Unemployed construction workers close down site
(CNS): Police have confirmed that they attended a dispute at a construction site in East End yesterday. New27 reported that the dispute was between out of work construction workers in East End and a contract company which claims there was vandalism at the site and one of its staff was assaulted. Billy McLaughlin, owner of East End Labours, said the group of unemployed workers decided to close the job site down. He told the television company, “A lot of people might not agree with me, but it is time, and the time has come, and we’re taking control.” (Photo courtesy News27)
Category: Local News
Have a Thought For a Patriot
I pass construction sites everyday, going and coming from home. It is hard to see a Caymanian. Most of the workers are obviously non-Caymanians. I comment about it constantly. This cannot be right, in a country where so many Caymanians are unemployed.
What is really sad about all this, is that once this starts, there will be nothing to ‘take back’. This will destroy whatever value is left in this economy.
I know Billy. He is one of the best human beings I have ever met. He is not anti-foreigner. When I came here 26 years ago, he made me welcome and showed me respect. He has not changed one iota over the years. I don’t know what happened on the job site, but I am sure he was not being devisive or hateful. He was merely standing up for his rights.
No one is listening in this country. Maybe now someone will take notice before this disintegrates into anarchy .
Rick
Since there are so many construction sites with non-Caymanians, Billy and his crew should go on every worksite until they find work. Not just the one in East End. If he is really interested in work, Cayman is small enough that they could find something to do.
It is because of behaviour like this that no-one with a right mind would touch them. They have blacklisted themselves.
Before any great liberation, there was a great rebellion!
Martin Luther King
English Civil War
American Civil War
Nelson Mandela
Notice in order to evoke a major change in anything there was always a huge fight, always a big struggle….well this is it!
It may have been wrong what this guy did but I appauld him and it is not so left field regardless of what the critics say, some of the bravest men in history have done this and more.
It is high time Caymanians "fought" for what is rightfully ours! Its a shame when we have more work permits being granted than they are Caymanians. Maybe now our government will see, if our government refuses to look out for us we must look out for ourselves and take matters into our own hands.
I find it deeply appalling that you would equate some out of work construction labors to the depth of people such as Nelson Mandela and Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
So sad that this is the level of entitlement thinking here!
When dogs actually chase you off the construction site because you are black, or when white people spray you with a fire hose for trying to get on the bus, or you try to battle something like apartheid then you can use such visionaries in your rebuttal.
Neither of these gentlemen would ever condone violence against property or persons.
DISGUSTING!
Take it back then!
Remember the 4th of July, celebrated in the USA, is NOT the Queen’s birthday!
Hundreds of thousands of Americans died to make sure of that — are you willing to make that sacrifice!?
Go ahead — have your "great rebellion"!
I have yet to encounter a hard working, honest person, who shows up at work on time, stays late when required, and gives 110% ever have to look for employment in any of the 3 countries I have lived and worked. However I have seen many wannabees, entitlement holders, and cheats find themselves out of work. All because of their OWN choices.
I dare Caymanians to start taking their work problems into their own hands. Maybe form trade unions while you are at it. Although there will be no trades required once you start disrupting other businesses.
Why not try the noble approach and take your own people to task- the 60% Caymanian partner. Your cousin or Aunt or sister who works at Immigration who continues to look the other way when Uncle Joe submits the permit for the foreign national he knows he shouldn’t be. How about calling out your own at church for their indecent behaviour- in their businesses and their home lives.
A person with a good work ethic and will work for a competitive wage will never have to look for work. Period. Get over it.
I am a born breed and bread East Ender, I am not proud ofthe way Billy handled the situation, nor am I sure that Billy is proud of it himself.
I grew up hearing of a prtictular man who would rob people’s plantation, fish pots to feed his family. The man is now elderly and his children are all grown, not one of his children has been accused of this behaviour, and the has stopped been accused for years now.
I said that to say this. A real /father man will do what he has to do in order to feed his family.
Was stealing right? No! But the man’s ability to earn decent wages were limited. You Now asked why had his children if he could not feed them? My answer to you is why are you living the life you are living, what is your excuse before God for the life you live.
Wrong is wrong, and if Billy feels that he was doing the right thing, when in fact it was not the proper way. Then why are you doing the things you are do.
Billy be a man and show the normal East End way of living – apolgise to who every you have to and move on.
I WILL NOT HAVE YOU CALL EAST ENDERS ALL SORT OF NAMES I AM NOT SAYING THIS IS THE WAY TO GO ABOUT THE SITUATION BUT I BELEIVE THIS IS THE BEGINING PEOPLE WILL SOON BE LOOSING THEIR HOUSES THEY DONT HAVE NO MEANS TO SUPPORT THEIR FAMILES.
I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU TO PUT YOUR SELF IN THE POSITION THEY ARE IN.
THEY HAVE NO WHERE ELSE TO GO THIS IS THEIR COUNTRY AND THEY HAVE A RIGHT TO TAKE A STAND ONCE IT IS IN THE RIGHT WAY.
GOD BLESS EVERYONE OF YOU THAT HAVE SO MUCH TO SAY BUT DO NOT KNOW WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE IN THIS POSITION.
It is time to stand up for ourselves, no one else is going to do it. Anyone who disagrees with that is a "sellout"
Did any one notice the guy that was trying to say "what happen to our Caymanian that cant get work here" was wearing aJamaica
Oh please…
Jamaica hat or not
A human being is a human being! All are entitle to fair treatment and pay. What is funny to me, is how funny you noticed and got esaily distracted by a hat
Funny??? Absolutely! I thought the very same thing when I first saw the video. Sad part is that some, as in the poster who did not find it all so funny, don’t understand the irony of it all.
Correct me if I’m wrong but isn’t that illegal what they did? You can’t demand someone to hire you…..this isn’t communism!!
Very true, this is not communism – YET! Have you seen our leader’s dictatorial leanings and dubious ruling tactics….
I think referring to Mac as a dictator is becoming too old now – it is like the constant talk of PPM being responsible for our economic downfall.
You can sing once, but everyday… it’s becoming boring…
If you really want to see a dictator why don’t you go to Cuba. Your definition of a "Dictator" needs to be reviewed
This to 10:00 -Cut the crap about our leader or anyone else. The issue here are Caymanians without job. It appears that some of you go sleep dream, wake up spelling the word PREMIER-LEADER /MCKEVA. what a mess your life must be that everything you do have to include these three words.
Now to the real isue here, I am a proud East Ender , came from 8 generations. Now I am real Caymanian. I tied up buck toe, beat mostiqutoes, ate corn turtle, ate corn coxen grouper, conch stew, help laid thatch rope with my grandparents and all the like, that is what qualify you to be a Caymanain.
When you speak of Caymanian being lazy, shut your mouth, ask around and you will see how lazy Caymanians were. Had it not been for hard working Caymanians, where would this county be. At least I dont think we would behere as a home for the homeless.You would probaly be back in your own country. So when you talk about Caymanians not staying on the job, check to see how many of these are real Caymanians. XXXXXXX If you never had buck toe an eat corn turtle. you know nothing of Cayman.
Stop calling Caymanians lazy, our hospitality has caused you to take over. Now you see there is a different generation sprining up, who is no longer willing to exchange their life for hospitality.
Billy I love you and know you and you are my own East Ender, but you went about it the wrong way.
You let us down. I trustthat this like everything else can be put behind us and move on.
I know billy, he is not proud of what happened, but the man is hungry, and has a young baby. So give him a break. I am sure he will not be too hasty next time.
I agree with you writer. Billy is a good guy! And I hold alot of respect for him. I go out of my way to speak to him everytime I see him because I know the man has a good heart. Billy I know you didn’t mean for this to get so out of hand. You acted emotionally rather than rationally. I am sorry you and all the other Caymanians have to go through this misery, but there are better ways of going about getting the results you want.
I hope you will be the bigger man and apologize to the guys. It’s not their fault that they were hired. It’s the contractor that hired them. I understand how you feel, because I know the only reason I’m still at my job is because I’m a Caymanian and they need me in this position so that when they go to Immigration with all their work permit renewals for all the foreigners in this company they can say, oh see we have a Caymanian on board as well! Trust me, it don’t make me feel good, knowing I’m nothing more than a pawn in their sick game and knowing I get absolutely no respect but all the foreigners in this company can do as they feel and get away with it! Anyway, I’ve strayed from the real issue at hand.
I know you didn’t mean any harm and your intentions were good Billy, they just came out wrong. Now be the bigger man and do what’s right and do it the right way this time, so that you can get the real results that you wanted in the first place.
Any man who is a fighter for basic human rights, I hold alot of respect for!
I have no respect for the one’s who sit, talk, make promises, and do nothing
BILLY IS A MAN OF ACTION WE SHOULD BE SUPPORTING HIM FOR THIS CAUSE
You are right in the first part, and wrong in the second. – but it isn’t communism. Our laws provide that you only have any right to employ a non Caymanian if you have first used your best efforts to try to employ a Caymanian, and only having failed in those efforts, are you entitled to seek poermission to employ a forein national. A workplace that does not require advanced skills but has absolutely no Caymanians working at it may appear to have not fulfilled their part of the equation – but I do not have all the facts. What I do know for a fact is that there are some employers who unlawfully evade their legal obligations to employ Caymanians where practicable.
This is not a Cayman thing. Every country is the same. Even in the UK, you cannot get a work permit if there is an EU citizen available, or if a capable UK national will be deprived of the position.
Take your argument to its natural conclusion. I am sure that somewhere in India today there is a worker who is ready willing and able to do your job, at least as well as you, for half what you are paid to do it. Now, do you think it is OK that you and everyone else here be fired and replaced with a cheaper and more effective Indian National who would be granted a work permit to come here. Or should you have to take a 60% pay cut just because an Indian National says they will come and work for that.
Now, do you think Government should retain some control over who businesses can hire, or not?
" Even in the UK, you cannot get a work permit if there is an EU citizen available, or if a capable UK national will be deprived of the position. "
This is as far from the truth as it is possible to get!
UK work permit application form (it is 14 pages long) – page 12 states as a declaration that every employer is required to sign -knowingly making false statements on the form is an offence which can result in imprisonment.
I quote – "The employer named in this application knows of no suitable ‘resident worker’ who will be displaced or excluded as a result of employing the person who is the subject of this application."
Further down the form every employer is required to declare, where it is a training or work experience application: "The person subject tothis application is not filling a post that could be filled by a ‘resident worker’ and that it is additional to the employer’s normal staffing requirements."
And you should see some of the detail some of the questions require…
Why is there not an online registry for unemployed workers where employers can review their resumes?
Folks
Many of you commenting on this site must be the owners of businesses that all you think about is profit (your golden eggs), but have no care about the "goose." You fail to put yourselves in the shoes of construction workers!
If the Department of Employment Relations or LABOR BOARD as we know it, is not functioning properly and helping the local people, what do you expect East Enders to do???
Some of you on this site, talk like we should just sit down and shut up, "don’t hurt me" when I’m making money, and allow you guys to just ride them. That is the most absurd thing to request from people. And then what tops the cake, you expect the Police to pull on your side and arrest them whilst you continue to disregard the locals altogether.
I am not picking sides, and yes… Billy may have went overboard… but who is looking out for the common laborer and where is the fairness?
"…whilst you continue to disregard the locals altogether."
:"…the Department of Employment Relations or LABOR BOARD as we know it, is not functioning properly and helping the local people,"
So when you used the word "you" were you referring to the Caymanians who run and work at the Departmemt of Employment Relation or the Labour Board?
The "you" is the mystery here
;o)
We have both Caymanians and people from overseas, ignoring the local people. But "who" shouldn’t give you any amunition to attack the commenter’s truthful remarks. So what if he or she was refering to Caymanians in DER…
The fact remains there are people in DER and outside DER who are not doing their jobs!!!
"The fact remains there are people in DER and outside DER who are not doing their jobs!!!"
But, but they are Caymanian! and we all know how qualified, hard working and dedicated all Caymanian’s are.
Couldn’t it be said that if the protesters did their jobs correctly, they would be hired?
Hmmm… someone here hates Caymanian to assume that their performance is the result of the employer’s indifference.
How sad and a lack of intelligence on your part.
:o)
Actually I expect the police to do their jobs and arrest individuals breaking the law, that is their jobs right? And last time I checked assaulting someone, vandalizing property is considered breaking the law.
And I expect them to protest if that’s the case, but not show up with beers in their hands assaulting people.
Who is looking out and where is the fairness? well I am an expat so there was never any fairness for me, I have written many complaints about mistreatment, pension/salary irregularities etc and ended up getting threatened with termination/kicked of the island when my employer found out that I went to labour board from a buddy he knows in there, so cant answer you there on the fairness bit, but why don’t you ask your government so far all they seem to be doing is looking out for them selves and brining hardship on everymen else, or ask the owners of the business who I believe is 60% if not more Caymanian.
Love it! The goose that lays the golden eggs. The story shows when you allow impatience, greedy, and ill-will against other people to continue; when you "kill" or don’t look out for the goose, and all you want is results, results, results, you end up destroying your own business. People (not your ideals, your fears, your demands, your monies) must be first; it is PEOPLE!
Yes Billy is right.
We must take control.
There is no time like the present.
East End Labour needs to have affiliated groups in every district.
Caymanians must get work in their own country.
One must wonder which East End politician, Arden McLean or John McLean Jr. will stand with Billy and the people of East End?
and the useless police do nothing as usual. vandalism, gee, what’s that? and one wonders why crime continues to escalate.
Conspiracy is a very serious crime which certainly used to carry a maximum penalty of life imprisonment. Just thought I would point that out.
Gotta be expats and sell out Caymanians with all these thumbs down but who cares we taking our COUNTRY BACK so guess finger up sticking up?
If you’re an ex-caymanian then I presume you are an expat in somebody elses country. I’m guessing you are working and at least one person there is unemployed. but they aren’t blaming you.
Thats why the civilised world is different from Cayman.
And I see somebody referring to an incident at a car factory in the UK where the workers went on strike because of foreign labour. This was a totally different scenario in that they were being REPLACED by a foreign company employing foreign workers.
Nobody here is being replaced by foreign labour. Nobody is being fired and a foreigner empoyed to take over their job, that is nonsense. All we have is onefirm that has won a contract and already has an established workforce who have had permits for some time, they are NOT making caymanians redundant and then taking out new permits.
Open your eyes and get a grip on reality and you’ll notice it is a whole lot different than you believe.
Permits in that situation should simply not have been renewed. You seem to be missing that piece.
I see no evidence of there being permits renewed whilst these guys were all out of work and applying for the jobs. Many permits are 2 year and if these guys protesting weren’t out of work 2 years ago then the company would have had no option to hire foreigners. Isn’t it possible that when the permits were renewed the protesters were working for a rival firm on twice the salary that this employer is paying, so didn’t apply for these jobs.
You uneducated people only read half the story and make the rest up to suit yourselves.
It can also be sensible people that use their brains that are giving you thumbs down also
You’re taking the country back? Go right ahead, take it back the same way Billy took it upon him self to close down a job site and see what your left with in the end after all the investors pull out,
We already have a good government in place doing a splendid job on the road to recover attracting inward investment…. maybe they can use the cayman27 video to help the attraction….
You need to use your brain!
Make them pull out!!! The people come FIRST! We can always start from scratch again and again! We are not slaves to profiteers – never!
Anyone who can’t stand up for rights of the workers, is not a true human being and shouldn’t call themself a Caymanian
"I think that we should do this in every area of business. Just walk into banks, trust companies, hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, government and disrupt the business until they give us work. We should revoke every permanent residency, status grant and work permit given. It is time to reclaim Cayman for the Caymanians. We have a right to work."
This is the attitude that is upheld by the Billy’s behaviour and the law because no arrests were made. I am sure that the other contractors has been intimated by this bunch of bullies. He and his men should go to McKeeva’s house and ask for work to build the wall around his house. Better yet, try to bully McKeeva into giving them work.
Premier Bush is only "concerned" with his West Bay constituents. He is going to wander around in Mr. Arden’s neighbourhood.
And by "concerned", I mean busy being driven around buying christmas lights and then flying around the world and yelling that laws are scandal sheets. He has a full schedule.
That attitude is unfortunately gaining ground and that which you speak of may well happen (as it has in Jamaica and in the Bahamas) because the immigration laws have not been applied in the manner they were designed to to relieve the pressure and provide some protection tio Caymanians.
If you want to stop it (as do I) then insist on those laws being applied fairly and evenly, in every industry (it is not just construction that is falling short).
If people still keep insisting on employing foreign nationals where there is an available Caymanian who can do the job adequately, even if they are not the best on earth, or "have a funny accent", then you will have been a prophet.
The problem with this attitude is that it is selfish. What about the other Caymanians and others who have a right to work on the work-site? By disrupting the worksite, you put other Caymanians livelihood in jeopardy because they cannot work. Be your brother’s keeper.
There are other Caymanians out there who are unemployed we do not have this attitude. It does us no good if this behaviour is promoted. The solution, once Rolston shapes up the DER and it functions as it is supposed to then we can move forward and look at placing people. The Immigration, the DER, and DoES should be working hand in hand.
as a east ender and a friend of billy he is worng this time he can’t go and deman a job
the police should arrest these rogues and vagabonds who assulted people and damaged property. Bring them to court, they are not above the law.
This is not the way to get a job. How many construction companies will now employ these people ?
The precedent for ‘law breaking’ was established in May 2009!
two men at 1:12 on the video at news 27 website with beer in there hand during the day….how do they expect a business to want to hire them? man i really think unna man complaining should at least go through other channels…soon we are gonna legalize apartheid…
Does anyone wonder why we are called a banana republic?
You know something I must, and have always admired,. and that is the Peole of East End. It is the only district who when they say NO! it means NO!. They are very together, uniformed and united. and as far as I am concerned, they are the only true Caymanians left on this Island. Most outside people who live in the district usually join with them too. Very good. Live in my Town, obey my rules.
What does Billy and his bandits expect? This is the third time they have disrupted a construction site with no basis. Any contractor in their right mind would not touch this group with a ten foot pole. Their are many qualified workers on island that do not threaten or vandalize
Billy and East End Steel have made their bed and can now lie in it.
Billy and his group have many highly qualified people on board. I do not condone the way they went about things but as they say, Drastic times call for drastic measures. You also say there are many qualified workers on island and well there may be but how many are Caymanians and how many are finding employment. If this is the third site this has been done on then maybe there is a reason for the frustration of Billy and his guys. A lot of people are becoming very disenchanted with this government and are at a point where they feel since there is NO HELP from the representatives they will take matters into their own hands.
If Billy is "bandit," he must be a good one – a Robin Hood.
Because if he doesn’t look out for the Caymanians – who would then??
I think we have to applaud Billy and the workers for showing the god given right to stand up for what is right. To often countries are quick to give away citizen rights for the good of foreign ‘development’ Ask the campesina in the Banana Republics, Mexico, or a ton of other places if they think that unfettered foreign ‘development’ has enriched the lives of the working class people. Yes the national GDP may have increased, and per capita income has risen, but when you really look at these places, the money created has gone into the hands of the business class elite (usually less than 5% of the population). They are now fighting an uphill battle (although some are winning; see Boliva, Venezuela, Cuba, ect) to get their local rights back for a fair and honest wage ( The rural people movement La Via Campensina now has over 2 Million members worldwide). People that want to build in this country need to take care of the local workers first, not just because of the moral obligation, but because that is how you create a sustainable, integrated future. It may seem like Billy is fighting just for workers rights, but if you pay attention to the last 50 years of history, especially in South America and the Caribbean, you’ll see that he, and other people, are really fighting to retain their cultures before ‘development’ eats them up and spits them out (see present day Haiti; prime ‘development’ country 40 years ago). We as Caymanians should all stand up and non-violently protest all such construction sites and companies. Politicians don’t cause change, the people do.
Venezuela and Cuba — are you insane! Do you realize — you cannot really own something in those countries and it is a true dictatorship?
People like you truly don’t understand business, economy, or what has happened here in the past 40 odd years.
Hence the term — go back to making rope and fishing.
And as for YOU, are you one of those that understands business as "to make a KILLING in business, the entrepreneur must violate the common rule of ‘Native People 1st where possible’ instead to hire CHEAPER labor for their OWN gains???
Remember, these companies that seek to employ cheap labor and DISCRIMINATE against local people this way, are not contributing to the economy as much, as the low-salaried workers DON’T have much to put back into the economy, but INSTEAD to send a good portion of their earnings back to their HOME countries – that’s called BLEEDING our economy. And I could go ON….
Let’s bring it down to the REAL GRIT here Ms/Mr Anonymous – as with many other countries, this whole Foreign Investment and Development of other countries VICTIMIZED as we are being, has played out in EXACTLY the SAME way. That is, those countries and it’s People are exploited and discriminated against to the MAX and then when the natives of that country stands up to fight back, the investors/developers leave the countries in shambles. It’s an all too common vicious cycle around the world and it should be STOPPED in every possible instance. PERIOD.
Native Caymanians, as with ANY other ‘Native People’ of any other country, should have a fair chance at economic SURVIVAL in their OWN country.
And as Billy said, "the time has come, they are going to take control", I concur with Billy and the rest in that it is more than inevitable that "taking control" WILL happen in the Cayman Islands so might as well get started.
As a matter of fact, taking control has been long overdue!!!
((( Caymanians, it is TIME to take control. )))
Thank you kindly.
So I guess I will be seeing you next on the TV with a beer in your hands?
"Yawns" give me a break
You guys are your own worst enemy, just look at what your government is doing to your country for example.
You expect the investors not to pick up and leave when the "natives" as you call it get violent? What Billy did is send a bad example over TV, damaging equipment? Assaulting people? On top of that sporting beers in hand? You can have protests without nonsense like that you know
So lets say you take control in the manner in which Billy boy demonstrated and others like your self start doing it and the investors leave with there money/jobs, then what? Back to Drift Wood for another round of beers?
"Back to Drfit Wood for another round of beers?"
Yep! and for you I guess it’s back to that dreary place you came from! Oh my! So Sorry!
Sounds as if some of you are more concerned about the *** beer and forgetting about the issue at hand. Give us a break with the beer comments, geez!
From Conquistadors, Plunderers, Murders, Imperialist to Capitalist, the world has endured this NASTY, VICIOUS CYCLE from people like yourself.
I am ALL too EDUCATED and KNOWLEDGABLE of this way of life. THere has been MANY a People who have fought(and died) for exactly the same reason and cause. I see Caymanians as only ANOTHER that WILL have to fight for their rights since our WORTHLESS Governments have done NOTHING to protect their people, but instead to SELL OUT the Caymanian people to the selfish and heartless people just like yourself just as Governments of most other countries do around the world.
You know… "Sometimes you got to FIGHT to be a MAN".
And Sure, I’ll give you a ‘break’.
FYI – If you saw me on TV next, it wouldnt be with a ‘beer’ in my hand. That would be Hot Steel smoking.
It’s TIME!!
Don’t forget planting Cassava!
Its a shame to see people condoning this type of behavior, guys with beer in their hands during that time of the day closing down job sites about enough is enough, then saying lets do it more or be like Cuba? Cubans attempt to escape fromCuba
It is Caymanians who own (or are at least significant partners) in local construction companies and it is Caymanians who submit and review work permit applications and it is Caymanians (as owners or partners) who hire and contract work here in the islands.
Does it seem reasonable to be upset with expat workers who answer an ad and do a job? You should be upset with those who own businesses that hire expats over Caymanians not the expat workers who have been hired.
And you should also ask yourself why would Caymanians not choose Caymanians?
Expats cannot solve this problem. They are merely pawns. You SHOULD work to implement change. But the laws alone will not suffice (this has been proven time and time again) unless you have someone who is willing to enforce the laws regarding the hiring of Caymanians. That is not happening and the people in charge of enforcement are Caymanian (Immigration, etc.).
Until Caymanians stop "crapping" on their neighbors (their fellow Caymanians), things will never change.
Too true, well said.
The firm that won this contract did so by supplying the lowest and most viable bid. The Caymanian owner of the firm chose who he was going to employ and gets the best people he can for the wages he is offering.
When hiring he has the choice of one Jamaican who is hard working and motivated by the need to send money to his family, or one Caymanian who turns up late to the interview, on his phone and shows no motivation whatsoever, knowing that he has already walked out on his family and left his wife and kids to support themselves. He doesn’t want the job as it is hard work and poorly paid, but he does want money.
So he moans about not being offered the job.
Caymanians need to do themselves a favour and improve their attractiveness to employers. They should be willing to accept a realistic salary, based on thecurrent economic climate. They should be willing and able to carry out hard graft. They should be punctual to the interview and appear motivated and keen to do a good job.
From experience I can honestly say that I have yet to meet a Caymanian that fits this bill. Be honest with yourselves and don’t hide behind your passport and immigration. If you were better employees you would have jobs.
I agree with you if
1. The contractor is paying full pensions for all workers
2. The contractor is paying health insurance for all workers
3. The contractor pays overtime at time and a half for all workers.
4. The contractor pays public holiday work at double time for all workers.
5. The contractor has paid all appropriate T&B and work permit fees
6. The contractor genuinely attempted to seek qualified Caymanian labour.
Billy may notbelieve these things happened. I don’t either.
I just don’t understand!!!!
It is far cheaper to have Caymanians if they can do the job, work permits, flights, accommodation cost employers a huge amount of money – if they had a Caymanian, able and willing to do the job then why would they not employ them?
The point is there aren’t enough willing and able to work or even come close!
Not true
Permit fee for a construction labourer is nothing – only $550 a year, and anyway, many construction companies illegally require workers to pay their own fee.
Construction workers pay their own airfares, and share accomodation to the point where they are almost camping. Caymanians have families and cannot live as inexpensively.
If you do not pay a foreign national’s health insurance, overtime, pension… they do nothing, so you do not have to. (a Caymanian reports you and might get you in trouble)
You do not need to pay a pension for any expat in their first 9 months on Island anyway. They are exempted by Law. This automatically makes them up to 10% cheaper than a Caymanian even iof you are following the Pensions Law, and over 600 businesses, many in construction, are not.
At least 50 of Billys 90 are well able to fill the positions.
This starting to make sense yet?
Yes, and work for what $5 per hour.
Caymanians are expected to work for the same wages as persons coming from countries with much lower cost of living and living standards, they come here to work and send money home. These people contribute as little as possible to our economy.
Low paid expat workers live in crowded accomodation, is this the working poor society you and the UDP really want?
Set a reasonable living minimum wage now!
Another example of the entitlement culture which has all but killed off Cayman’s economy.
Some[one] XXX gets outbid on a construction contract as his profit margin was too fat, so rather than accept the loss and think about making a thinner cut next time, he feels that he should be entitled to the contract simply for being Caymanian.
XXXXX
The winning contractor offers lower wages in order to win contracts and provide better value for money for the client and/or tax payer, depending on who issued the contract. If the Caymanians are not willing to accept his wage structure because they thought they could do better elsewhere then that is their problem.
I’m all for Caymanians having priority access for all new jobs but they need to be realistic with their wage demands and need to put some backbone into their work, not just expect to get a job based on passport.
Arrest him and you will have created a folk hero whose time has come. Arrest any construction company principals who falsely told immigration that they had used their "best efforts" to employ a qualified Caymanian, and the situation might start being diffused.
But I also thought the Law enforcement authorities were also supposed to be ensuring that no work permits are issued where there is a qualified Caymanian ready, able and willing to do the work. There were 6 expatriates on that site, and Billy and his band of 90 have had no work for months. What exactly do you expect to happen in these circumstances?
Do those posters who keep saying so still believe that there is work available for any Caymanian that want it?
Have you not been seeing what direction the boats been sailing?
This is my logic, on one hand they say "oh protect the Caymanian jobs if they got qualified/willing individuals around" on the other hand “The government is broke and raising fees from right to left to increase income" one of the biggest revenue generators for government is all them work permit fees, all the fee increases had a negative impact and they ended up deeper in the hole
So think about it for a second, do you really expect them to refuse paying customers when they walk in to “buy” a work permit?
Before people start blaming and quoting scripture and all sorts…..
I assume that in the construction industry people must bid for jobs and the person whose bid is most economical for the company gets the contract. So, if the East End Labours’ bid was too high, it would not have been accepted. Please correct me if I am wrong.
Outside of that, you cannot expect unemployed workers to sit idly by and watch this happen without any reaction. Times are difficult in Cayman and tensions are high as people need to work to survive and feed their families. So before we rant and rave about Billy, I think its about time we recognize the seriousness of the situation in Cayman and also realize this incident will most likely NOT be the only.
Out of work Caymanian construction workers are going to find it a hard pill to swallow watching foreign constuction workers work. Whether we agree with it or not THAT is the reality. The same thing happened in the UK when several car manufacturers laid off English workers. The held several strikes in protest of the car manufacturers’ decision to retain workers from other EU countries and even non-EU countries.
If a man cannot earn a living in his own country, what must he do?
AMEN!!! Im glad to know we still men with backbones….
The Capitalist system is designed in such a way as to create higher and higher profits for companies and lower and lower wages. The original intention that "competition would rule the marketplace" and everything would therefore balance itself out "in prosperity for all" is a long gone utopian dream. In tough economic times created by design or by accident (there are no accidents) the opportunity arises to buy up the competition and create powerful monopolies as has happened in the banking industry in the U.S. At this point also, as corporate media bemoans the state of the economy, wages and benefits are pushed ever lower on a desperate public but you will also find an elite who have no fear of an economic decline. Profit margins and the value of stocks of course work in inverse proportion to wages and benefits. They are usually the ones who support "austerity measures".
But there is also a point at which the public can no longer take the full burden of greed, lowered wages, and reduced social programs imposed upon them. That is when "stimulus packages" (using thepeoples’ own money) are devised in order to "jump start" the economy. But, as stated by the recent G-20 meetings you can not "stimulate economies too much or too fast." There has to be a fine balance maintained and that was the purpose of the meeting.
To decide, with the help of industry, what that fine balance should be now that any form of prosperity attained by workers has been wiped out. Quite conveniently also, many industries were bailed out or subsidized with public funds during the "economic crisis".
What all of this means is that it is necessary to keep people hungry enough and desperate enough to maintain a compliant work force. Demands for fair wages and/or working conditions are often superceeded by large numbers of unemployed. Funny how that works.
What all of this should mean to all of us as we witness ourselves working harder and harder for less and less is:
Capitalism sucks.
Finally someone on CNS who is making alot of sense!
He must match the bid and lower contract rates, that way he would get the contract…100% of nothing is nothing…The construction industry regionally has contracted and contracts are being signed at 35% lower value globally…That means everyone takes a hit…Lower your hourly wage and become more productive, business is business…I am all for employing Caymanians first but they need to a). Deliver the work in a timely and correct manner b). Make their bid and pricing competitive.
Raw materials are down, all cost are down, there is no reason why in a recession hourly rates do not come down…I agree a man has to earn a wage, the key word being earn…Taking or demanding a wage based on citizenship will lead to the downfall of the economy.
No arrests???
These are the signs of the times. We have to hold people accountable for their actions reagardless if they feel that they have a valid claim or not. You cannot vandalize people’s property and you cannot cause bodily harm to someone because you feel wronged. There are proper protocols and I fear because this behaviour was not shut down immediately we are sending a very wrong message that such bullying tactics work. I suspect that this will get out of hand and escalate into a free for all throw-down in short order.
The police have a responsibility to maintain law and order and failed to do so today. This will get out hand.
Did you notice the Heineken bottle…………………..honestly what time of the morning are we talking about????
Bullying tactics don’t work? If the Premier himself bullies, XXXXX to suit himself do you really think Mr. Joe Average living in Cayman is going to sit idly by twiddling his thumbs waiting for Immigration or DER (in a self-proclaimed shambles, read above) to act when we have seen from their track record that they rarely intervene to help anyone?
I agree that laws should not be broken, but you can only push people down so much before they lash out. Billy has not broken into someone’s house and stolen their belongings, he has not held up a bank or a shop or conducted a drive by shooting. BIlly, like many other people, is fed up of feeling powerless and decided to do something about it
We may not agree with the action, but the motive is warranted and long overdue.
So the ends justify the means!
We’ll be in a lawless society in short order.
I understand your point and agree with. But its ironic that despite me and Billy being polar opposites, we have one thing in common. Neither of us can find professionalism, justice, or timely action within our Immigration Boards. You see these boards are so inefficient and incapable they are literally destroying Cayman. XXXXX Cayman’s Protection Personnel have failed everyone.
Correction. On review there was one Heineken and one Red Stripe.
Score: Netherlands 1
Jamaica 1
Billy 0
Billy – as you have no other option (immigration, labour, government, employers all not following the law to ensure that Caymanians have first opportunity) I do agree with you. Any Caymanians in other industries where the same is happening going to step forward, or is Government finally going to do something?
Agree 100% with you