Faulty online system the major factor behind work permit backlog
One of the general consensuses emerging from the stakeholders meeting about the issues faced at the Labour Department is that the transition to an online application platform last year has caused a severe backlog in processing work permits.
The Acting Labour Commissioner Michelle McLean said the backlog emerged around July 2021 when the department closed for a few days because of COVID-19. She said the system was launched shortly after but the department experienced some technical difficulties with this new system and that created a further backlog.
“We are working on a system when you upload the information, sometimes it disappears. We are working on a system where we must physically print every paper that you submit to the department. It is time-consuming,” McLean explained.
Labour Minister Vincent Wheatley said if going back to manual will alleviate the current issue then he is willing to do it ‘grudgingly’.
“If it is going to help in anyway, take a day or two off the process then I am willing to do it for a certain period of time. But I do not think the manual is the way to go as we modernise and go into an electronic era. But if it is going to help right now, I will grudgingly say, ‘let us do it’,” Wheatley stated.
He further said the online system was designed and implemented to solve the current issues the department is facing.
“Once the online system is not doing what it is supposed to, then these problems will persist. Someone did suggest earlier that maybe we should remove it altogether and get it out of the way until we get the system fully configured and properly done. I say I am prepared to take that suggestion very seriously. If that is causing the main problem of the backlog and choking off and so forth, then let us do it,” Wheatley continued.
Goal is to make physical visits obsolete
The minister said the goal of his ministry was to seamlessly move everything online to the point where people from the sister islands do not have to physically visit the Labour Offices to process work permits.
“Our ambition was to fully move this thing online to where you could be in Anegada or Jost Van Dyke and apply for your permit and get it issued online and pay for it. I would like to see this happen as quickly as possible. I am not a technical person but six months maximum I would love to have this properly rectified, back online with online payments and seamless movements between Labour and Immigration. That is what I would like to see happen,” Wheatley added.
Late last year, the Labour Minister told the Standing Finance Committee that the proposed online portal was expected to help free up manpower to allow the Labour Department to make a meaningful shift. He said once persons had the ability to pay online, it should free up some capacity where the department could redeploy their focus on the workforce development side as opposed to work permit processing.
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A backlog of 2000+ work permits does not happen over night.. long term VIP incompetence is the real issue here and the solution is for the UK to step in and drain this nasty swamp of corruption..
Why the Government don’t hire a reliable abd competent Networking or ( Technology Consulting Team) to avoid having these discrepancies within these Departments. Tired of lame excuses one after another.
Agreed
Labor needs to step up to the 21st century and get off of those Windows 95 computers.
You acting and cannot even perform properly. Then you will get confirmed to do worst. You sound worst than wheatley, the online system has never been the issue.
You really blaming her for this mess. I know Michelle and she is a doer.
First, you deter expats from coming and refusing work permits because you want to put locals first, Second the locals are not interested in the jobs so you have staff shortage, now its the faulty system. Pick your battle dehman!
The same administration was telling us how this system was going to do so much to improve the processing of permits. The same administration that tried to shut business owners up when they complained about on the launch of this system that it doesn’t work and it’s not practical for the moment? We need to modernize the way we do things, but we also need to be HONEST about if the things we are doing are actually working.
This administration takes us for fools. But the people will ain’t fools and someone needs to remind them of this.
Come on you have to do better. 6 months now waiting for a renewal to be done. Immigration only full because we have to get time every month and leave work and loose 1 days pay each time. Its not immigration fault its Labor Dept.
Let’s be transparent – was this system created “in-house” by Government IT team or was it outsourced? Either way, if it’s not fit for purpose somebody should be held to account. They got paid either a salary or a contract and they need to fix this thing so it works properly.
It was built by two people working from a parents basement. In between sessions on intense gameplay and bong hits, these teenagers would program the site. They demanded and received more pay from the government and went on vacation. Hence the delay. The project was never completed which explains the site failure.
some body or some thing else got 2 get the blame , it wasn’t me is the norm these days
INCOMPETENCE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Before the NDP left office the whole project for interconnecting Government Offices to enable online processing of applications, payment of fees etc. was in its final stages. 3 years in and these guys are here telling people a load of nonsense. Shameful!
In the last 22 years the labour application system was put online successfully. It was designed by a group led by Kedrick Malone. It was tested on the public, we used it, it worked quite well. For some reason unknown to the common citizen it never went live after that. It was sidelined by some brilliant person. Now we are back at trying to invent something we already had, and now we can’t get it right. You just can’t make this stuff up.
Most applications from 22 years ago don’t run on 21st century computers.
All these fools keep using big words they don’t understand and then get into a big mess.
“let’s have an on-line process”! You have no idea what that means. Big words! You think that on-line thing going to magically do you work for you?? There still needs to be administration from actual people or nothing happens – fool.
The whole system is just a way to keep them Down Islanders poor and doing all the manual labor that the belongers don’t care to do. Might as we just call it what it is. Rename the department “Down Islander Management”, maybe that will fix the problems.
Imagine going immigration to pay for time every month on your little 6$ an hour, almost 10 months and cannot get permit, that treasury maybe smiling on people, all you making it big time then still don’t like expats
soon they goin say, the inclement weather is the reason for the backlog of work permit applications EL OH EL….we dnt care what or who to blame, stop comin with excuses every minute and just FIX the doggone issues.
Are all work permits and renewals automatically given? If so, why? And now my comment, if it is automatic and everybody who applies just cursing at Government, then who are entitled? The permit holders or the locals? And who should be entitled to work in their country?
Just because working in the BVI as a foreigner is not a right but a privilege doesn’t mean you don’t have to treat people fairly.
If you don’t understand that you’re a hateful bigot.
Seems to me with over 15,000 (my figure) work permits, more than likely more being supervised and new ones being applied for daily, that privilege is out of control in a small country like ours and patience is needed. But no, we are just inhumane prejudice bigots.
Seems to me both Immigration and Labour are in need of serious reform. I think when persons are infuriated and upset with our system of labour and immigration, research should be done elsewhere, in bigger and comparable countries, as to how this very delicate subject is handled.
When y’all gonna stop lie. It’s not only the faulty system but is the staff as well. They don’t answer the phone when you need to make appointment. They sit there kiki on the phone when people need to get their stuff sort us. When you reach sometimes only one person up front when it have multiple people waiting in and outside the building.
Two government institutions right next door zero connection zero communication….. knock knock … not fair on us all !! Tired of running between two institutions getting turned back to the other !! Help us all help you do a good job !
Chronic ineptitude. The job of administrating that business is simply having systems at work -blaming your software on the problem is unfortunately blaming yourself- labor department
It is unbelievable that a small place like this have so much jobs for all these people. A lot of the applications are bogus. Companies bonding people and they are not employed by these companies and then y’all have the audacity to be blaming the labour department.
Back in 2017, Government paid an external consultant to develop one Work Permit – Immigration electronic process. The external consultant did a great job, but nothing happened. Irma and usual government ineptitude and staff dislike of any changes killed the system before it got going. Now, there’s another worse system that the Government has paid for and still it doesn’t work. We are a laughing stock.
Knowingly operating a faulty system makes an operator also faulty
This isn’t Rocket Science.
Leviticus 19:34 Love ye therefore the stranger. Deuteronomy 10:19 Treat them fairly. Thou shalt not pervert the judgment of the stranger. Deuteronomy 24:17
The community is to have the same rules for you and for the foreigner residing among you; this is a lasting ordinance for the generations to come. You and the foreigner shall be the same before the LORD: 16 The same laws and regulations will apply both to you and to the foreigner residing among you.Numbers 15:15