Bermuda

Old Nov 30th 2004, 4:58 pm
  #1  
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Default Bermuda

Hi, I am just doing a research paper here on bermuda. Can anyone please help me answer this questions. Help is greatly appreciated.

1) What is the minimum wage in Bermuda?
2) what are the general attitude towards women in the workplace?
3) Are their any racial minorities in bermuda? What is the attitude towards them?
4) How is the education system there?

Thanks
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Old Nov 30th 2004, 8:38 pm
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Default Re: Bermuda

Originally Posted by cheerfuldaisy
Hi, I am just doing a research paper here on bermuda. Can anyone please help me answer this questions. Help is greatly appreciated.

1) What is the minimum wage in Bermuda?
2) what are the general attitude towards women in the workplace?
3) Are their any racial minorities in bermuda? What is the attitude towards them?
4) How is the education system there?

Thanks
Try this site: http://www.bermuda-online.org

Jeremy
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Old May 29th 2005, 1:06 pm
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Default Re: Bermuda

Originally Posted by cheerfuldaisy
Hi, I am just doing a research paper here on bermuda. Can anyone please help me answer this questions. Help is greatly appreciated.

1) What is the minimum wage in Bermuda?
2) what are the general attitude towards women in the workplace?
3) Are their any racial minorities in bermuda? What is the attitude towards them?
4) How is the education system there?

Thanks

I presume you've already looked at www.gov.bm

If you type in "census" and do a search, you may be able to get the info you need. The 2002 census is the most recent - it gives all info on wages, racial mix etc, education etc.

If you don't have any joy, PM me and I will look at my copy of the census - I have it on my desk at work.
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Old Jun 2nd 2005, 1:34 pm
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Thumbs down Re: Bermuda

Hi there,

I've been living in Bermuda for 2 years now, so I thought I'd reply to your question.

There is no set minimum wage that I'm aware of. Some waiters / waitresses work for tips only. The average ex-pat office worker will take home around $3000 per month. This may sound a lot, but once you factor the high cost of living, expensive rents, food, etc, you won't have much spare change.

The biggest obstacle you will face in the workplace is your race / ethnicity. Bermuda is locked in a time warp when it comes to race and I suffer racism ( as an English white male ) on a daily basis. I'm made to feel very unwelcome and constantly receive jibes about taking a Bermudians job. The fact that no one is qualified to do my job doesn't matter.

Ex-pats are generally unwelcome in Bermuda and most Bermudians blame us for the rise in house prices, high prices for rented accommodation and road congestion! The local newspapers constantly print letters and articles aimed at ex-pat bashing, which further incites racial hatred.

You ask about minorities - well, you will probably be a minority as the racial mix is 60% black, 40% other ( you haven't said what your ethnicity is, so you may fit into another category). Add the large local Portuguese population into the 40% white and the real figure for whites probably stands around 15%. It is a difficult place to live as a white ex-pat.

Race is a real tinderbox here and I constantly feel as though I'm walking on eggshells.

Schools - My fiancé is a teacher here, so I can tell you a lot about the schools. Don't even contemplate putting your kids into state schools - they're horrendous. The government schools system is failing the kids, with only 8% of kids passing their middle school exams. My fiancé teaches the last year of middle school ( 13-14yrs ) and the kids she taught here this year are at a much lesser standard than the 10-11 yr old UK kids she taught before we moved here! Some cannot even read or write !

Private schools are the only way to go if you value your kids education, but they charge around $14,000 per child. Check out the websites for Saltus, Bermuda High School For Girls and Warwick Academy for a more exact figure.

As a white ex-pat in the workplace, you will be the lowest of the low. The attitude by most Black Bermudian men towards women in the workplace is generally poor. We have friends working in offices who absolutely hate their job / bosses.

I know you're probably thinking why am I here? Well, the island is beautiful, the weather is warm ( not tropical ) and the lifestyle is laid back. Work is only an 8 hour interruption to your social life.

I kept reminding myself of all this over the last two years. Unfortunately, I've now had enough of the constant taunts, being blamed for things I have had nothing to do with ( slavery and colonisation ) and I'm sick of the current government overtly supporting racist issues. I'm leaving in August and it can't come soon enough.

All this is purely my own opinion. You may be lucky. If I could tell you one thing, it would be to think long and hard about moving to a country where you will be a minority.

I'm sorry if this message sounds bitter. I'm not trying to put anyone off; I think it's important that we all paint a true picture of, rather than romanticising, ex-pat living.

Good luck in what ever you choose.


1) What is the minimum wage in Bermuda?
2) what are the general attitude towards women in the workplace?
3) Are their any racial minorities in bermuda? What is the attitude towards them?
4) How is the education system there?

Thanks [/QUOTE]
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Old Jun 4th 2005, 2:50 am
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Default Re: Bermuda

Dear Submersiblesid

I feel I have to respond to your thread as I am also a white English expat living in Bermuda. It is true that everyone's experience is different and I respect your opinion. I have lived her now for 5 years. I was here previously for a year and returned to England to retrain. I now work as a secondary school teacher, and therefore I can relate to some of what your fiancee has said in terms of the Govt school system. It is horrendous (at the high school level), but having worked in some awful schools in London, Bermuda's problems are nothing unusual! It's all about perspective.

I have friends who are policemen here and yes, I'm sure I've heard them complain about the frustrations of working as an expat in a foriegn force. Promotion prospects are minimal and racism is rife. But, from what I've heard, the benefits far outweigh the costs. Unfortunately the police force here are extremely underpaid, considering they do such an important job. If you're doing the conversion to UK pounds, with the current exchange rate, the salary in UK forces would probably look significantly more attractive.

If the "average" salary for an office worker is just $3,000 per month that is an extremely low salary (I pay more in rent every month!) There's no doubt that to enjoy a decent way of life here, you have to earn a good salary, or you'd end up miserable when there's so much obvious wealth all around you.

I'm not arguing that there isn't truth in what you've written. The whole CURE (Commission for Racial Equality) thing is bullshit and the narrowmindedness of Island people grates on the nerves..... BUT.... having lived here, gone back to the UK, lived elsewhere in Europe, Australia etc etc, I still believe that Bermuda is a wonderful place to live and, if you earn a good salary, nowhere else on earth respresents a better lifestyle!

Good luck

Last edited by Emz; Jun 4th 2005 at 3:10 am.
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Old Jun 16th 2005, 4:59 pm
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Default Re: Bermuda

Originally Posted by Emz

I'm not arguing that there isn't truth in what you've written. The whole CURE (Commission for Racial Equality) thing is bullshit and the narrowmindedness of Island people grates on the nerves..... BUT.... having lived here, gone back to the UK, lived elsewhere in Europe, Australia etc etc, I still believe that Bermuda is a wonderful place to live and, if you earn a good salary, nowhere else on earth respresents a better lifestyle!

Good luck
My husband, my daughter and I lived in Bermuda for 3 years. He was an executive and we had a good salary, but our rent was $5000 a month and living costs are the highest in the world - I think that is actually a fact. You would pay a dollar for one tomato, and not a very good one at that. It was not unusual for a meal out for 2 to cost $250 - needless to say, we didn't eat out often! So we found it very difficult to make ends meet, even on a good salary.

It is also true about the "reverse racism" unfortunately. I used to be upset by the way I was treated in stores - checkout girls waiting for a white to get to the head of the queue and then walk off leaving you standing there. This was a frequent occurence - sounds trivial but it gets to you!

Yet expats were the making of their wealth. Many Bermudians don't work at all. The scenario goes like this. Young man inherits house from parent. He rents out the house at an exhorbitant rent to a foreigner and moves in with relatives or friends. Pockets anything up to $20,000 a month in rent (yes, some houses are rented for as much as that) and never needs to work. You should see the cars they drive on the island, and considering there is a 200% import duty you can imagine how much those Merc and Beamers cost once they're shipped in.

Strangely they feel exploited by the overseas companies which have set up business there. But without them the country would have high unemployment and poverty. Instead, there is a job for every Bermudian who wants one, at twice the rate they pay to foreign whites sitting beside them in the same office.

People leave in droves with their hands in the air, unless you have a very plum job indeed. And the weather isn't that great, it's hot and humid much of the year, rains a lot in winter, has limited scope for entertainment etc. I would never go back, never.

Can only be seen as a good stepping stone on the career track, seriously, because the government restricts how long foreigners can stay to what I belive is an absolute max of 7 years now.

Oh joy!
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Old Jun 28th 2005, 2:35 pm
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Default Re: Bermuda

Originally Posted by cheerfuldaisy
Hi, I am just doing a research paper here on bermuda. Can anyone please help me answer this questions. Help is greatly appreciated.

1) What is the minimum wage in Bermuda?
2) what are the general attitude towards women in the workplace?
3) Are their any racial minorities in bermuda? What is the attitude towards them?
4) How is the education system there?

Thanks
1) I don´t think there is any minimum wage in Bermuda as there is , for all intents and purposes no unemployment problem- basically if you are unemployed it´s because you either want to be or you are unfit for employment, eg drug addict etc. If you really want to confirm this, I can get it for you.
2) There is no discrimination against women in the workplace. You need to appreciate that there is a great demand for anyone who is competent at anything, and immigration rules are extremely tight, so employers are very happy to employ women.
3) There racial minorities in that there are the people who are " David´s Islanders", basically those who are descendents of the Portuguese who were the first to settle on the island. Certain of them settled on David´s Island which seem to live as if in a different world, and don´t want to be part of the rest of Bermuda. There is no discrimination against them though.
4) There is public and private eductaion. The public education is based on the British syatem, with British teachers. It is not as good as the private system though as the pupils tend to be mainly children of the black community who aren´t particulalry interested in getting a good education ( mainly hotel workers etc).
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