The Bermudian versus foreign workers was the focus for a lively debate at the Bermuda Small Business Development Corporation's (BSBDC) meeting in St George's yesterday evening.

Business people and members raised their fears over the growing number of non-Bermudians employed on the island in preference to nationals in a bid to drive down costs.

But business leaders hit back, claiming sometimes you have to go with the most cost-effective method.

Ernest Signor, who owns Solid Rock Construction, responded to the question of whether he should recruit Bermudians or look overseas.

He said: "I would plan for a job based on what I pay my men.

"Foreigners come here and work for $20 an hour and locals work for $30, so how can I compete with that? My locals can't compete with that."

Anthony Foster, owner of Bermuda Sanitation & Engineering Ltd., said the most important thing was getting the job done for the right price.

"My philosophy is that you should pay the foreign worker as much as the Bermudian worker," he said.

"It is not about the amount that you pay them, but whether they turn up to work. One of the things that you have to do as a boss is you have got to tell your staff what they are going to do — whether it takes two hours or a week, they are going to get paid the same."

Paul Elliott, St George's retail business development manager from Butterfield Bank, empathised with Mr Foster's point of view.

"In many industries, like construction, you are locked into a fixed price, so you can go from making a profit to being a complete disaster," he said.

"You have to pull in the people together and say, 'Here is the job, it has got to done by the end of the month', for example, and you get it done, whether it be that there might be incentives or days off at the end."

Other topics up for discussion included what BSBDC does and its initiatives, the construction incubator, free vendor markets and the economic empowerment zone projects.

Finance Minister Paula Cox addressed the audience on the subject of economic empowerment and how small businesses can enhance their economic abilities.

"From the point of view of the economic empowerment zone we are talking about how we are changing lives and changing and expanding opportunities," she said.

"We need to find a way that in Bermuda through the empowerment zone we are not just building business, but also building lives.

"It is about building strategic linkages and those businesses that are in that area get the benefit from that.

"There is also the opportunity with the free vendor markets and that is next step."