Bermuda can weather the recession if Islanders pull together Labour Minister David Burch said yesterday as he also hit out at the culture of greed which had exacerbated the crisis.

In a wide-ranging speech to Government workers at the Bermuda Public Services Union headquarters, he urged Bermudians to work hard and improve their training to give themselves a better chance in the downturn.

Sen. Burch said Bermuda was going through a recession but Government was approaching the crisis with a fierce determination to guide it through it with the minimum of damage.

He said: "Greed can be seen as the foundational cause of many of the events that led to this recession. The greater the greed, the deeper the ramifications.

"An executive is responsible for the loss of billions of dollars for the company where he is employed, yet he continues to receive millions in bonuses and stock options. On the other hand, a bank teller miscalculates one deposit and is fired.

"Extortionist landlords charge mercenary rents on properties that their parents worked hard to leave to them debt free.

"Their parents would roll over in their graves if they knew the types of prices their children are charging in rent.

Employers take money out of employees pay cheques for benefits, but don't pay it into the relevant agencies, resulting in employees without healthcare or social insurance benefits.

"What about contractors who quote a king's ransom for the job, but only pay their workers the minimum wage? How much profit is too much profit? Greed is what has sent our economies into a tailspin."

He said Immigration will be looking at which industries need moratoriums on issuing new work permits.

Construction now has his focus. He said: "Work Permit applications for the construction industry are given special attention. All new, and renewal applications, are personally seen by me."

Construction firms applying for work permits for electricians and plumbers will find some delay in their approval, said Sen. Burch.

He added: "I am prepared to look in every nook and cranny for a Bermudian before approving a work permit for a tradesman when there is an unemployed, or under employed, Bermudian."

For that to work, jobless Bermudians needed to register with the Department of Labour and Training, said Sen. Burch.

"When the contractor calls you to offer you employment with an hourly rate less than what you received in your previous job, don't tell him you aren't turning off Fox Sports Channel and getting off the couch for less than $35 per hour. Remember, the reason he is calling you is because you are unemployed."

And he said Bermudians needed to make sure they could be contacted and had a current resume handy.

Another measure employed by the Ministry to help keep Bermudians in work is the policy adopted by the Bermuda Housing Corporation (BHC) that their building projects will use the traditional block and mortar method, said Sen. Burch.

Non-traditional building methods call for a high level of foreign construction personnel who are familiar with this method. So during this period all BHC projects will employ the traditional building methods. This building method is well known to Bermudian builders and will help to provide jobs for Bermudians.

Sen. Burch said Environment and Sports Minister Glenn Blakeney, who has responsibility for the Department of Planning, had agreed to place a moratorium on construction projects that use non-traditional building methods.

Sen. Burch said he is now researching the hospitality industry and he had met this week with a delegation from the BIU to discuss assistance as fewer tourists meant fewer jobs.

"However, layoffs in the work place should be proportionate to the ratio of employees. If there are 50 percent Bermudian and 50 percent non-Bermudians, that should be the ratio for layoffs and redundancies 50/50.

"In some cases if there are layoffs one should look to keeping the Bermudian employees."

The Immigration Department will be looking closely at applicants made redundant applying to reside and seek alternative employment, said Sen. Burch.

"Let me be clear, before giving any permission for foreign workers to reside and seek alternative employment and permission will be jealously given they will have to demonstrate that they possess the financial means to repatriate themselves if they should not find employment in the allotted time period.

"It is always my priority to ensure that Bermudians remain employed but it is even more so during these tough economic times."

The One Stop shop to help overall while not fully operational until July will commence operations at the Department of Labour and Training on March 1 when the department will begin opening during the early evening hours to accommodate those who cannot get there during 9–5.

Career fairs will be held approximately every six weeks the first being held two weeks ago for those who had previously registered with the department.

"You must also make it your priority to ensure that you stay employed," said Sen. Burch. "Assess your work level with a view to improving any shortfalls. Bermuda College is free, why aren't you attending? Certification is the way we need to be heading to ensure that we remain employable.

"Our children return home with college degrees, but employers are also looking for certifications. The graduate with a BA who obtains their CA or CPA will be employed before the graduate without one." Sen. Burch said Bermuda could survive this cycle of recession if everyone worked together.

"We must go back to creating neighbourhoods within our communities.

"If you know Mrs. Smith works in the hospitality industry and is only working three days per week, enquire how she is making out and offer her a hot meal. I don't know how much clearer I can make it that we are facing some very challenging times no need to panic but we must be sensible in our approach and we must work together.

"I have every confidence that if we eliminate 'I' and always consider 'we', we will have to marvel at how well we fare the current significant challenges we face."