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If you're a smart motivated
If you're a smart motivated Caymanian the best thing you can do is go away for a couple of years to London or New York and get some experience there. You make it there and get good references and there is no way any one can accuse you of being a lazy Caymanian relying on pro-Caymanian legislation to get by.
Some look at the posts on
Some look at the posts on here and say it is expat vs local and yes there is some truth in it. You see as a Caymanian I do believe that their are Caymanians being lazy. I do believe that there are Caymanians setting a bad example for other Caymanians. There are Caymains out there that do believe that because that are Caymanians they should get everything.
However there are also Caymanians out there that are hard working and there are expats that are lazy and getting away with things. Tell me how should some of these Caymanians thing when they know that their bosses are prejudised against them. So that even if they work hard they will not get credit.
so it is a mixed bag. Both are right and both are wrong. Just depends on your own personal experiences.
Education and Experience
It is the combination of both education and experience which is the principle barrier to entry for Caymanians in the local work-place. To speak to the question directly, I would add that a centrally planned and co-ordinated program of post-graduate work-place experience is sadly lacking.
Many multi-national companies operate in the Cayman Islands and there is no reason why their Business Staffing Plans should not be conditional upon offering a fully or partially funded annual two year graduate trainee program undertaken in their offices outside of Cayman Islands. This could be formally linked to the number of work permits granted per annum on a sliding scale of contribution. (Fractional contributions could be pooled to create critical mass.)
There will always be a market for bright young graduates returning to the Cayman Islands but this is, by necessity, limited to entry-level positions. Consider that the companies that operate in the Financial Services sector in Cayman are premium service providers with a differentiated offering (Cayman is not a low-cost provider jurisdiction). Ipso facto these companies simply can not offer many trainee or entry level positions, as their business model dictates that the staff they employ must have expert skills.
However, Caymanians returning to the islands with a degree and two years of post-graduate work experience gained (elsewhere) through a structured program would be in very,very high demand indeed. There is no inherent discrimination towards Caymanians in the work place per se, simply an understandable reluctance for many employers to take on staff with a long and steep learning curve to follow before they can make an effective contribution.
In summary, if applicant parity = education + experience the answer (partially at least) lies with Government and with the voting population. Lobby for a structured post-graduate training scheme and tie it to some combination of Trade & Business Licenses; Work Permits and/or Business Staffing Plans.
It is already required by the
It is already required by the immigration law - but it has been ignored by the authorities and many employers with impunity for at least a generation. By the time some expats and Caymanians are found to have (at best) been misleading as to their efforts to train and promote local people, the Caymanians smile and say, you cannot touch me, I am Caymanian, and the expat smiles and says, you cannot touch me, I am NOW a Caymanian too.
This is just another example of adequate laws coupled with inadequate enforcement undermining the ability of these Islands and their people to succeed at anything like their potential.
Unfortunately your central
Unfortunately your central premise is wrong.
Sadly applicant parity will not be achieved by your plan because it is impossible. It is true that Cayman's awful secondary school system is a major factory in preventing Caymanians achieving their potential.
Post-graduate education can only have a certain impact on a quality of a candidate (very little in my experience and I have a post-graduate degree).
Rather the insuperable hurdle is the natural bell curve and the limited Caymanian population. 30,000 people cannot compete for talent with the pools available from Canada, UK, Australia and the US. Top companies need high end people to maintain their position and reputation and as a raw matter of statistics Cayman cannot hope to supply any more than it already does. That is not anti-Caymanian, the same argument would be true for a population that size in England or Ontario.
All your plan would achieve would be to impose added cost burdens on Cayman's employers.
Incompetence might be a tie
Incompetence might be a tie for poor attitude.
I am ashamed
As an expat, I am whole heartedly ashamed and disappointed in the comments posted by the majority of expats on this site. The ignorance and the unwillingness to understand Cayman as a country is disturbing. Why are so many of the expats so angry toward Caymanians, I don't get it. You are here doing a job and earning a wage that you would not ordinarily be able to back in the country you previously resided in, and i'm sure most of you have a pretty nice life. Most of you will earn your money, save it and go back home with a nice little earner. Why the anger prejudice and hatred. Its easy to see that a large proportion of the expat community live and socialise together, most Canadians, English and Americans (among others) don't have any respect for anyone else here on the island. A large amount of these expats are racist and prejudist and always have an excuse for being so. Cayman is very different to the UK, Canada or the US, it has grown a huge amount in a very short space of time, this brings with it its own unique problems. Having almost the same amount of expats to the number of Caymanians is difficult, most other countries would not be able to function this way. Cayman is trying to make the most of its good and deal with its bad, but it will take time. The UK, Canada and the US all have a whole heap of issues of their own so please people stop throwing stones, if you don't like it you can go home. This is home for Caymanians and of course they have pride, wouldn't you?, of course they are defensive, if being attacked so frequently, wouldn't you? The education system here maybe failing them right now but things will hopefully change in the future and Caymanians will find a real reason to be educated, not just to get given the jobs deemed necessary by the immigration rules.
Please stop hating, start understanding, try to get to know people, let them know you give sh*t, you might get a completely different response.
There is too much lip
There is too much lip service. Its one thing to be tough and impose high standards with the best interest of employees in mind and another to use toughness and high standards as a way (smoke screen) to impose the glass ceiling. Rather than enabling and challenging people to reach their potential, it becomes a barrier, as intended.
People are not stupid, they know difference, even if many of us don't articulate it in what some would consier a "sophisticated" manner. We are watching and we are taking notes!
Ignorance
The biggest obstacle to Caymanians in the workforce are themselves, and their sense of entitlement. I lived in the Cayman Islands for 11 years and during that time all I saw was young ignorant children with no experience who thought that simply owning to the fact that they were "Caymanian" that everyone owed them something. They were not willing to start at the bottom and work hard for what they wanted.
I was there for a few years
I was there for a few years and saw a few of those, but I also saw some very hard working and bright young people who would run circles around some of the useless dog xxxxers back home. Don't paint the whole island with your brush, which is plainly coloured with the stain of your own prejudice.
Maybe you needed to get out more ?
"I lived in the Cayman
"I lived in the Cayman Islands for 11 years and during that time ALL (my emphasis) I saw was young ignorant children with no experience who thought that simply owning to the fact that they were "Caymanian" that everyone owed them something".
That is ALL you saw?! Generalizations are the mother of prejudice. It is understandable then why some Caymanians feel they are hampered by prejudice.
Just look at Cayman now.
Just look at Cayman now. Look where its headed and why. Pure proof of what you saw in action. The "your wrong" all evidence to the contrary post? Just more proof. You can lead a "True Caymanian to the truth but then they would have to make a choice.
How dare you come to our
How dare you come to our Country and talk down to our kids? You are the one that is ignorant and have no sense of humor. If you do not like our way of living here then I suggest you take the next banana boat back to where you belong you jerk! Our Children here in Cayman is no different from your racist/bigot children in your Country. The problem you have with our Children is that you are grudgeful you don't have what they have. By the way did you know that we are one of the richest Country in the world? By the way we are tax free too. That's reasons why you had to come here and work right?
How do I dare? well its very
How do I dare? well its very easy to talk 'down' to those who are soo ignorant. For instance I don't live or work in Cayman! But you are ignorant of that fact. I live in a country were children are still considered "gifts" and are treated as such but you are ignorant of that. I am glad my children and myselfe don't have what your children have. But you are ignorant of that. The businessess on Cayman make it one of the richest countries but because of YOUR leaders it is quickly sinking down. Your are Tax free BUT fee,duty,permit,etc.etc, rich and have one of the HIGHEST cost of living. But well Ignorance is bliss right? You would know.
Hmmm. I think I met your
Hmmm. I think I met your son. A smart-ass n'er-do-well with nothing but disrespect for everyone around him. Which, as you point out, is similar to some young people in other countries.
However, many young people are just as we were at that age, smarter than we're given credit for, unsure how we fit into society, worried about the future and what is to come, wanting to do well - the kind of young people who don't cause trouble and are a real joy to get to know. Many young people around the world are just fine, including many Caymanians.
No, I think the problem people have with some young people is that ignorant parents with no sense of humor are teaching the young people that their birthright is, that is, something they should expect (even from their elders) without ever having earned it is... respect. Respect is not given to punks. Respect is earned and freely given to respectful young men and women in the Cayman Islands.
You could learn a thing or two from them.
I met her son also. He was
I met her son also. He was cutting his way through the screen in my window to help himself to what he thought he was intitled to. Of course he ran away rather then face responsibility. That was 4 years ago. The only thing that has changed is he now has a gun.
I vote for all of the above!
I vote for all of the above!
Err, you probably can't do
Err, you probably can't do that because some are logically inconsistent with others.
Having worked in HR briefly I
Having worked in HR briefly I can speak about one thing which I am sure of...many Caymanians are not educated enough. It amazes me to see cover letters and resumes sent in that are so bad, you don't even want to read past the first line. The spelling and punctuation/ grammar are terrible. Having email addresses like sexymamita89 don't help either. It's sad to say but as a Caymanian, I sometimes feels embarrassed. 90% of the time, these horrific employment applications are from Caymanians (who seemingly have not been taught in school how to write or appear professional). And then we wonder why Caymanians don't seem to get the jobs...while many of the expats do. Most of the best resumes are not from Caymanians, I can assure you.
Caymanians, please stop coming straight out of high school and thinking that making a few bucks at a customer service position in a bank is more important than education. Expensive car loans and wasting money every night in the club also aren't effective. You have the rest of your lives to work and make money...focus on your education first. Without a degree, it will be particularly hard for you to move up the chain of command in a professional environment.
If you can, go away to school in a different country! I can't stress the importance of outside exposure. It makes you more well rounded, better able to adapt, and gives you and edge over others. Many of you who do not do this, will be the first ones in a few years time to say "I'm sick of the BS because I can't get a job when all these "expats" are coming in and taking them." Attending school in a different place shows the employer you are capable of moving out of your comfort zone. When a school is highly ranked, this will also give you and edge over the local institutions. I'm not saying not to attend UCCI or ICCI. I went there for two years before transferring to aFlorida
I agree. They can say you
I agree. They can say you don't have experience, but they can't take away your education.
With the term "Caymanian"
With the term "Caymanian" floating around so loosely nowadays. I wonder what your classification of one would be?
I agree that, as in any other place in the world, Cayman does have a lot of uneducated people. That is not a crime; a country cannot expect all of its people to be educated at a college or even high school level. I don't understand what the writer is trying to say... is it that expats are more educated than Caymanians?
Can someone please explain to me why is it that when 'Caymanians' do go off to college/ university and obtain degrees that when they try to seek employment, they find it so difficult to get a job? What is the excuse there? Because I know of many persons who have Associates and Bachelor degree's and still are unemployed.. It is so easy to find reasons to be against hiring Caymanians isn't it? I see many foreigners walking around employed. Some of them I know for a fact that they cannot speak proper English, cannot use grammar correctly, have no customer service, had no proper experience, come to work- do nothing except think that they can dictate to the 'poor' Caymanians what they should be doing! I will not go any further there...
Lastly, why is it that some people seem to think that having a piece of paper that says that 'I attended or graduated from University of XZY' country is more important than saying that they went to UCCI or ICCI. I do not see why that would make one candidate more suitable than the other. If it was Harvard or Yale, then I could see.. but I don't otherwise. Personally if I was in HR, I would look for someone that I knew more about, instead of taking their word for it that they were educated in Timbuktu and worked at IBM. References can be made up and certificates can be bought online, or so I've heard.
In tough times employers
In tough times employers always retreat to security by hiring from "name" institutions rather than taking risks by hiring graduates from less regarded colleges.
Having Worked in HR briefly
I agree with you on some aspects. However I totally disagree with you regarding the place of furthering our education. As a full time employee, mother and student I took my education very serious. I didn't have time to waste and always balanced my home, work and school equally, as did a lot of fellow Caymanians and expats. Sometimes I wonder if the same can be said for students studying overseas. If I were an employer, I would give a higher rating to someone with those qualities as opposed to someone capable of moving out of their "comfort zone". As for attending the local colleges, it works against us when we encounter HR personnell such as yourself, who think Cayman is encapable of providing excellent education.
All evidence to the contrary.
All evidence to the contrary.
Results win the prizes,
Results win the prizes, effort levels are irrelevant.
In English, adverbs of manner
In English, adverbs of manner (answering the question how?) are often formed by adding -ly to adjectives. For example, "I took my education very serious" should read, "I took my education very seriously".
Adverbial functions are usually taught in grade 6 or earlier, which provides further merit to the statements above.
In English, adverbs of manner
For your information, the only further merit you have provided is the fact that you all think the Cayman Islands will sink without your "knowledge". Furthermore, I went on to further my education and one of my highest grades was obtained in English 101.( and before you make any snide remarks, my final mark in that subject was 99.80% which gave me an A+) The Professor happened to have been from the United States. The following semester I received another A+ in English 102. So you see just because I rushed through comments I made on-line during my lunch hour is definitely not the way I perform my duties at work. I am very serious when it comes to my work and have always maintained that "doing it right the first time" is what it takes to make an excellent employee. So before you sit there and meticulously tear apart my comments get together with your fellow expats and try to figure out how to make it with Caymanians. Stop believing that your sh..t is never stink and your mistakes are inadvertent omissions but Caymanians' mistakes are stupidity.
"[P]ersonell" and
"[P]ersonell" and "encapable" do not help the either.
"[P]ersonell" and
"[P]ersonell" and "encapable" do not help the either.
Oh boy just to my point . Your mistakes should be overlooked because we are too dumb. Stop being so childish in trying to cry other people down. Haven't you heard "people in glass houses shoudn't throw stones". check your grammar before checking mine. By the way, why the capital P in personnel? If I had written HR staff would you have written "Staff". Oh yes and what is with "do not help the either"?... or is that a perfect sentence sanctified by the foreign schools? I am truly amazed but not surprised that you would tear apart my comments to bring down Caymanians when the "supposed to be Caymanian" ( I still have my doubts ) writer of "HAVING WORKED IN HR BRIEFLY" could get by with the sentence below, you know like "I sometimes feels embarrased" but I guess that writer could get by with that because he/she was downgrading Caymanians.
" It's sad to say but as a Caymanian, I sometimes feels embarrassed. 90% of the time"
tsk, tsk-
The capital "P" indicates the start of a sentence- again, 6th grade taught...
"tsk, tsk"
To the STUPID "tsk, tsk" writer. Obviously you haven't reached 6th grade. My "personnel" was not at the beginning of my sentence, so therefore the writer's reference was not about starting a sentence with a capital "P". Therefore the "P" in rounded brackets in personnel was not called for. It was obvious you thought personnel should have had a capital "P". I would suggest before you waste your time on the internet trying to make Caymanians look like idiots, pick up a few books and read them, you just may learn something. It's still not too late for you.
You were doing very well on
You were doing very well on that high horse of yours until you had to go one step too far with this post. The only reason for the capitalisation of the "P" in "personell" (sic) was because it was at the start of a sentence and the brackets were there to indicate that the quotation had been altered from its original format.
Try some anger management therapy, because that must be hampering your career progression. Your attitude is representative of the most popular response to the poll above.
To "Mr. Dick Shaughneary"
To "Mr. Dick Shaughneary" (correct name?)
I may have been on my high horses but I was still looking at the belly of the horse you were on. Maybe you were going too fast to realize that if you were going to correct my mistakes you should have ensured there were no mistakes in your "correction" . Webster's dictionary will show you that "personnel" is spelt this way. As for anger mangement, this goes back to what I said before, there is always an excuse for your screw ups. I get angry and I need "anger management", you all get angry and you just "lose your cool". Well take this bit of information with you. I am a born and bred Caymanian who has all intention of remaining here for the rest of my life, unless God sees otherwise, and not you or anyone else. I am one who believes if I want to succeed in my career I have to work for it and do what is necessary to accomplish that. One thing I will not do, is try to put other people down to get there. I will get there on my own merit. As for my career, it's going just the way I want it to. I wanted a change in my career and I wasn't afraid to take the plunge. I knew that a switch would require me going back to school and would also mean that I would have to start at the bottom to get to the top. I thought this over and talked it over with my family and did just that. I graduated with my Bsc. and even though I had an offer of a better paying job it was not in the field I had chosen. I chose to go with the lower pay for two reasons. I wanted to set an example for my young son. I wanted him to realize education was the key to a better paying job but that you also had to work your way up, and secondly, to gain the experience I needed. I am sorry if you think I need anger management, but my mother taught me not to let any one demean me and always stand up for what I believe. So if that bothered you maybe you should try some lessons in psychology. I've had enough of this back and forth now. As you can see I am one Caymanian that is not shaken by your ridicule and will not curl up and hide. I will say what I have to say. Another lesson learned from my mother, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never harm me". So find someone else to attack now, I have to go and study for my ACCA exams, I have no more time for this back and forth as you will never hamper my progress in my career.
Well Rachel Ebanks you have
Well Rachel Ebanks you have certainly proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that poor attitude ( but not knowing they have it) is at the very least ONE one Caymanians biggest obstacle to getting a job and in life in general. Thank you for very nicely clearing that up for everyone.
Well done Ms. Ebanks. I guess
Well done Ms. Ebanks. I guess the writer thinks it is now poor attitude since you wouldn't allow them to walk all over you. If we sit back and let them have their way with us then we would be perfect employees.
You just knew should would
You just knew should would always want to have the last word didn't you readers?
"Webster's dictionary will show you that "personnel" is spelt this way" I know that. I was not the one spelling it wrongly in the first place, you were. That was what the "(sic)" was for - to show that the quoted passage, while an accurate quote, contained an error.
PS: Good luck with your exams. I hope you do well.
To Dick Shaughneary, I had
To Dick Shaughneary,
I had said there wouldn't be anymore back and forth, but I felt I needed to respond to this one. I don't know if you have realized it yet, but most Caymanians like to give people the benefit of the doubt. This is why I have responded, and it's not to your negative response but rather to your added comment. I would truly like to believe that you are genuinely wishing me well in my exams, so I'd like to say "thank you, I know I will do well". I have the will and determination. During my four years of college I've lost a son to murder and my mother died suddenly in my last year of school leaving me to deal with her death, school and raise an eleven year old alone, but I was determined to finish. So you see, if I could make it through all that tragedy I am sure I'll manage my exams. So once again "thank you".
Dick Dick Dick...You FUBARed
Dick Dick Dick...You FUBARed the opening line again!
Now where's my ED medicine? I got a prescription for the new liquid form of Mydixaflop. The doctor said that with this new stuff I can go home after work and immediately pour myself a stiff one!
Dick hangs his head in shame.
Dick hangs his head in shame. . . I am taking this one [P]ersonell[y] (sic).
Going back to your earlier
Going back to your earlier post, perhaps you can explain the grammar in "your sh.t is never stinks..."
Case closed - failed English 103.
I was enjoying this drama and
I was enjoying this drama and continued laughing but I have to respond to this one. I think maybe you need glasses. I didn't see where the writer said "your sh.t is never stinks.." she didn't add the "s" to stink
Thank you for your well
Thank you for your well balanced post. From an HR aspect I have seen the same, and I find it very saddening.
I worked hard to get my
I worked hard to get my further education. I am an expat who has been here for 8 years, married to a Caymanian. I see the discrimination both ways. It's very expensive to send your child away from Cayman for a college education, but companies want college educated people. And I hear it alllllllll the time, about how I came here to marry their men and take their jobs. Well, I got myself a college education as well as a master's degree. And I didnt force my husband to marry me. I worked hard to get where I am today. If everyone were to work as hard and realize that a college education is what will help you succeed, then perhaps there would be more Caymanians in the offices, workplaces, etc.
AND I bet you pay your
AND I bet you pay your garbage fees! You are not one of them! Be proud, live long and prosper! Please have children and teach them your way. Cayman will be better for it. And lots of Caymanians will discrimanate against you but who can care about those who care not about themselves?
I don't.
I don't.
"One of them"? Come on
"One of them"?
Come on now...surely with a little effort you can find a better choice of words...and in the process be more helpful.
Many Caymanians pay their garbage fees. Your post seems to seek only to divide and doesn't make sense...
Get the chip off your
Get the chip off your shoulder please. The biggest obstacle keeping hard working ,honest,and responsible Caymanians from doing better in their own country is the non working, dishonest, unresponsible Caymanians that everyone has to deal with. However I will strive to make my meanings clearer. All the best.
Not "one of them"
I'm sorry Joe, but I dont quite understand what you are trying to say!
I call myself an expat because I am not Caymanian. My Caymanian husband and I have children. Teach them whose way?!? They have grown up in Cayman and aside from a few vacations to my country of birth, they know only Cayman and we are raising them to be Caymanian and proud of their heritage.
I can cook Caribbean food as well as the next Caribbean cook - oxtail, curry goat, cowfood, salt beef rundown, just as I can cook a good ole American thanksgiving turkey or homestyle meatloaf just like my Mom made. I like to think that I have done well assimilating myself into the Cayman lifestyle. I have more Caymanian friends than expats, my children go to government school and not expensive private schools.
I hoep to raise my children to be productive members of Caymanian society and they will, by the way, go to college most likely in the US, hopefully to my alma mater, Georgetown University. I simply want to them to raise up proud of who they are and where they call home.
And I go home most days from work believing that I did well that day and most days because I have the experience from living orking and studying in many different countries, not that I am an expat and am better than anyone else.
Thanks.
As Caymanian children you
As Caymanian children you could send them to an English university at vastly lower cost and for three years not four.
Perhaps they could go cheaper
Perhaps they could go cheaper in the UK. but I dont know much about that system of education, I do not know much about the colleges and universities in Europe or the UK. My family is in the US and that's probably where I would lean towards sending them. Also, as US citizens as well, they have the opportunity to receive scholarships, US government-backed student loans (if those still exist in 15 years!) and grants etc to help offset the price of their college education. But by that point, they will be 17 years old and will be able to help decide where they will go to college. My point is not so much WHERE they will go to college, but that they WILL go to college and then hopefully be able to come bck to their country, to Cayman, and be productive citizens. Education is the key. Hopefully there will be jobs for them, as Caymanians, when they do come back to Cayman from college.
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