course in addition to our Govt being owed millions we also had to close the road next to them to provide parking.
Can WORC confirm that those former WP holders have actually left Cayman?
If work permit numbers dropped by 1,00O it is because 1,000 expats got Caymanian Status, that doesn’t include their children who can move to our overcrowded schools.
They didn’t leave, they are new Caymanians.
You don’t skip straight from work permit to status. If they got PR that would reduce the WP numbers, but not make them Caymanian. Status applications are in limbo at the moment.
No they not. There has not been a board to grant Status since October and PR grants haven’t gone up by 1000 since September.
Well that can’t be right because yesterday’s article told us no new PRs or status had been issued.
You believe that? Dang you are daft
it could also be people who have permits deferred or waiting for approval and still working after their permit expired. I know at least 10 people myself in that boat
One thing I’m curious about is why the large supermarkets (Fosters, Kirk, Cost u Less) don’t hire high school students for the evenings and weekends? Apparently their waiting list to be “baggers” is huge so why aren’t they working as Cashiers? That should reduce the number of work permits required for those roles and also give the high school student gainful employment and experience.
I worked as a cashier for all 3 years in high school. Great experience to work with the public. And earn money to help for university.
this exactly. I worked in the bakery and had other friends from school that worked in grocery, produce, cashier, deli and also with me in bakery.
same for all the fast food joints.
Exactly! I don’t know if it has to do with maybe a cashier being full time so that’s why the children can’t do it. But I agree with you, I also think that they should be encouraging the young people to work in the fast food places, like really, why do we need to import labour for something that could be done by young people. CAYMANIANS: we need to stop looking down on those with entry level professions and encourage our children and grandchildren to apply to these jobs. We must break this stigma. No honest work is degrading work! Thank you.
SO MUCH can be learned from these entry jobs. Teaching a good and hard working work ethic is instrumental in success for the future. Plus, we could all use a lesson in humility and how to treat people with respect and kindness.
Yes, my dear, I remember many years ago when I first worked at the gas station on Hell Road that opened in West Bay. That job taught me many things beyond working skills. It also taught me life skills. I learned the importance of punctuality, honesty and integrity. I am so proud of my grandson who works at Rubis gas station on the days he does not have college. Every morning he wakes up at 6 AM sharp and presses his uniform!
I think a lot of the cashiers have to work split shifts. Come for 4 hours in the morning. Go home and then come back for 4 hours in the evening. Which is a whole other reason why the students could be hired for those 4 hours in the evening.
Cinema
Fast Food restaurants
Gas stations
J Michael
So many jobs out there that would be great for teaching some work ethic to students.
Shhh you’re making to much sense. There is no concerted effort to change to status quo.
Makes you wonder if the ruling merchant families aren’t subject to the rules like everyone else.
Kudos to Hurleys that makes a real effort to hire local. Good on you Randy.
Not only that, in these times an apparently untapped labour pool for fast food/bagger jobs is the elderly — many of which are struggling profoundly trying to just survive on the dribs and drabs afforded them.
I know that would literally go door-to-door for a job to feed my family, regardless of my education or training.
When I was a boy, ALL hospitality and water sports personnel were Caymanians. Nearly all fast food/waiter/bartender/store clerk/bagger jobs were Caymanian.
Why has it changed? I think it changed when we allowed Caymanian business owners to pay minimum wage at a time when the cost of living was rising. We created a situation where only expats with a favourable exchange rate in their own country on the Caymanian dollar could afford to live and work for so little.
The idea that expats can somehow unfairly compete with Caymanians because the cost of living in their home country is lower has always baffled me. Those same expats don’t magically teleport into Cayman every day to work – they have to buy their food here, rent accommodation, pay for utilities- all at the same prices as us. Think you are missing the bigger picture -you. Couldn’t even begin to staff all the hospitality and water sports businesses with Caymanian labour respect of the pay rate. 36K WP holders versus how many adult Caymanians, let alone unemployed adult Caymanians. Focus should be on Caymanians aspiring to higher paid jobs— which is where we run into a different problem given the output from our schools.
Sensible idea.
also why not re-stock the shelves during “off hours” it’s bad enough with all the people shopping and then blocking aisles as they visit with each other despite just seeing each other the previous night. If they would re-stock whilst the store is closed, they could employ more Caymanians who might want additional work to supplement their income, less supply carts blocking paying customers might also make it more efficient to get in and out as well.
Yes, why not high school students restocking from 6 to 9 pm. So much quieter then.
Stop making sense!
The tactic is to restock shelves precisely at 11:41 am so you are driven to the Nyam- hot food line and salad bar. En-route, you can get some $34.99 per pound beef skewers for Din- Din.
Ever since the pandemic changed working habits and aspirations, people, kids included, don’t want to work minimum wage jobs, even if the alternative is staying at home or hanging around the streets.
I don’t agree with this. There are lots of students working as baggers. Apparently a waiting list to do that.
Thank you for the data.
I am surprised to see that Domestic Helpers is almost double the next closest number.
Where are the roles like auditors and lawyers?
It would be fascinating to see the numbers of attorneys and accountancy staff on work permits.
Can CNS request this from WORC?
CNS: You can make an FOI request for the full list of work permits by occupation. This can be done anonymously by email.
The true results will shock you. Caymanian attorneys, and support staff, will shock you, specifically how oppressed, marginalized and discarded we are.
Caymanians, especially multi-generational Caymanians, are looked at, and treated, as second class citizens in the Cayman Islands, especially in the legal profession.
The accounts’ profession is far more inclusive than that of the legal profession. These are facts.
Time longer than rope. God bless all people.
Caymanian here, I don’t see this, I see people being treated like employees regardless of where they are from. Too many Caymanians feel they should be treated better than everyone else because they are Caymanian, it’s not the business fault if you get treated like any other mediocre employee.
Many Caymanians are successful due to an excellent work ethic and education. These are the people we should admire and hope that our children see that it is possible.
Yeah…you are not Caymanian.
Remember, lots of new people around now that have a piece of paper claiming they are “Caymanian”, and therefore they think they have the same experiences as actual Caymanians.
You’re 100% correct though; OP is not a Caymanian.
8.56am We want to be treated the same not better. I have worked with many dumb mediocre foreign staff in my day and they always had managerial positions due to birth country. The Caymanian below them was expected to pick up their slack and cover their errors.
What I would love to see if the number of real estate agents here on work permit. Oh right…most of these businesses are hiring illegally, saying they are “independent agents” but bringing them here. How can you be independent but require a work permit! Fishy business.
don’t forget the large number of contracted government workers
It’s too expensive to live here. That’s my explanation as to why immigration has slowed. You can work in the USA, UK or Canada and bank more at the end working at big box stores than here making $80,000 kyd a year. Sad really.
I disgree with that because we have no income taxes. Our taxes are consumption based so if you can live inexpensively here it’s actually a lot better than in USA or Canada. Plus its very nice here as well for the most part.
Tell me you household earns more than 150K a year without telling me it earns more than 150K a year.
That used to be the case but alas, no more.
You nah living in Cayman? Do you get a CUC or Flow bill?
I left Cayman for UK a year ago sick of living on the breadline despite having a good job and increasing crime in the district (BT). Hate it here but actually finding it easier on the purse strings for now.
I think your understanding of economics and the economy as a whole is a bit skewed…
any caymanian celebrating this….is whistling past the graveyard….
Caymanians should celebrate.
230 Jamaicans leaving the Island means at least 50 less baby mamas and knock on dependents of NAU and ultimately Northward.
Thanks Nick! Shining light in dark places…
not a surprise really…many expats fed up with cayman
lack of basic rights…no representation
poorly educated, backward elected officials
housing crisis pmaking cayman unaffordable to rent or buy property.
a wall of ignorance and aloofness everytime you have to deal with cig/civil service
climate change making summer months unbearable for all
traffic crisis
no public transport
highest cost of living the world with no attempt to tackle it
mounttrashmore….etc.
What basic human rights are lacking? Hmm? Cayman is one of the fairest and safest places in the world. If you want to experience what it’s really like without basic human rights I’d suggest you visit Iran, Syria, or other places in Africa and the Middle East.
Also lack of representation? How arrogant does one have to be to go to a place and expect people to change for you? Mindsets like this are the reason there is a lot of bad blood between expats and Caymanians. You go to a new place you are expected to embrace the culture of your new home and respect the customs. Don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
I agree with much of what you have stated, but let’s be realistic.
Are you calling poor customer service and lack of work ethic Caymanian custom?????
How not to endear yourself to the locals. Giving all Caymanians the blanket term of lazy. You must be lovely to have at cookouts.. not
this guy has it right. I came 15 years ago knowing full well that I wouldn’t be represented in parliament cause that’s not how it works. way easier for me to adapt to here than have here adapt to me.
I rarely have to deal with cig or the civil service, but when I do, as with any other government my expectations are low, but here I am often pleasantly surprised. plus that little bit of commonplace corruption helps cause you can often grease the wheels to help move things along.
clearly you haven’t been here that long…
This is wonderful news!
it’s not, if the reasons why are not understood.
they just waiting for WORC to process all those work permits submitted and seeking PR approval