Canadian secures job as supra-ombudsman
(CNS): Sandy Hermiston, the General Counsel for the Ombudsman and Public Interest Commissioner in Alberta, Canada, will be the Cayman Islands’ first-ever supra-ombudsman created under the Ombudsman Law, 2017. The Canadian lawyer beat out four other people who were shortlisted for the job, one of which, officials have confirmed, was a Caymanian.
Hermiston will start in three weeks when the information and complaints commissioners’ offices will formally merge with a new independent police complaints unit under this new body, which will also soon include the data protection agency. She brings 27 years of public service to the role, officials said in a release announcing the appointment.
The merger of these government watchdogs has not been without its controversies and Hermiston will be taking up a job overseeing areas of diverse responsibility. On the one hand, she will be dealing with complaints about the civil service and the police, while on the other she will be managing public access to government information and the protection of the personal data it holds. She will also oversee the new whistleblower legislation, Government Information Services stated.
Hermiston’s duties will involve monitoring the public sector by investigating and arbitrating complaints made by the public against public bodies. The ombudsman’s remit, under the provisions of the law, will cover all government ministries, portfolios, departments and sections, statutory authorities and government companies. She will also act as the independent oversight body for the police by receiving and investigating complaints made by the public, pursuant to the Police (Complaints by the Public) Law, 2017.
Her appointment was made following a selection panel that convened last month which included Governor Helen Kilpatrick, Sophia Harris of Solomon Harris and Michael King, the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman for England. In total, 31 applications were received for the post and five people were shortlisted for interview. One of those shortlisted included a Caymanian but officials have offered no explanation about why that individual fell short of making the grade for the country’s first-ever supra-watchdog boss.
“We are very pleased to have attracted a public servant with Ms Hermiston’s proven leadership skills,” said Kilpatrick. “She has a wide variety of experience of government oversight, including fairness, whistleblowing, freedom of information and complaints against professionals.”
Hermiston’s legal career includes work as the general counsel for the Appeals Commission for Alberta Workers’ Compensation and the corporate counsel of the Workers’ Compensation Board of the Northwest Territories.
“I look forward to working on behalf of the people of the Cayman Islands to help make a positive difference in their lives,” she said in the release. “I embrace the opportunity to lead this office through a period of change and expansion of its remit. These are exciting times.”
Category: Courts, Government oversight
3 years working for the ombudsman and now going to run things. Having lived here for a good number of years I can safely say that alot of these higher jobs are reserved for Canadians either in banks or the public service. Not sure why they aren’t that special. They probably network well
Local grandees will just ignore and deny her findings. Always has been the way when a furrener dares to question the way things are.
8:03. You are referring to 10 years ago. Not today. Give one example of sensible recommendation being ignored.
She needs to come in and clean house in the ICO.
Yea! Canada! Let take this island over with DART! Bye Bye Caymankind!
I read in one of the posts that, according to the Marl Road, the “Caymanian” who applied was a status holder who has resided here for a number of years,
Now, I have nothing against status holders. May they be endowed with all their due rights.
However, it is a little bit misleading for us to be rushing in with our arguments based on perceptions of “Caymanians” .
We have status holders from all over the world and with all sorts of enabling educational and other backgrounds. There is just no way we can lump all these people in the same pot with native Caymanians when we are thinking essentially in terms of affording native people their due opportunities.
It may be time to reclassify “Caymanians” into Belongers and some suitable description of status holders.
Not that status holders should not be given due consideration in the process — they live here and are entitled to employment — but just let us not get all aggrieved over a status holder who could have come in from Canada, the US, or Jamaica, for instance, and is most likely already benefiting from opportunities that belongers are straining to access.
It is complicated — but I am not inclined to worry too much about a status holder who is obviously already “making it”.
Out of interest, how would you define Belonger? Born here? Second generation? 5th?
A BELONGER is defined as any person whose DNA can be traced in past and present generations of the Cayman Islands, including our local cemeteries, where our forefathers are buried commencing from the early to mid 1800’s.
Oh, I get it. “blood and Soil” then
Yes, like the Nazis.
Iguanas
Turtles
Belonger? Are you kidding me. Do you have any idea how divisive that name is. As someone who lived in Turks and Caicos, I’ll tell you, it’s very! So what, expats do not Belong. Expats already feel unwelcome I’m Cayman, wanna make it worse?
As I said, it is complicated. But don’t expect me to start crying because a status holder masquerading as a “Caymanian” didn’t get the job in a fair competition.
It is actually going to get worse — if we continue the misguided trend of applying the misnomer of “Caymanian” in the process of extending to status holders special privileges in the job market intended to be accorded to native Caymanians.
We want to Caymanise, not make it easier for status holders to establish themselves in plum jobs that will potentially be unavailable to Caymanians for decades.
The term “Caymanians” should only be reserved for those natural Caymanians (i.e. someone that does not need any other form of citizenship confirmation like status documentation, etc.) Those with status could be classed as “Belongers” or something else, similar to the BVI who their citizens are referred to as either a BV Islander or BVI Belonger.
And straight away a problem, in that how do you define people “who do not need any other form of citizenship identification” Other than what, exactly? As has been pointed out before , the law is horribly tangled even on this point, with enormous problems in even multi generational Caymanians being able to “prove” they have status.
Caymanians should be the peolple living here that does not have citizenship of another country. It should be (like U.S.A.) if you want to be caymanian then give up your other country citizenship, then we will see who really wants to be Caymanain.
And that’s just one of the problems of Cayman today 9:52, the two (or is it more?) classes of Caymanian in some people’s minds though not in law. I note however that when a status holder does something good in, say, sport, they are Caymanian through and through. Oh boy. So sad.
Thank you, 4:03. Thank you.
4:03 pm: don’t forget that we have an expat media. Don’t get misled by what is in print.
And get real — you can’t expect that status holders must get swept up in some special dispensation reserved for Caymanians. Ain’t gonna happen.
So true 4.03pm – I am a Caymanian but I do notice similarly that when one of us is awarded a Scholarship to University or an apprenticeship to a Sports Team Overseas – It’s all over the News and the Particular Country and it’s citizens are the ‘best thing since sliced bread’ ….. Soon forgotten and then back to snide comments about the Ex-Pats – Live and let live, I say..
Please do not send your family or yourself to access free services, education of opportunities to my country. It might…just might, as we are Canadian,(we typically don’t think this way) think that you don’t belong.
As an FYI to you narrow mindedness, Canada was and is built upon diversity and the respect of different nations coming to our country. With attitudes like yours. We do not want you. Crazy, as it is the same here where you don’t want us but you want us to support your charities and social programs. Sigh….im at a loss. Come on. Look at your government officials who are supposed to help you and have your voice. Why are they not assisting the elderly, disabled, mentally unwell? These issues drain the Caymanian family of spirit as well as finances. Ask and tell your politians to stop stealing your money via trips overseas,expensive dinners and local gambling and prostitution and put the tax payers (yes you are taxed aka duty)into developing your country. This is what a true democratic country does. Stop blaming people who are trying to help you have a voice. Not all expats are out to screw you we want you to have the same freedoms and voice. Not a superficial facade where you are penalized if you openly disagree
Do the Inuit agree?
12:25, we love Canadians like you, we really do, thanks.
12;25 am: you really don’t know what u r talking about. Do u know the size of the social welfare budget in these islands? And that includes care of all the categories of persons u mentioned.
And the type of allegations you are making about legislators: Where are u getting your perverse information? I bet you would not name one in a public forum.
And Please stop comparing apples and oranges. Canada and Cayman Islands are two different propositions.
And by the way we don’t need you to explain our tax system to us.
I think, 9:52, that perhaps the BVI is ahead of us on this, if the poster is right about the two classifications of BVI Islander or BVI Belonger, the latter being the expats with status.
Pity that this was not done in Cayman long ago. May be too late now.
But status holders should not be expecting to ride on the coat tails of Caymanians to plum jobs.
Making special exceptions for already privileged expats in competition for jobs does not serve the whole intent of the notion of Caymanisation of the workplace.
9:52 Caymanians are not belongers or Caymankind. They are the rightful inheritors from 15 generations of hard working God fearing “Caymanian” men and women. If you don’t fit any of these categories, quit trying to reinvent us.
DART is not Canadian.
He is Caymanian, he renounced his US Citizenship about a decade ago…
And he wasn’t Canadian at any point!
4:43 pm. if what you say is true, then thanks to you Mr, Dart, if you gave up your U.S. citizenship, that means you really wants to be Caymanian, thanks.
Oh please shut up. You know Canadians are not British and don’t want to be Americans. Dart has money, how much do you have?
I read with amusement the announcement of the appointment of to be the new, and first, super-ombudsman for Cayman. I say amusement because it has been patently obvious that no one would be found to fill the job as the geniuses of EY and CIG have created it. But a box had to be ticked, and saving the projected $250,000 a year was extremely important to achieving the target surplus announced in the LA today of $250M. Our brilliant Premier might be happy to settle for a 60% reduction in firearms, but d___ if he was going to settle for 99.999% of his surplus; he must have 100%.
The orthodox part of the plan was combining ‘ombudsman’ and ‘information commissioner’; various jurisdictions have done that. Then the geniuses in the Deputy Governor’s office decided that they needed to add 1). ‘whistleblower protection’ to the job because we had passed a law for that in 2015; 2). ‘data protection’ because we still hope to pass a law one day; and 3). police complaints because the thing we took out of the garbage can in Jamaica and put in our Police Law in 2010 had never worked (that’s why Jamaica had thrown it in the garbage).
The fact that MLA’s Bernie Bush, Eugene Ebanks, Ezzard Miller and Alva Suckoo, who made up the Complaints Commissioner committee of the LA, and thus worked more closely with the Complaints Commissioner function that other MLA’s and Ministers, were so displeased with this development that they all resigned wasn’t going to stop this train.
So off we went to find someone who the Compass dubbed in October 2016 a ‘super ombudsman’. Today’s announcement tells us a little bit about what we got but interestingly doesn’t tell us how much, i.e. we know she’s practiced as a lawyer for 30 years and 27 years in the public service. What we haven’t been told is how much of those 27 years she spent where, and in particular how many years she has been with the Ombudsman and Public Interest Commissioner for Alberta (from whence she comes and which is relevant experience) vs. how much was elsewhere such as with the Alberta Workers’ Compensation and the corporate counsel of the Workers’ Compensation Board of the Northwest Territories (which isn’t relevant experience).
What we can assume, then, is that we have hired someone who ‘provided legal support to’ the ombudsman and whistleblower commissioner in Alberta; she has no experience as an ombudsman or a whistleblower commissioner. And we know that Alberta’s position of ‘ombudsman and public interest commissioner’ became vacant in April and has since been filled by a former RCMP commander, implying that our super ombudsman wasn’t ombudsman and public interest commissioner material in Alberta. Fair enough; Alberta is much bigger that Cayman.
But, we also need to understand that she has no experience in ‘freedom of information’ which is handled by the Office of the Information and Privacy Commissioner in Alberta (https://www.oipc.ab.ca/ . And no experience in data protection because that is handled by the same Information and Privacy Commissioner. And, of course, she has no experience in handling police complaints because those are handled by either the Municipal Police Commission Public Complaint Director under the Ministry of Justice or the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP (http://www.crcc-ccetp.gc.ca/ ), a federal body. That wasn’t in the press release okay; you need to learn that for yourself.
So, we designed a job for 1) an ombudsman, 2) a whistleblower referee, 3) a freedom of information commissioner, 4) a data protection/privacy commissioner and 5) a police complaints commssioner. We are getting someone with some (undisclosed) experience ‘close to’ 1) an ombudsman and 2) whistleblower referee. D___, that’s less than 40% of what we went shopping for. Clearly the interview panel thought that was okay. In my business, if the best candidate can only demonstrate a reasonable competence (knowledge and experience) in 2 of the 5 things we need the person to do, we would have rejected all applicants and re-evaluated our recruitment strategy.
Obviously now that Bernie and Capt. Eugene are sitting on the west side of the LA rather than the east, they will see this whole thing through their brand new ‘GoNU’ glasses.
We can only hope that the opposition will pepper the DG and Premier to tell the public why they let the Governor appoint someone who only has some experience relative to 2 of the 5 areas that the job requires.
According to her linked in she has done 3 years 8 months as GC to the Alberta Ombudsman. Over 20 years as GC to Workers Comp schemes.
Okay thanks Fred. Obviously that explains why we were fed the 27 years and the 30 years but not the 3 years 8 months.
Your post makes so many valid points that I don’t know where to begin by way of adding to them. This office will either function because there are experienced deputies in these areas or will fail to fulfill its many and incompatible responsibilities. We can only hope indeed.
I think you make some very good and obviously well researched points In 2017, but citing the fact that Bernie, Eugene, Alva and Ezzard resigned when they saw how things were going is not very convincing and you don’t need it to strengthen your argument. It doesn’t anyway. Three of these followed the lead of Ezzard, the one with the brains and energy. Two of them probably didn’t even know what they were resigning from. That’s the Gods truth.
A disgruntled applicant perhaps 12:06? Get over it.
Worth the try but no, I’m not a disgruntled applicant.
Hint #1 – if you learn that the reason your kid suddenly isn’t doing well in school is because the new teacher was hired even though she only had 2 of the 5 skills that the school was looking for, or
Hint #2 – if you’re still not feeling well after a trip to the doctor and then you learn the Dr was hired even though he only had 2 of the 5 skills the hospital was looking for.
Now try again.
From your original post 2017 it is clear that you disagree entirely with the concept of trying to combine all these functions into one position so once that decision was made, probably against advice you gave, no candidate would have been suitable for you.
Well 2017! I think you hit a lot of nerves. Dont forget she will have a staff here, how many? here, in Canada, UK ? who ill monitor all of those resources?????
12:06am. Oh oh seems like you are very upset. Did you apply and not get the job? Stop crying and go to sleep. It’s waayyy past your bedtime.
For years the public has been begging CIG to merge offices and reduce cost. Now they have done it and everyone is crying.
Well stop your crying. It’s too late.
Finally we have independent oversight of police complaints we have been waiting 10 years for this. Thank you Governor and CIG.
These independent offices have nothing to do so besides drink coffee so it makes sense they are merged. If you don’t believe me read their annual reports. Hidden in each one is the number of cases they deal with.
Anon at 751a: I presume that if the police were to seriously offend or physically harm you or someone dear to you, you would be file a complaint against them, wouldn’t you?
I take it from what you’ve written that it wouldn’t bother you that the person in charge of investigating your complaint has no knowledge or experience in investigating police conduct or practices.
When you have a plumbing problem, do you just call a builder or a plumber? When you are concerned about your eye sight, do you just go to a Dr or do you go to an optometrist?
Its okay as long as it doesn’t affect us, but when it does . . .
Calm down, 2017, you have an all or nothing approach to things. I can’t be sure but I think it’s called a zero sum argument. Very bright experienced people can take on responsibilities and deliver on them. We have a head of Hazard Management, no/nada/ zilch experience of this subject by his own admission, yet he is doing the job. Do you really think this woman won’t be able to perform? You sound like a “my way or the highway type of person”…like Ezzard…but politics and getting ahead in the civil service requires compromise and your examples could be easily mocked if I did not think it was not worth my while. Cayman often appoints Caymanians to do things they are not capable of doing…for justifiable reasons…bobo, so stop with the plumbing, optometry references!
You make an interesting reference but left out the fact that when Hazard Management was set up back in Gov Jack’s time I believe it was, the first person to head it up was an experienced disaster manager from one of the larger islands. The Caymanian who heads it now, and I agree is doing a great job, was the deputy and understudy to that person for 3 or 4 years before being put in charge.
There would probably have been far less people commenting on here now if this appointment compared to that one.
I did NOT say he was doing a great job. No one in the civil service would say that. But his ass is on the seat and at least the money is staying in Cayman.
The “Cayman is a small community” argument ignores the fact that there are small communities all over that have local courts, local politics and all the rest and do just fine. There are connected people everywhere.
Exactly 10:58 pm. We are assuming that small communities cannot govern themselves with integrity and proper professional standards. Just not true.
It is pretty damn obvious that left to sort ourselves out we make a mess of it.
You tell ’em Trump.
The problem is, that most Caymanians would not know a good government if it jumped up and slapped them in the face. You appear to think that mediocrity is an standard to aspire too…
12:05: speaking so disparagingly about Caymanians just proved why there is so much discord.
Government should practice what it preaches!!! There was one Caymanian.
But, 9:09, he was a driftwood Caymanian so nowadays that does not seem to count.
This post should have been given to Marco. Argument done!!!
Who says Marco wanted this post?
You forgot to say, “question done”
Marco would have done a fantastic job … I do wish he had applied or perhaps given the opportunity to “under study” with a fixed time limit for succession ….
Why would Marco have done such a ” fantastic” job, bobo? Just because he is a born Caymanian ( with a Jamaican father)?
So now we are discriminating against born Caymanians who have even qualified to be MLAs and government ministers, based on their parents birth. Wow. Just wow.
Why not Fred, the discrimination against Caymanians with status, recognized by law is alive and well.
This is terrible, a Cayman should have gotten the job. And all the Caymans who have taken foreign positions over the past 30 years, over 100,000, should be brought back home to stop stealing foreign jobs.
6:53: don’t get carried away. First, The larger countries are capable of absorbing immigrants. In fact, their immigration policies are set according to what is missing in their economy that can be filled by immigrants. And they are by and large employed in the lower socioeconomic levels, at least initially.
Caymanians today have by and large not sought to migrate in any large numbers to these countries, anyway.
To help you to understand how Caymanian migration to the US took place: Caymanian men were sought after as merchant seamen. Many shipped out of the US and consequently they brought their families to reside in the seaports to which they called. Wives in those days did not work but took care of the children while the men were at sea filling jobs that they were naturally adapted to and excelled at.
Here in Cayman we have done a poor job of managing the immigration situation so that the local population is now completely overwhelmed.
It isn’t just the potential conflicts of interest. Think about the potential problems. If the Caymanian post holder becomes aware of something quite sensitive. There are a few potential issues.
If they are suitably connected, they may not bring it to light so as to not ruin the connection.
If they are not suitably connected they may not bring it to light so they don’t lose their post and many further career options. Imagine the blackballing you would get.
If they are not suitably connected and they do bring it to light, they will probably end up like other civil servants that step on the wrong toes and we will be looking for another person to fill the post.
The lack of Caymanians on the final list isn’t surprising. It is probably out of pure self interest, not for lack of qualifications or “being held down”.
I have no problems with the person who has been hired. I am sure she is qualified and experienced so I am expecting her and the government to identify a smart Caymanian lawyer as her understudy, who with the proper training and courses if necessary, can step up to the position in a few years to come. This seems to me like a great opportunity up ahead. Please give the lady our support and show her our Caymankindness. According to the Premier’s speech they are quite a lot of possibilities, let us be positive and do whatever we can to take Cayman forward together.
Under study … what a joke, go and ask a generation of qualified Cayman’s about succession planning in the civil service !
5:02 pm : what rubbish
This is a sensitive department , best yet let someone independent manage same. As a paper Caymanian I am for Caymanians entiitlement in certain positions however there are certain ones which is best suited for an ex-pat to avoid nepotism as Cayman is a small island and certain kind of rhetoric. Lets give the lady the respect she deserves remember she gave up working in her country to come the Cayman Islands to serve us all .
Oh please. So where you come from only an immigrant can fill certain posts? No you take the bad with the good and promoting Caymanian is good.
7.27, do you know that there are other places outside of cayman, over the water, and they are called countries? Most countries are bigger than Cayman. Most have many more people than cayman. A lot of those countries have tens of millions of people living in them. In those “big countries” ( hope that wasn’t too difficult for you!) they have many more very clever people who went to skool and places called “universities”. They don’t need foreigners to apply for jobs. They have lots of clever people. We live in Cayman. There are 30,000 Caymanians and 25,000 expats running an economy slightly smaller than New York, which has a population of something like 12,000,000 people. We might need help sometimes.
There are likely 35,000 expats here. 25,000 on work permits but there are lots more including spouses and children and permanent residents. Stop drinking the coolaid, but if you insist, please stop sharing it with others.
Your point is 9.37? You expect expats to come without families? My point is that considering the size of the economy here, we cannot expect the limited supply of Caymanians to fill all roles. Where would they get the experience from? Your point is just to be nasty.
No, my point was to correct your false assertion that the population of the Cayman Islands is 55,000 and that Caymanians are in the majority. It is untrue. If you want to make a point use realistic numbers. Not repeated falsehoods.
We know about the countries , the big countries but tell me please why you are squeezed in here on our little 2×4 rock?? Caymanians have a heritage of traveling but for some of you the first time you got on a plane or saw water, clear water was when you came for a visit and stayed!
You must be a real hijut 1:19, most people who come here have been all over the world on these cheap airlines that every country has nowadays. You sound like you need to get out of South Sound.
8;12 pm, what do you mean by “skool”,
7:27: perfect!
Good luck to her. She’s probably very bright. But did the Governor and Sophie Harris (why the hell was she on the panel?) point out to her the possible miseries of the job when, for example Bernie Bush, Kenneth Bryan or Ezzard don’t like what she is doing or she rules in favor of some gay or atheist person and Anthony goes apoplectic/apocalypse now again on us. The salary is good but life in Cayman can be very trying when “The Imbeciles” are after you.
4:50pm: so? Water off a duck’s back. You do your job regardless of the stupidity around you. Professionals expect that not everyone will agree with one’s decisions and that that is ok.
Whatever she faces her will likely be minuscule to what she has coped with in the past.
No need to worry.
I suspect it was political correctness that required one Caymanian to be on the shortlist. If there is in fact an argument that this person should have been given a chance the only way to justify this would be to publish his/her name. This SupraOmbudsman has a considerable range of responsibilities and I really wonder if a Caymanian has the experience and qualifications in this field.That is not to say however, that Ms Hermistion should not have a Caymanian Deputy who after sufficient experience in the position can take charge.
Congrats and welcome Ms Hermiston. Can you please find out why our premier is ignoring well thought out immigration laws and regulations and giving away the country of his people?
As a Caymanian I think somebody OUTSIDE of Cayman is suitable for dealing with law-enforcement complaints!
Congrats to Ms. Hermiston! May she serve our people well. ☺
2:47: as a Caymanian I find your attitude sad.
Yours is sadder.
I would argue that not a single Caymanian has a greater wealth of experience in executing investigations against public entities.
Someone should understudy her, yes. But let’s not be disgruntled when a suitably qualified professional is selected.
I am saddened not because this woman has been appointed. Congrats to her– but not for the reasons you suggest Anon345.
You imply very clearly in your post of 2:47 that a Caymanian could not be replied upon to deal with issues in this post with integrity and professionalism.
Wow! When I hear expats say that I shake my head in disbelief that people could be so ignorant, but from a Caymanian that is nothing but sad.
Agreed. 100%.
Wake up you half-way-real (paper) caymanains and get with it or get lost.
Well let’s see how that is going to work out cause at the first sign of stepping on someone’s toes in regards to complaints which could lead to loss of future votes, things will just trail off in the sand……
Oh not another one with the better than us attitude.
Little inferiority complex there 2.00pm? Welcome Ms Hermiston! I suspect she is almost definitely better than us, she would not, I suspect, make Trump like statements such as yours.
3:41 President Trump does not mince words so that you liberals, snowflakes, and socialists will not be offended. You cant handle the truth.
How do you know she thinks she’s better than you? Pretty lame assumption.
Troll – you just learned what lame meant from another recent comment on CNS.
Your comment alone actually makes you the troll….
Ah, you must be the one assuming she will think she’s better than you. Maybe if you would lose the angry chip on your shoulder and look at the big picture, you might see that this is a great thing happening! An outsider dealing with complaints, may actually take action as opposed to the jokers who don’t care because it’s their cousin being complained about and they don’t give a crap. Your ignorance to recognize the positive is sad really. But name calling will help change the world for sure! Lol!
You are a perfect of example of what is wrong with this country.
I suspect you are right, but whilst there is no need for hate or prejudice, I think there are some legitimate questions as to why a Caymanian did not get the job. First, the fact that a Caymanan got as far as interview shortlist of 5 from 31 applications would indicate that the panel thought they were capable of doing the job, even though they thought this lady was the stronger candidate. Now if this was a private sector position, you would not be able to do that – you would have to employ the capable Caymanian even if there was a stronger, expat candidate. So why do these rules apply top the private sector but not government?
Second, why shouldn’t Caymanians occupy the principal positions in the social and administrative structure in their own land? Again, its not that the selection panel are saying Caymanians were not allowed – say because of conflicts, or lack of suitable experience – or that this is such a burning issue that the very best person for the job is needed. And you cannot even say it was the UK making sure that complaints are dealt with in a manner satisfactory to the FCO’s interest, or we would have seen a Brit appointed.
It’s not just down to qualifications. You have to sell yourself in an interview.
turning up on time goes a long way
Not according to the law (for the private sector). If they are qualified to do the job, don’t come across well, don’t fit with the team,or any other qualitative and subjective criteria based on what you think is best for the position. Cross the hurdle on a qualification basis, trump any expat no matter how much you prefer them. Not saying that is right or wrong – that’s a policy choice – but its the law, and I don’t understand why it only applies to the private sector. Something fundamentally rotten with government imposing standards of behaviour that hey then don’t have to apply to themselves.
Brilliant and succinct analysis. Over to you Ezzard?
Very nice! A how much??
Hello you guys, we have to be careful we are not allowing our sometimes justified concern at the way in which many Caymanians are treated to prejudge every case.
This is a very critical job and a prime pre-requisite is experience.
This person needs to set precedents and the groundwork for how this new office will function.
I doubt very much the Caymanian could have brought all the facets necessary to that scenario. And sometimes in our rush to Caymanise we select despite deficiencies.
I am all for Caymanisation and people must have the opportunity to learn and grow in their own country, but sometimes it can be downright painful to see what happens when we put someone in a job for which they are not ready.
I would suggest that the authorities in this case go back to that Caymanian and see if an arrangement could be put in place for a real period of real understudy of the principal. AND with an emphasis on REAL.
One of the problems sometimes with a green appointee is that often do not know that they do not know.
There are also issues with inefficiencies in executing roles at senior levels. And many actually come with no senior administrative experience, relevant or otherwise.
And unless these persons had some private sector experience, they would likekly cone with poor work ethic acquired in the civil service. Industriousness and conscientious application can be sadly lacking.
I am sad to say but it is truth!!
Hasten to say this is not true for all — but for sensitive senior, and especially new jobs, it is often a reality.
And yes I am a Caymanian.
Congrats to the new Ombudsman!
You of course are completely prejudging the experience, work record and work ethic of the Caymanian candidate without ANY knowledge of their qualifications. Some kind of weird self prejudice against your own countrymen. And of course you know the successful candidate backwards, right? You know she doesn’t have a poor work ethic even though she has been embedded in the civil sector for years. You assume the Caymanian is green and needs to study at the elbow of the wise parachuted in expat, but without any information on the subject other than one is Caymanian and one is a Canadian.
There is a word for people who form opinions on individuals based on their membership of a wider class rather than individual talent and behaviour. Its normally seen on CNS exercised against expats by Caymanians, or expats against Caymanians, but in this case its Caymanians against a Caymanian – but with the same lack of any basis in knowledge other than ethnicity and national origin. SMH. Its enough to make me want to join up with Whodatis!
4:17 pm: I stand by para 4.
It is common sense. I would be very surprised that there is a Caymanian with experience and training that would have enabled him or her to step into this role on day 1 and to function at the same level or better than the incoming ombudsman who has had decades of relevant experience.
Best wishes to new ombudsman. We are rooting for her.
Umm – actually less than 4 years experience advising an ombudsmen – decades of experience dealing with legal issues around workmen’s comp, sure.
Jotnar, in principle you are right but in relation to your first point you will be well aware of many qualified Caymanians seeking partnership in many law firms only to have been denied those opportunities in favor of expatriates, even though no-one denies the Caymanians were capable of performing that role. What happens in the public sector happens also in the private sector.
I nevertheless warmly congratulate the Ombudsman on her appointment and hope that she will be welcome and allowed to be effective in her role.
Let me start by saying that I am in no way anti-expat. I am pro-business and fully believe that business owners have the right to employ whomever they believe is suitable and qualified for posts whether Caymanian or not. However, members of the Government and public criticizes business owners for hiring expatriates they feel are suitably qualified yet they are not leading by example.
The one Caymanian was shortlisted but was beaten, why??
Another thing, a lot of members in The Government own their own businesses… I would love to see if their business employs 100% Caymanian.
Again, I am not anti-expat and I am not defending Caymanians… I am saying that Government shouldn’t be hypocritical.
So who was the Caymanian who was shortlisted?
Take a walk on the marl road and you will find out. A pretty good candidate I would say but maybe the ladies on the interview panel were looking for diversity which is one of the Governor’s interests we were told when she was appointed.
I walked on the marl road into the government building where I learned the Caymanian is a status holder, fairly long term resident with previous experience in the job. There doesn’t seem to be much secrecy about it but I don’t want to be the one to reveal a name. I am sure CNS must know.
Why is that your business? If you are not personally qualified to do the job, what makes you think you are qualified to comment on another Caymanians ability to do so or not? Too much sticking your nose where it doesn’t belong.
Off you go, professional haters!
Wait for it, ready for the hate filled anti expat comments, why did an expat get this job and not a Caymanian? …… Go!
I feel sorry for her because she is in the public eye now and will be labelled as stealing a Caymanians job. Nice welcome huh.
The criticism will be deserved. Why only one Caymanian in the selection panel? Why bring someone all the way from Canada? Why pick someone wholly unknown? Why pick a workers’ compensation lawyer, when Cayman does not have that scheme? Where is her cv showing experience in all the other fields mentioned? In fact, where is her cv at all now that the pick has been announced? There is no reason for anyone to have any confidence in this totally opaque excercise.
The reasons to me are clear, and it is the same for AG posts and I would argue the courts…everyone knows everyone else here, there are interests within interests, potential blackmail threats and the job needs an independent person free from all that. There are probably no Caymanians here without that interest. Frankly until Cayman adopts full transparency at all levels, (and we are years away from that, if it ever happens) then there is every hope that this lady can show us the right path.
They may be clear to you, and you may be right, but when independence of all local links is not listed as a criterion for the job, or cited as a reason for the selection, I am afraid you are dealing in assumption and simply prove the point that the selection process is not open and transparent, even if you are right.
2:12 pm: there is no reason that a Caymanian cannot hold the AG’s post. The reason we have not yet had a Caymanian AG is because they are out there making the dough. Really, we have to get rid of these repugnant ideas.
2:12 Th English deserve to recoup some of the money they dole out to colonies such as the Cayman Islands, think of it as a sort of investment with somebody elses money an English AG sounds like you are a real team player. His salary is just a drop in the bucket in the big picture.
1:26 pm: I take it you were on the selection panel?
The reason an ex-pat got the job is because any suitably qualified Caymanian would have been hopelessly compromised by friends and family connections. Just look at a few of the current and recently-retired senior civil servants who are locals.
This is so sad but unfortunately it’s true. Neutrality is what we need here.
1.31 you are 100percent correct.
2:24: you are 100% incorrect.
You know I really don’t buy this argument 1:31 pm. Training and professionalism can overcome this concern.
And by the way the expats soon have the same issue — they become part of a close knit expat community.
We all live in a small closely connected community.
Be careful we are not using this argument for yet another reason to keep Caymanians back.
That is the problem 2.46, a small closely connected community. Too close. Too incestuous. No ability to be independent.
3:44: true for everyone who lives her, Caymanians or expats in due course.
But if You are a professional with the necessary base for the type of decision making necessary to this role, you will meet all the required moral and professional expectations despite the environmental contexts. Have a little faith in humanity.
According to some of you Caymanians will never be able to fill certain roles. Rubbish. We should not even be having this conversation.
There are honest professionals every where and Cayman is no exception. To suggest otherwise is frankly either pathetically ignorant or stupidly racist.
2:46 However good the local candidate was, training and professionalism is always going to be trumped by suspicions and allegations of family connections, local leverage, corruption or bias. That’s the point – Sandy Hermiston has never lived here, she’s completely unknown.
So why shortlist the Caymanian?
They were searching for Superman or Wonderwoman…cant you tell? isnt that why you never seen the advert? You needed special vision.
Tokenism?
nope, only yours so far.
12:24: oh please. No one is going to be labeling this woman as stealing anyone’s job. Where do u get your ideas? Save your sympathy. She will be perfectly fine.