September 26 2012Dear Sir,For the past several months there has been ongoing discussion of the need for government to liberalise its immigration policy in order to encourage increased establishment of international business in Bermuda. The discussions about encouraging international business are sometimes interleaved with proposals for the regeneration of the tourist industry. However, the latter proposal is often pushed aside on the assumption that it would not provide the income necessary for the current life-style demands of our population. The need for the total restoration of our financial/insurance industry is accepted almost unanimously. Among comments that often accompany the call for restoration is that “Bermudians must be more friendly and welcoming to the incoming financiers as these financiers create jobs for Bermudians”. This comment is usually made by the same persons who use the shibboleth those Bermudian workers and their unions initiated the destruction of the tourism industry by their support of the 1981 general strike and their so-called animosity towards our wealthy tourist clients.It is my contention, however, that that strike occurred because the powers-that-be had lost interest in tourism and were focusing on the financial industry as the new driving force for the economy. Hence they felt that the threatened strike was unimportant to them and in fact would weaken the workers. As I recall, the government only paid serious attention when the strike resulted in the removal of one Premier and his replacement by another Premier. I have come to this opinion in retrospect when I recall the areas of importance that both Government and business were emphasising to the school system at that time along with the areas of business that were mentioned most often in the news media. Hence, it appears to me that it was the business establishment (with their decisions, from the late 1970s onward, to invest in high-rise buildings in Hamilton for the finance industry alongside negligible investment in building or refurbishing tourist accommodations) and not workers (who react to situations facing them) who led to the downfall of tourism.However the financial industry/tourism dichotomy needs to be examined as these two industries encourage meaningful employment among different sectors of Bermudian workers. The recent advocates for the financial industry in the news media state that they are seeking the welfare of Bermuda as a whole but we should all realise that the majority of economic proposals will favour one sector of the population more than another. I do not recall that the less well-off Bermudians felt particularly discouraged about their situation during the three decades from 1950 to 1980. Rather they felt that they could rent a home or purchase their own home and make it in other ways through the dint of hard work when we had a vibrant tourism industry. On the other hand the financial industry resulted in a large disparity in the wages earned by different sectors of the workers and this disparity has made those aspirations unachievable for a large proportion of our population. I personally believe that the perceived inequity in financial status has facilitated the social disturbances we see in the community at present.I do not profess to have a solution, but I think that the current downturn in finance provides the ideal opportunity for seeking an additional industry while retaining as much of the financial industry as possible and restoring the tourism industry. That additional industry should be chosen so that it moderates the current large variation in wages. This is a difficult challenge but we must start addressing it.JT CHRISTOPHERWarwickPs I do not know whether the Department of Statistics has this information, but it would be useful to track data on median household income along with the proportion of households that earn less than half the median income as well as the proportion of households that earn more than twice the median income. Such data would be more useful in understanding our socio-economic situation than the oft-repeated statement that Bermudians are lazy and are not willing to work hard. Immigrants always work harder than locals; this is true in every country worldwide and Bermuda has a particularly large immigrant population. In addition, employers can and should insist on a higher standard of service from their local employees. This requires trust and collaboration between employers, unions and government labour/immigration staff in order to deal with any potential conflicts.Editor’s Note: The Department of Statistics should be able to extract that information from the 2010 Census. The Census itself shows that median average income was $106,000 in 2010. While it is not possible from the Census to find how many households earned half that amount because of the way incomes are banded different ranges, it does show that 22.7 percent earned $59,999 or less per year, while 12.6 percent earned $235,000 or more a year.