A popular talk show host on Speak Out BVI recently brought up the topic of BVIslanders suffering because they can’t get a job in their home country. It appeared that the show host had at some point talked with “a qualified BVIslander”, who was having difficulties finding a job here at home It’s about time some attention was paid to this dilemma. Why is it taking so long to bring up this topic in a substantial manner for public discussion? Furthermore, can anything besides talk, be done about it? There are many BVIslanders in the job market who no one seems to want to hire. Why?

I can venture to say that some BVIslanders are just plain unlucky when it comes to finding substantial employment, regardless of their qualifications. Others can pick and choose, hop from job to job non-stop until they reach the highest rung of the ladder, and it hardly matters how their resume compares to someone else seeking the same position. Everybody knows somebody who was passed up for some petty reason or the other. The case of the appointment of the new Deputy Governor gave us all something to think about.  But I believe in the Bible scripture that says: “Not one of my sheep shall sit by the wayside and beg bread”.  And another saying: “Whatever’s for us, for us”, comes to mind. This applies to everyone, local or foreign for God is not partial. Sometimes people feel that you are either too good or not good enough to be among the chosen. But in the final analysis, they don’t have the last say. That being as it is, discrimination against BVIslanders is a growing concern.

While the high profile cases involve persons at the peak of their careers or who have passed their prime but still good for a little icing on the cake, the real issue is not about retirees seeking continued employment in the private or public sectors, but the young people who are not given a chance when they need it most: to establish some credibility in gaining work experience and opportunities to advance. My advice is to not give up, but keep trying, and be willing to look at self-employment as an option. Any skill can be turned into a livelihood. A legitimate activity that can bring in cash by far is the better choice than to engage in any form of illegal activity that risks dire consequences.

The competition is hot. If one out of ten applicants for a job happens to be a BVIslander, chances are, the non-BVIslander will be the one that gets it. This thing about “BVIslanders preferred” is a joke. BVIslanders are not given top priority. Those who control the jobs generally have their own agendas. If proper vetting procedures were followed in recruiting employees, perhaps there would be no BVIslander in need of a job because they would have one. The number of non-BVIslanders who have jobs in the BVI might suggest there are more than enough jobs for BVIslanders. Yet, when I see a young mother, bred and born in the BVI, pounding the pavement looking for work, and then the job goes to someone from beyond Round Rock, as they say, it leaves one to wonder why.

Another thing is the concept that foreigners are better. Are they better because we don’t know anything about them? They present their papers and whether they are fake or not, they look impressive enough to put them on the payroll. It would be presumptuous to say all foreign workers are frauds, but the point is, simply: we sometimes find it easier to trust strangers, than we trust our own. Maybe we should adopt a new saying: Where there’s no TRUST the people perish.

Seriously, the growing number of unemployed youths is a social problem and the Department of Labour needs to get a handle on it, through collaboration with qualified Youth Development workers in the community. Additionally, people can become involved in an association that can lobby for their rights and their interests. There’s a significant number of youngsters that are not “deemed to Belong” because of their parents’nationality. After graduation from high school they meet an employment blockage because of the denial of Work Permit exemption. Maybe a special work permit can be implemented for certain categories of workers. The system has too many grey areas that are confusing and frustrating and it contributes to the rebelliousness and desperation that we see in so many of the youths that fall afoul of the law.

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Copyright© by CMS Literary Services 2008

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