warric

Hi Ringo232, in my opinion there are a number of different aspects to consider in your case, particularly because its a police officer position. In reality 60,000 is not a lot (I for one think officers should be paid a hell of a lot more anyway because of what they do) but as with any amount you earn it all depends on how you spend it. I'm equivalently on approx 70,000 and live quite comfortably. I certainly have a higher disposable income in bermuda then I did in Australia.

Two of my mates on the island are actually police officers and from what I understand the force provides affordable accomodation (in fact, if I recall correctly the government recently bought a resort, or part of, to help in this manner), which is pretty good since I found that rent is the biggest expense. Though obviously I can't say for definite on this matter of what the quality of the accomm is like. Furthermore you would expect (once again not definite) that police employment would provide some decent incentives/perks. So I would say its important to find out what sort of incentives and benefits are included.

I also know the police are having issues with the government at the moment (they only had some sort of strike/parade thing to raise awareness of the issue a couple of months ago). I think it has basically arisen because the employment contracts have expired and the officers are owed like a year or two in backpay. One of my friends is owed over 10,000 last I heard. The thing is that the government is not wanting to pay the millions owed to the officers. So from what i gather things are a little tense between the two parties. This is all from what I last heard (and could of been sorted out by now - though I seriosuly doubt it), as I have been on holiday overseas for the last two months and am due to return to Bermdua soon.

Theres prob more that I could write, however I can't think of anything else at the moment. So definitely find out what benefits are included in the contract particularly pertaining to accommodation.

Ringo232

thankyou very much for the constructive and swift reply. yes i have heard that officers are not to happy over there at the moment but hope the quality of life out weighs this ? as for the accomodation yes they say it will cost 300 - 500 a month which does not sound bad to me, however it all depends where it will be. i have also heard they have bought a cottage colony somewhere on the island so i'll have to try and find out where and what its like. as for perks i believe medical is included but i am unsure what else is yet, another question that i will have to ask on the interview. i know its most probably a typical kind of question but i've scoured the net regarding taxes on employment that people pay in bermuda but its unclear. can you clarify ? the job itself would be for a short term of around 5 years i guess so does this mean that i would pay the same as bermudan citizens ? it does sound a really nice place to be though. thanks again.

warric

Theres no doubt Bermuda is a fun place to spend a year or two (or more if you really really like it), the important thing is to be open to new experiences, and be willing to adapt to (what I think) is a somewhat complex and paradoxical culture. I for one found that I had the odd bad day where some sort of comment would be made, but the fact of the matter is that you get that no matter what country you're in. Either way I think the quality of life makes it all worth it, and there are lots of cool experiences and local events to check out.

Otherwise, 300-500 a month is great for rent (once again I should reiterate that the quality can vary), when I started they provided my accomm, which in my opinion was perfectly fine. However some other people I know thought it was atrocious. The cottage colony may even be the place I am thinking of.

If you don't mind my asking, what country are you coming from? Regarding tax, essentially you pay very little (mine amounted to approximately 5% of what I earned). As far as I know everyone just pays the same tax, but don't quote me on this. Regarding 5 years, you will find that it is way to long or way to short. I for one would be unlikely to stay that long because of my profession, but I would make a point of finding out how much notice you have to give before leaving, for instance I have to give 2-3 months notice.

Another site that might be of interest to you is (SNIP) (you will be redirected to (SNIP) but that is all part of a joke). Its a pretty friendly bermuda-based forum. read through threads in the introduce yourself section first, since that is where most newcomers post their questions and if you have further questions feel free to ask away since there is a wealth of knowledge available from the forum members. Furthermore if I recal correctly one of the member is a expat police office (possibly blahblah) so make sure to mention that your a police office in any posts or thread names to get his attention.

Lastly, Bermuda is a great place, go in with your eyes open, be prepared for a bit of culture shock (depending on the size of the city you're coming from - Bermuda has about 65,000 people I think) and just try to have fun.

hope this helps, cheers.

Ringo232

thank you again for your in depth reply and have looked on the website that you mentioned. i live in the United Kingdom so would be travlelling from there. i am bound to think of a few more questions so will ask them when i do. thanks for your help and it will be one hell of a big decision that i soon may have to make

movin'on

We lived there for 7 years and just left a few months ago...been there, done it, seen it, we know all...so if there is anything further or more specific, please ask, we miss it very much but are now considerably better off....cheers

swoopy91

hello, i'm a uk officer currently in the Cayman Islands.....wondering if you took the job and how it's going.....quite fancy Bermuda and wondered what the pay and condtions were like there. We have it pretty good here.