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BERMUDA | RSS PODCAST

Unemployed? Shift your paradigm

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International pop diva Lady Gaga attends a press conference in Taipei, Taiwan recently.

Really sad to hear about what happened at HWP this week. Looks like a $20 million loss. Well, the insurance provider will simply adjust their premiums upward at the earliest opportunity. Let’s hope that HWP can recover from this, that all the staff get their jobs back and that the company’s losses can be minimised. Hopefully this was not an intentional fire, set by someone whose intent was to cause damage to person or property.Today’s topic is the need for an attitude adjustment by many persons in Bermuda, some of whom are currently unemployed and others who will soon be unemployed.Basically, Bermudians are going to have to stop turning their noses down at certain types of jobs as has been the case over the past 20 or so years and do these jobs; otherwise they will be unemployed for a long time. More on this after we look at the Top 20.Still at #1 is Give Me Everything by Pitbull, Neo, AfroJack & Nayer. Improving to #2 it’s Motivation by Kelly Rowland featuring L’il Wayne. Damn, Kelly is cute. At #3 is Taio Cruz’s current hit I’m Loving You Tonight. This one has had a good run in the charts. Falling to #4 is Just Can’t Get Enough by the Black Eyed Peas. Falling to #5 is Judas by Lady Gaga.On the way up at #6 is Run the World (Girls) by Beyonce. Slipping to #7 is Beautiful People by Chris Brown featuring Benny Benassi. Sliding to #8 is 6 Foot 7 Foot by L’il Wayne featuring Cory Gunz.Soaring to #9 is one of the hottest anthems, which is also a former essential new track Party Rock Anthem by LMFAO featuring Lauren Bennett & GoonRock. Tumbling to #10 is Till The World Ends by Brittney Spears. Down to #11 is Look At Me Now by Chris Brown featuring L’il Wayne and Busta Rhymes.Walking by Mary Mary stumbles to #12 and tumbling to #13 is Born This Way by Lady Gaga. Falling to #14 is Rihanna’s current hit, S&M.Up to #15 is Last Friday (TGIF) by Katy Perry. This is a catchy singalong track. Katy’s production team are doing a great job; she has lots of hits at the momentUp to #16 is last week’s essential new tune, Rolling In The Deep by Adelle. Up to #17 I’m Into You by Jennifer Lopez featuring L’il Wayne. Improving to #18 is the hyped, Latin/soca anthem, entitled Danza Kuduro by Don Omar, the Cuban-American star Pit Bull, Lucenzo, DJ Laz and Qwote. I still haven’t heard this one much on the local circuit but DJLT is now coming out of retirement so he will play it.Up to #19 is the new one from Chris Brown, entitled She Ain’t You. This is a sweet R&B hit, rare these days and most welcome. Tumbling to #20 is ET by Katy Perry featuring Kanye West.Now back to this week’s topic the need for an attitude adjustment in the hearts and minds of Bermudians. Perhaps we need an Adjustment Bureau in Bermuda. I’d love to head up such an outfit. But as usual, we digress.Over the past 20 or so years, Bermudians have been blessed with job opportunities aplenty. Up until a couple of years ago, a person could leave their job today, with no prospects, and find another job within a matter of a couple of weeks or months.A person could leave high school and within weeks get a job doing construction or working in a hotel making at least $800 per week. Well, guess what Bermuda? Those days are over!A dude leaving high school today cannot get that job paying him $800 per week doing construction. There are fewer construction projects and even fewer jobs.As a result of the Country’s economic success during the 1980s and 1990s, Bermudians got a little uppity and developed a sense of entitlement. Many Bermudians decided that certain types of jobs were ‘beneath them’ or less desirable.One such career was in landscaping. Y’all know I keep it real so I’m gonna just throw it out there and say that many black Bermudians used to say that those jobs were for guest workers!Well, news flash people! Things are different. As my former boss used to say, “It isn’t business as usual’.The funny thing is that many people don’t seem to see this. But if we are to ever get our people back to work, we have to get them to accept jobs that for the past 20 or so years they wouldn’t have taken.The Government did an unemployment registration drive about six weeks ago and some 1061 people registered as being unemployed.Well, we probably have at least 200 pot washers in the Island who are not Bermudian. We probably also have about 300 waiters on the Island who are also guest workers.We easily have another 200 landscapers who are work permit holders.So, if Bermudians were willing to do these jobs, then the Immigration Department wouldn’t have to renew work permits for these posts.But my people still don’t want to do these jobs. To those who still refuse to do certain jobs, I say ‘well stay unemployed then’, because if you really want to work, you will take whatever job you can find, until things improve.The Government must force the hand of some of these people, because currently they can apply for financial assistance, for which they don’t have to work, and collect some $40,000 per year, without having to get their lazy butts up and do anything.So Government must implement legislation, policies and procedures which cause these people to have to go to work, rather than just having them stay at home and turn up to Global House for their financial assistance checks.The message I want to leave with readers is that even if you have a college degree, or degrees, the world and Bermuda has changed.If you’re unemployed, and you want to work, you are most likely going to have to accept a lower-paying job and a less glamorous job than you might have had during periods of prosperity when the economy was thriving.The economy is not now thriving so you are going to have to humble yourself and take whatever you can get.The alternative is remaining unemployed for an indefinite period and if you can’t change your attitude about this, or shift your paradigm, I don’t feel sorry for you.It is what it is. Change your attitude, be realistic, take what you can get, be willing to do jobs you wouldn’t have considered a few years ago, and just keep your head down and provide for your family. Peace.…..DJLT!

Singer Britney Spears performs on ABC?s ?Good Morning America? show at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium in San Francisco on March 27. Spears will celebrate her 30th anniversary on December 2 in Mexico during her Femme Fatale World Tour.