OBA's First Year: 1166 Jobs Lost, 261 Companies Shut Down

The employment statistics released yesterday should be alarming to all who call Bermuda home.  The governing OBA promised Bermuda 2,000 jobs, yet in their first year as government, total job losses stand at 1,166.  This is horrific news from a government who campaigned on the slogan "JOBS!'.

The past year has seen companies repeatedly put profits before people, feeding shareholders' pockets rather than employees mouths; laying Bermudians off to be replaced either by cheaper foreign labour, or outsourcing the job overseas. Meanwhile, we see International Businesses report record profits, while local companies are eliminating longstanding benefits on which their Bermudian employees rely. The sacrifice being felt in Bermuda has not been shared equally.  The sacrifice seems to be limited to one segment of the population, the Bermudian working class. These job losses put mortgages and students’ education in jeopardy and erode the hope of our people. 

The OBA is totally disconnected from the hurt and pain being felt by many Bermudians during this time, especially those who placed their trust in the OBA to govern our country. While the Premier talks about incomes on the rise - more and more Bermudians continue to work more for less, seeing hours cut, and are struggling to make ends meet. While the Premier talks about record number of company incorporations, his own statistics show that 261 companies closed down last year. These 261 businesses that closed last year left Bermudians struggling to find alternative employment, and drove them toward the United Kingdom and the United States looking for work options.

The OBA's mandate of change has been squandered and the people of this country have been betrayed by their lack of action and consistent focus on only what is best for business. Bermuda's survival depends on this Government getting it right. The bold action they promised the people has been non-existent. Turning the clock back to 1980s and 90s policies of crossing one's fingers and hoping to win a beauty contest of offshore jurisdictions is not cutting edge enough to stimulate our economy.

We cannot build an economy for the future with ideas from the last century, we must look forward and be bold. This is why we have called for immediate action on online gaming; immediate action on alternative energy investments; immediate action on freeing up local industry from unnecessary regulation, which is stifling the creativity of our entrepreneurs; and the establishment of a Bermuda Fund to attract new job creating industries to our shores.