Social Assistance Report: Minimum wage should be doubled
A report on the recent Social Assistance in the British Virgin Islands Review has recommended for the territory’s minimum wage to be increased to $12 to $15 an hour.
The report said this increase would bring things closer to what officials described as a liveable wage in the territory.
According to Health Minister Vincent Wheatley, the minimum wage increase was among several overarching recommendations made on how the territory’s social assistance programme can be improved to effectively assist residents.
The current minimum wage stands at $6 an hour and officials were expected to review this four years ago.
Wheatley, who is a former Labour Minister, previously said an official review of the minimum wage was deliberately put off “until we get a little more settled with our economy”.
Meanwhile, the report also looked at having a universal children’s grant that extends beyond education and healthcare benefits.
The Health Minister said the report explored the issue of improving the pension scheme where the income gap for elderly pensioners could be bridged by installing a pension-tested universal minimum social pension system.
A benefit programme for people with disabilities was also recommended. Another recommendation was for the implementation of unemployment benefits in the territory.
Wheatley said the report aligns with the ministry’s mandate to improve the management and delivery of government-funded grants for community-based initiatives and basic instructions for drafting legislative elements for the reform.
He has called for the public to give its input. The Ministry of Health and Social Development released the report recently and is now inviting comments, submissions and recommendations on the document.
He said feedback will help to shape the government’s decision on how to create a policy surrounding social assistance in the Virgin Islands.
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For a person to live a quality life and a high standard of living in the BVI, one have to be making between $7000 per month to $10,000 per month, with the high cost of rent , groceries and utilities nothing less will see one having a high standard of living, unless you don’t have kids and don’t have to pay any bills.
Raising minimum wage > increase business payroll > increase cost of goods and services to compensate.
Add to the fact that there is no legislation that regulates prices and you end up with the same issue you started with. It is not the magic cure.
It is most unfortunate that we waited until the racehorse bolted out of the starting gate before addressing this vexing issue (one more time). As usual, much talk, little action.
We have our politricians to blame for fostering this gimme gimme attitude in exchange for votes and loyal following, a situation that has been developing for several years. And we can only blame ourselves for watching it develop and leaving it to fester. Now we see able-bodied men and women with little or no ambition, content to sit down and wait for hand outs to be dropped in their greedy laps instead to getting up off their hindquarters and working for an honest day’s pay. We have women especially, living way beyond their means, looking hand outs to pay for those grotesque-looking false nails, hair and eyelash and losing their identity. We have children who mimic their parents.
And, of course, we have the greedy merchants wanting to be overnight millionaires who charge exorbitant prices for substandard merchandise.
Who suffers in the end? We, the taxpayers.
Where has our sense of pride and decency gone? What type of examples are we setting? What type of nation are we building? And hell-bent towards independence? Without properly addressing our social ills?
You created the problem, guys. Fix it.
We are only reaping what has already been sown.
MINISTER.
Yes, the minimum wage needs raising, but certainly not doubled.
This will only cause companies to change their business formula and potentially cut staff or hours. Businesses will have to increase the cost of their goods or services to cover the added cost of wages. It is not a win/win situation.
The minimum wage should be increased, but in smaller increments, and more frequently.
Labour needs to look into companies who refusing to give long time employees raise of pay but giving it to their favorite people. A company should give their staff a raise of pay every year even if is a quarter more per hour.
So what do you think will happen here? How do you determine increased wages without considering the current burdens already placed on businesses? These things cannot be done in a vacuum, there must be proper consultation across the board. You cannot consider doubling the minimum wage without addressing the current issues that businesses are facing. All that will happen is massive layoffs/cutbacks and major increase in prices of goods/services to match, taking you back to square one.
Why don’t u all deal with the real matter, cost of living? It needs price control when chicken and other goods were exempted from duty taxes they doubled in price.
But u all will never introduce price control just giving the people a pipe dream. Not while L.orna in Mark’s corner and the others in Riteway’s and Ali’s… pockets allegedly.
Who gets paid minimum wage? The people working in supermarkets.
What happens if minimum wage goes up? The prices in the supermarkets will go up too.
Does that make sense? No
What will make sense? Control prices in supermarkets. Control rents being charged. Give tax breaks (according to sowande with his 250,000 pocket change, the government can afford this).
Marlon’s idea was the consumer protection act. Look, this country ain’t going nowhere with the clowns in charge so everyone should just throw away their hopes and dream from now!
Doubling minimum wage? What does that solve? Sowande people buddy. Smh
It is official. The BVI is suffering from brain drain. Everyday I reading something stupid.
price control is needed but then we going bawl and say we aint making enough the bank want go with our house so either way u lose game over inc
Price control in the manner that you all think about will not work. The Government is part of the reason why things are so expensive in the first place.
To provide the other social elements taxes will have to rise, otherwise where will the money come from?
How can you increase minimum wage without raising salary and keeping price control on basic goods like chicken, rice, flour, sugar and sonme baby products .
You cannot asked people to pay a gardener, a housekeeper increased wage without the employer having the salary to pay out.
No vision
No thought for the whole gamet
Think through the process . I welcome the chang s but an entire machinery has to go in place
So we double wages. That means cost of living doubles. This guy does not know simple economics
From the same pocket sowande took the $250,000 pocket change from. That’s where the money will come from.
Who is responsible for Work permit? is it the Immigration or Labor? If the answer is Labor, then why immigration should hold your passport for job change even if Labor approves the job. It is confusing.
Monaco
Dubai
Perfect models for Vi.
As opposed to the lifetime Ghetto model copied from ongoing prescribed models suitable to the conditioned poverty driven Western Black only self anhialation mentality.
Until we do something about the ridiculously high cost of living in the BVI you can raise whatever you want you going to still end up back at the same place with people struggling because the cost of everything just going up to match. Crime out of control cause you got to run drugs in this place to have anything; yet we still continue to let outsiders pour in.
The minimum wage I already pay is $15ph plus tips so my employees make about $25 per hour and yet nobody wants to work on Anegada
well you could tend your own garden, clean your own house or just pay them a decent wage , you expect others to work for minimum while you get to lord it over them, you are disgusting.
To me a better way to help people is to increase the tax credit exemption for those making under 30 thousand a year to $15,000. and leave, let it remain the same $10,000 for those making more than $30.000 a yr. To increase wages that much will send the cost of goods and services way up..business would have to increase their goods and services in order to cope.
The Greedy corporate world will always find a way to keep the hamster running on the wheel. To $12 per hour at the normal 2080 hours per year equals $24,960 per annum per person or, $2,080 per month gross.
An initiative would be to increase minimum wage to $15 per hour (or $31,200 per year) with such persons and employers exempt from paying payroll tax. In other words, a form of tax relief to both employees and employers. This exemption would not apply to persons with a gross annual salary exceeding the $31,200.
This way if the Corporations increase the prices for services and goods, those price increases would affect ALL people who should have a voice!
Let’s use our brains a little.
This is how I would do minimum wage I would break it down by sector.1/.I would set service charge or tip base Employment, Hotel Rest. Etc $9.00 pee hr…Non service employment, Like Super Markets Gas Station, Cleaners Etc $10.00. I would set Security / guards / traffic control/ certified Health worker etc.at $12.00. I would set all supervisors no matter what field at $15.00 per hr. A supervisor in any field must be able to make $100.00 a day..I would let construction regulate it self because its been doing a good and fair Job doing it.
you can leave the minimum wage and give a tax return to persons those persons only.
This again proves the level of ignorance by some decision makers. It is obvious that they have one track minds. They are giving no thought absolutely to how businesses will handle such an increase and what the consequences to those businesses will be. The employees will be happy perhaps for a while until they are let go. Perhaps they have a plan for the mass layoffs with more handout.
Accurate! Right now some medical services and even the grocery store have increased their prices. They have already been given notice that increments will be paid. No price regulation so they are trying to take the little increase that some of us have gotten. Government needs to have some law to regulate how often and how much the prices are to change here. Do something and stop them from raping us!
Monaco
Dubai
Perfect models for VI.
As opposed to the lifetime Ghetto model copied from ongoing prescribed models. Suitable to the conditioned poverty driven Western Black only self anhialation mentality.
Madam Speaker, the main objective of this report is to provide analytical and advisory support to the Government of the Virgin Islands for reforming its social assistance programming and disbursement of community development grants to individuals and Non-Profit Organisations (NPOs). The report is also aimed at increasing harmonization, coordination and transparency of the relevant policy and governance frameworks, and strengthening their effectiveness.
Madam Speaker, the urgency of the activities surrounding the review was prompted by the Government’s intention to review the existing systems and practices and to formulate alternatives that would strengthen the effectiveness and efficiency of the social protection policy instruments while respecting transparency and harmonisations standards as recommended by the Commission of Inquiry.
The Social Assistance in the British Virgin Islands Review Report was developed and prepared by the Social Policy Research Institute (SPRI Global) in support of UNICEF Eastern Caribbean and the Government of the Virgin Islands.
The report reviewed the current design of social assistance benefits administered by the Ministry of Health and Social Development, the Social Development Department, and other governmental entities including the Ministry of Education, the House of Assembly and the Premier’s Office. In addition, a reform plan for the Virgin Islands was designed to provide an alternative option to target benefits to beneficiaries effectively.
Madam Speaker, the report has several overarching recommendations on how we can improve our social assistance programme to effectively assist our residents. The five overarching recommendations in the report include increasing the minimum wage closer to what the report concluded was the minimum liveable wage in the Territory, which is $12 to $15 an hour.
The report also looked at having a universal children’s grant, which would extend past education and healthcare benefits; there is mention of improving our pension scheme where the income gap for the elderly pensioners could be bridged by installing a pension-tested universal minimum social pension system.
In addition, a disability benefit that related to the degree of disabilities for individuals as well as installing unemployment benefits in the Territory were addressed in the final document.
The report aligns with the Ministry of Health and Social Development’s mandate to improve the management and delivery of Government-funded grants for community-based initiatives and basic instructions for drafting legislative elements for the reform.
Therefore, we want the public’s input on the document so we can chart the way forward in providing adequate social assistance to persons in the Virgin Islands.
oh Labour knows alright! they see the documents with the same pay every year of each and every employee, the employers and the labour officers are friends. so the poor suffers while they look on .
on point
This gimme, gimme, gimme and them taking it what got us in this
That is funny. Double the minimum and the pay will be more than anyone has ever paid me locally besides entrepreneurship and I have a degree.
You are doing new Maths, which only just started since this news came out that the minimum wage should be doubled. Where were you when the prices and rents have been steadily going up since 2017, and no increase of the minimum wage? Surely you cannot argue that profit margins would be affected and leave out that these profit margins have been growing steadily while poor wagers have been forced to suck salt, and if the business community has it way, with influence over the politicians that they are in cohoots with, there will be no increase any time soon, unless its by a few cents.
Well……if the minimum wage goes up for basically uneducated people, what will happen with some hospital workers who only make $12 an hour. Will they get raises? Just saying….
People are leaving the country at an alarming rate in all sectors : Banks, Nursing profession, teaching profession, hotel and other industries. , home health care and housekeepers etc
You all treat outsiders with such disrespect and disdain that soon you all will be begging decent nationals to stay . All would be left are the dregs of other nationalities who hitch up with the dealers of the BVI .
Noone will talk to the police because when they are on active duty the indigenous individuals feel they do not have to cooperate with them because they are not from here. So dare you come here and run out affairs .
That is why people are tight lippef and this country will never get better until we change our mind set
Thank you, thank you, thank you, to ALL involved, for such a comprehensive study on the matter.
It’s been a long time coming!
I don’t care what increases when minimum wages increase. Give the people the money, and let them choose WHO, to spend it with!
Just give them the damn wage increase!!
This news, is great news, and a good day, for the working population!
NOW,and I mean, NOW, IS,the time for implementation!
YYAAAYYYYY!!!
IS SAYING )> AH TRYING AH TING AGAIN , AH DUNNO IF IT GO WUK , THE INCINERATOR SHI*T AIN’T WUKKIN , NOT MY FAULT , CHECK CALVIN WID DAT ? ( AMAH GET ME DON-Q AN ME JOHNNY AND WE WALKING OUTA HERE , C YA’LL ?
Consider that $12 in 2017 (when govt was supposedly going tp adjust minimum wage) is more like $ 8 today factoring inflation. Or, $12 today is about $ 8 in 2017. So, Mr. Wheatley is effectively proposing a 50% increase in minimum wage in real term. Sounds nice for now, but……at today’s higher inflation rates, say 5%, $12 would be worth about $10.25 in spending power in three years. That $ 10.25 in 2026 would be equivalent to $ 7.71 in 2017 dollars. So, while doubling minimum wage sounds like a massive increase, when factoring in inflation, it really does not amount to much of an improvement in reality, unless minimum wage is inflation adjusted annually.
You got me laughing at the ridiculousness of your assertion that the construction industry has been doing a good job of regulating itself….from what I see, many in the industry would rather import labor and pay them as little as possible, knowing overseas workers are unlikely to complain or protest
https://bvinews.com/businesses-wont-like-me-if-i-raise-the-minimum-wage-now/
This is the same man that said That businesses won’t like him if he raised the minimum wage? Y’all can’t make this stuff up. Wake Up BVI.
Eat the S*ut
This will be the easiest case of INFLATION!