Growth in WPs undermining economic growth
(CNS): Recent revelations from the 2023 Fall Labour Force Survey about the size of the workforce and the increase in local unemployment to over 5% from just over 3% last year while work permit numbers remain high raise questions about the health and sustainability of Cayman’s economy. Last year, the economy grew by about 4% and the inflation rate also averaged around 4%. But the population has grown by nearly 5% and the number of work permit holders by 11%, suggesting that productivity is falling.
Opposition Leader Roy McTaggart believes the labour market is growing much faster than the overall economy, so the work is being done by more people, many of them imported workers. This means the standard of living is falling because it is taking more people to generate less wealth, which is being spread among a greater number of people.
“The numbers are showing that something is going on,” McTaggart said when he appeared on Radio Cayman’s For the Record last week. “I don’t know what it is, but something is happening because these things are diverging and we are getting a far larger increase in the working population than the economic growth should warrant.”
According to the most recent Labour Force Survey published last week, the estimated population in Cayman at the end of last year was as much as 85,000; the workforce stands at over 60,500 people, and as of March, there were almost 37,000 expatriate workers in Cayman on permits.
Deputy Opposition Leader Joey Hew said he was concerned about the lack of information the government has about Caymanians in the workforce and the enforcement of work permit laws. He said the failure of the minimum wage to keep pace with inflation is fuelling the number of permits, and better gatekeeping is required.
He added that “we don’t want to shut the gates, but we have to do a better job of ensuring that those who are coming in to work in our country” are receiving the salary and doing the work they were told they would be.
The rising local unemployment rate is happening even as more jobs are being created. With over 1,400 Caymanians now available and looking for work but unemployed, the government faces the problem of a record number of permit holders, many of whom are employed in low-salary positions.
Labour Minister Dwayne Seymour has not commented on the labour report, which was released more than five days ago, nor has he commented on his plans in relation to the minimum wage report, which was handed over to Cabinet in October last year. That report by the Minimum Wage Advisory Committee, which was not made public until March, recommended a 46% increase in the mandated minimum wage from $6 per hour to CI$8.75.
Seymour has not said when or if he will be implementing the increase. Openly conflicted on the issue as an employer of minimum wage employees at his own airport baggage handling company, the labour minister has previously said he does not believe that increasing the minimum wage would help Caymanians because only a handful of local people are working at that level. He said that raising the basic national wage would be “financially crippling” for Caymanians, especially those who employ domestic help.
While relationships in Cabinet are said to be less contentious since Wayne Panton was ousted as premier last October, it is understood that disagreements on policy issues remain. The UPM appears unable to reach any kind of consensus on a range of pressing issues, such as the minimum wage, housing and transport policies.
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Anyone counting the many new unemployables leaving government schools every year. The island needs more WP holders on island to help pay for them. And more every year. How will that end?
“Economic Refugees” now constitute 85.9% of the Cayman slave/Starvation Wage workforce!
At this rate they may as well invite the poor Haitians!
At least the stores now have Vienna Sausages and Saltines on sale.
Caymanians are sold out for Minimum Wage abuse by businesses. The Chamber supports it too.
So why won’t the Minimum Wage Committee have a PUBLIC Meeting before they finish and seal Cayman’s Labor Demise for good..any Day Now!!?!
As quiet as Caymanians are about mass shootings on social same way quiet on emigration plans. Most have plans of retiring overseas, always do, but now they’ll just push that forward.
Minimum wage is what you all worried about? Yes it affect the way of life and the economy. However when records prove USD300M is wired off each year by expats it makes you pause. This money is not circulated back in the local economy robbing the island of its gdp. Secondly, just this week 2 police chases both with guns in each case. We are losing sight of the real challenges on the island and very soon this country will be no different than our neighboring islands.
Remember cayman is a great place to live and play. However, if we continue on the same trajectory, things are going to change and no matter what we implement, we will make this place a very unsafe place to reside. Mass shooting, illegal firearms, murders, burglaries, rapes and illegal aliens. Whilst these crimes are lower when compared to other islands but soon enough they will increase and when either of these crimes touch you or your family, you will understand how one sided our laws differs from person to person.
There are people packing in and relocating elsewhere both expats and caymanians on the basis, they see it coming and is a matter of time before the island implode.
Best wishes to Cayman Islands
You’re right, many Caymanians esp the ones with papers (US or Canadian) are looking North. strong job market, upward instead of downward pressure on wages will do the trick.
this half baked idea of growing the population to 100k is destroying this Island. I leave work at 6pm to avoid traffic in town and it worked for the past 5 years, now I’m encountering it especially around fosters. our infrastructure is buckling and our govt have no real way to fix it because they need the WP fees to fund NAU and other voting buying projects.
What an absurd headline. Literally nobody has claimed the growth in work permits is undermining economic growth.
Roy was obviously questioning the statistics, not the economic contribution of work permit holders.
I mean, think about it for a moment. You’re implying that not granting the work permits would have been better for economic growth? How is that possible?
What about the quality of life and wages? True the economy may grow but as you are seeing , the real estate prices have stalled because wages have stalled and basically, the buying power of the accountants is at $500,000.00 (where the PR buy-in was set in years ago) not the $900,000.00 of today’s costs and so the costs have gone up but the wages aren’t keeping up and add on the increased interest rates and you have pure misery. So even if you are in construction or business, the pie is shrinking unless your selling a cheaper product. GDP growth yes but spread amongst more people….and let’s not touch on the environment or the impact on the infrastructure.
The numbers don’t make sense because there are hundreds of permits for low income workers that are not actually working.
This is being abused in the landscaping, construction and domestic services industries here.
Construction work ends and the workers are left here on island without jobs strainging resources until another job starts which can take weeks.
Enforcement is too busy baby sitting Cubans to run operations or follow reports on people breaking the law.
NAU is paying for unemployed Caymanians, who is paying these construction workers left without work that have rent to pay?
Cocain demand is also driven by the expact work force, a known fact in Cayman. Maybe RCIP should look to immigration to solve THIS problem.
This is just another way of saying we now have even more unemployables from our failed education system flooding the market and we need more working expats to help pay for them all. Where do you think all the money for Caymans huge welfare system comes from? CIG makes no money.
Fascinating article gents and I have read all comments and behooved wiped flushed and now express upon this hour that the Eagle’s calling and he’s calling your name Tides are turning, bringing winds of change Why do I feel this way? The promise of a new day!
As through time the earth moves under my feet One step closer to make behooving complete What has the final say? promise of a new day And so time over time What will change the world? No one knows So the only promise is a day to live, to give And share with one another See the wisdom of Dwayne the Rock Seymour and mistakes in our past Hear the younger generation ask “Why do I behoove this way?” The promise of a new day.
I think it’s women that write these articles not gents!
Please put down the bong, rest for a bit, maybe take on some water, compose your thoughts and try again. I understand you are trying to be funny. It doesn’t behoove you to continue using this verb ad nauseam. It was funny at one time. WAS funny.
It behooves me to suggest that you need to learn how to express yourself better.
What a load of garbage.
Complete gruel…
…a perfect example of output from the failed CIG school system……and the negative impact of drugs….
Not too long ago, when PPM was in power, Sir Alden was in favour of growing the population to over 100,000.
Why is is the Roy and Joey are now raising concerns, because that is what the PPM wanted when they were in power.
Growing a larger population means that CIG is getting more money in the public purse, which suited the PPM when they were in power, because that equated to more money for Cabinet Ministers to play with.
Roy, you seem to be taking a hypocritical stance, as usual.
9:51—You are very wrong. Neither the PPM nor Sir Alden said they ‘wanted’ a population of 100K.
What Sir Alden did do was agree with a report that indicated the population would reach 100K by a specific date. I do not recall the predicted date, but it was a CUC report presented at some local economic conference. Ever since then, a 100K population has been stated as Alden’s or the PPM’s goal. Totally wrong.
If you find something with Alden saying his goal is for a 100K population, then let’s post it. If not, then you are only contributing to a false urban myth by repeating itit.
The CUC report, though, seems to have been correct, given the large rise in our population since this government took control.
Has anyone considered that CIG and the civil service are the ones growing too fast and productivity falling off a cliff and so the private sector has to hire more people just to survive in spite of an inept government?
Ask anyone in construction how many they’re hiring to make up time lost to the absolute incompetence that is Planning/BCU.
Ask people in medical how far in advance they’re having to hire people if you want to get them to have CPAM registration (hint CPAM is taking OVER six months) so people have to hire long before the work exists. And companies have to hire more than they normally would to pick up the slack for the ever increasing number of lazy asses who don’t pull their weight.
The headline shouldn’t read the WP holders are undermining growth…it should read “WP holders underpinning growth despite cig incompetence”
How about raising the WP fees. Im sure business wouldnt mind paying more IF the process was clear and straight forward but that is asking alot
How about putting a cap on the number available and a cap on the number of times they can be renewed.
Without the WP folks Cayman would grind to a halt. WP is baked in and Caymanians entering the workforce are in most cases not up to the work ethic and skill sets needed. Blame your educational non-system.
Once the total amount of revenue from WP fees is made public and where those funds go/ used we will all under stand that this rhetoric is useless. – If you want to see the poor remain poor, generation after generation, keep the standards in their schools low and make excuses for their academic short comings and misbehavior.
A lot of it is down to the parents. There are a lot that don’t value a good education, so they don’t encourage or push their kids to learn to read and learn their times tables. They can’t see that it is the ladder that will help their children climb to a better life. Meanwhile, there are many Caymanians who do value a good education and they are sending their kids to one of the private schools and making huge sacrifices to do so. Or if they cannot afford the school fees they are making sure they are working with their kids at home. It really all comes down to the parents. Same problem worldwide.
I fully agree, and will add that the “work force” goal of too many Caymanians is to simply get hired by the CIG to stand next to 12 others doing nothing.
….”parent”, singular, not plural, I’m afraid. That is the problem…..
I’ve mentioned wage stagnation (as a result of increased immigration) in the past but every time I do I’m called a liar or xenophobic. This is pretty damming evidence that it’s real. Only a few big fish in government and monopolistic companies ultimately benefit from importing large amounts of cheap labor. If big construction companies can afford to hire a Jamaican or Filipino on the cheap they will do so to boost their profits. If you limit foreign labour businesses will be forced to increase wages to incentivize locals to apply. Increasing the minimum wage on its own does not work. The cost is just passed on to the customer.
That’s not exactly how it works especially when the local population is already fully employed. I run a small construction company and yes most of my labor are permit holders (not all) from Jamaica. If I have to start paying say 30% more for that labor, when I go searching for new hires and have to spend in the $15-$20 range I will expand my search far beyond Jamaica. For 30% higher rates I can get significantly qualified people from North America or Europe. That means the Caymanian carpenters looking for work are going to have to have an increased qualification to justify those wages.
To be clear: zero skilled Caymanian tradespeople are unemployed. If they’re good then they’re snatched up…fast. Which means the unemployed are at the bottom of the skill spectrum (at least in construction). So wage increases will only broaden the cast net for labor and will only make it harder for Caymanians to compete.
The plain solution is education. Either trades or books; it doesn’t matter. Just get everyone educated and this problem will dissolve on its own. Literally.
Construction booms have a way of going bust and that usually has little do with the wages or availability of workers and more to do with the ultimate consumption which is the real issue.
Why is Joey Hew concerned about the lack of information the government has about Caymanians in the workforce? Im sure his companies can provide how many Caymanians are employed which according to what i see is quite exiguous
Work permits are high because locals wont work in hotels, hospitality, fast food, gas stations. Supermarkets, bars, stores, even regular jobs they fail to show up to regularly. Truth hurts I know but its true
You’re right, but for the wrong reasons. Locals won’t work in those jobs because $6.00/hour or even $8.00 per hour is not a living wage. If they can live better via the NAU, what, besides personal ethics, would ever cause a person to work in those jobs?
I agree about NAU, but those in hospitality that are making tips do pretty darn good even with a low salary base.
Why doesn’t WORC go after all the buy a work permit people who are running around. The illegal obtaining work permits when the prospective employer does not have any true work for the person they are getting the work permit for needs to be stopped. Guess that will never happen because where would the construction sites get all their labor from? Labor minister, please reply!
While morally i fully agree that minimum wage should be increased. In reality it will never, and it simply cannot ever, be increased. Two main reasons:
1. We import foreign workers.
2. Foreign workers have ~0 rights here.
Quick break down:
1. Yes – $4 is peanuts. But, look at the followings:
Philippines minimum wage – US $6 – 11 a DAY
Jamaica minimum wage – US$19 a DAY
*Just google xxx minimum wage*
Cayman wage for 8 hours of work:
$4 x 8 hours = CI$32 (or $38.42 USD).
6X higher than the Philippines and 2x Jamaica.
There will always be immigrant workers looking to move here for these wages. While $4 is nothing for people trying to create a life here, it is life changing amounts of money for foreign workers. I personally know immigrants who have built houses in their home country and sent kids to private schools on security guard salary.
2. The only people who have rights here to cause change are Caymanians. Caymanians must own businesses (majority split for T&B). Caymanians wont cause change because it doesn’t impact them.
End of story.
Foreign workers are not slaves. Cayman can’t exist without them
Ever heard of the Purchasing power? Probably not if you’re comparing min wage in Cayman to that of Philippines and Jamaica.
The rest of your comment is pure nonsense.
Explain why workers move here then. There is a reason thousands of philipeano workers move half way around the world. If there was ever issues with attracting workers i’m sure it would be increased, but there isnt. There is still a demand outstripping supply, which is why the wage will remain so low.
I dont agree with the minimum wage and i agree it should be higher. I was simply explaining why, from a contrarian POV and in reality, it wont.
https://www.caymancompass.com/2023/10/04/expat-workers-send-us300m-in-money-transfers-home-each-year/
Workers from developing countries flock here to earn minimum wage. No one is forcing them to (if they are, they should go to prison!). They come here because they’re better off, all things considered.
Increase the minimum wage and what isn’t taken by local landlords via increased rents will be sent overseas (and thus not improve their standard of living, which was meant to be the goal).
You are out to lunch. People whether they are citizens or not need to be paid a reasonable living wages. Otherwise you will have social problems.
Your last sentence is silly as it is the wealthy Caymanian business owners that won’t cause change because it would impact them. Wages are too low and permits are too cheap and easy to get.
All permits should be a minimum of $3k/year. If your business can’t pay $250/mth for an imported worker it is time to re-think how you operate or close the business.
Our minister of Labour enjoys the benefits of our minimum wage in one of his side businesses… nothing is going to change.
“Philippines minimum wage – US $6 – 11 a DAY
Jamaica minimum wage – US$19 a DAY”
Purchasing Power Parity Salary Converter
Convert your salary from one currency to another using PPP
https://pppcalculator.pro/
The race to the bottom has well and truly begun, perpetuated by the arrival of those 20 to 30 years ago from Canada and the USA that have done nothing but exploit cheap labour on mass in their restaurants, their construction companies, their architectural firms and so on.
People blame Caymanians when what they actually mean is the new ones from places like the USA, South Africa, Canada etc that don’t believe in a good and just society but only use these Islands to generate as much wealth, as quickly as possible so they can build their safe space back in their real homeland whilst reminding everyone how Caymanian they are and how they survived Ivan.
Say what you want about Jamaicans and Filipinos, different set of problems entirely but ask yourself who is importing cheap labour on a scale that can actually impact the figures and it is white, recent Caymanians that employ their own in the high end spots, and import 1000s of cheap workers knowing there are millions more where they came from.
Remember when Caymanians used to actually pay a decent wage and any Caymanian could survive and buy a house without issue (or at least it seemed that way)? Yep, that basically stalled and started going downhill about, go figure, a generation ago.
We let the fox into the hen house and blamed Jamaicans. Typical.
The question remains: Do Caymanians want to work?
Actually work? Long hours and all that jazz? Or they only want to have jobs and hire consultants to do the work they were hired to do?
Please answer honestly.
Name one Caymanian person in fields other than Law, Finance and Accounting who is an expert his trade or profession.
We have number of generational Caymanian doctors who excel in their profession and generally work 70+ hours a week. Hope you don’t have a medical emergency that takes you to HSA.
Imagine pretending that expats are working long hours. That may work when you’re blagging your PR points son but it doesn’t sit with the rest of us.
Although I imagine it sounds amazing when you’re heating up your cocktail sausages (sorry, your Filipino nanny) in vista del mar whilst you all pat each other on the back about how well and hard you work.
Whilst being failed lawyers from the rest of the world. I can guess the order, Australian, Canadian, South African, French, and then British.
Yep. Always the foreigners. Remind me, what nationality are the politicians that we elect that set the rules on immigration and trade and business licenses? Sure isn’t white recent Caymanians that are bowing and scraping to the developers and the business interests now is it.
But the local politicians literally put PR/Status etc for sale to those people.
We are importing poverty, but that is because it serves MLAs’ cynical interests to do so. Genuine local unemployment is however, in effect, a myth. There seem to be four substantive problems:
1. MINIMUM WAGE
The minimum wage is criminally low. This is entirely in the hands of Caymanian politicians. Increase the minimum wage to the USD 20 / KYD 16.60 which California recently introduced for fast food workers (https://www.cbsnews.com/news/california-fast-food-20-minimum-wage-law-prices), and stop importing poverty (and crime). Obviously, there would be fewer kick-backs from developers for MLAs feasting at the trough though, so that won’t happen… (see Wendy’s superb editorial: https://caymannewsservice.com/2023/09/donkeys-developers-and-deaf-ears).
2. WELFARE / WOTE-BUYING
NAU provides up to KYD 4,450/month, or USD 5,340. That’s USD 64,080 per year. Assuming 5 weeks holiday a year, plus public holidays, that leaves about 46 weeks a year. if each of those is a 40 hour week, the “hourly wage” for NAU recipients is just under USD 35/hour. Why bother working? (https://caymannewsservice.com/2024/03/nau-offers-more-resources-under-new-policies). MLAs are deliberately buying votes using public money: at its heart, that’s what a welfare state does (at great cost to the productivity and moral character of its recipients).
3. INCLINATION
There are 15,439 Jamaican work permit holders, (42% of the total), and 6,219 Filipinos. Almost all are doing service sector and/or outdoor jobs which Caymanians decline to do. (https://caymannewsservice.com/2024/03/number-of-work-permit-holders-reaches-new-record). This is however largely an entirely reasonable attitude, given the appalling minimum wage, and the availability of NAU handouts noted above.
4. EDUCATION
Caymanians simply aren’t qualified for many jobs:
https://caymannewsservice.com/2024/04/education-data-report-reflects-poor-school-results/
https://caymannewsservice.com/2023/05/report-shows-school-leaver-results-drop-from-peak/
https://caymannewsservice.com/2022/04/almost-60-of-year-11-students-miss-2021-exam-targets.
https://caymannewsservice.com/2019/09/school-standards-gap/
https://caymannewsservice.com/2018/12/2018-year-11-exam-results/
https://caymannewsservice.com/2017/05/education-results-fall-in-2016-data-report/
https://www.caymancompass.com/2016/01/21/barlow-education-versus-protection
https://barlowscayman.blogspot.com/2015/05/caymans-entitlement-culture.html
Have I missed anything?
Stop generalizing! The qualified Caymanians that work hard, suffer because of the status quo.
I think they are actually being rather specific. How many people who ask me for money in the Foster’s car park could be asking Foster’s for a job?
Is #2 true?
Yep. Check the website or the last CNS article on a press read from the ministry basting abut the improved cover.
But aren’t those numbers based on the family members? If so, it is false that an individual is receiving that much aid.
You forgot #Leggewasright
https://www.forbes.com/sites/johntamny/2015/06/24/the-global-implications-of-corruption-in-the-caymans/?sh=f0450cce5f80
waffle from everybody.
this is what happens when you have no plan and ppm did nothing when they were in power and and now offering no solutions.
welcome to wonderland.
ppm haven’t been in power for four years, this is all dwayne
“The numbers are showing that something is going on,”…..????
do-nothing-ppm are the future!!!!!………zzzzzzzzzzzz
welcome to wonderland.
The PPM did this. They should hang their heads in shame.