Bahamas facing significant “skills gap”, says minister

Bahamas facing significant “skills gap”, says minister
Elsworth Johnson.

Abaco job fair slated for end of next month

NASSAU, BAHAMAS — A Cabinet minister yesterday acknowledged that the country continues to grapple with a significant “skills gap” and said skills training must be improved upon.

“We are working closely with the Department of Labour,” Minister of Financial Services, Trade and Industry, and Immigration Elsworth Johnson said.

“I have met with a company recently. We told the company and are reinforcing the fact that there are a lot of persons out of work. Unless you can’t find that skilled labor and/or your heads of agreement says that your director and other persons should come, we are scrutinizing all those applications. 

“Abaco presents a peculiar situation. We did a job fair there and intend to do one at the end of October. They need skilled persons.

“In terms of our skills training, we need to improve on that. We are receiving a lot of complaints that everyone with a hammer is not a carpenter.”

However, Johnson said while the need for skilled labor is great, where there is a Bahamian qualified to do a particular job they will be given priority.

Abaco Chamber of Commerce President Ken Hutton previously told Eyewitness News the lack of available skilled labor threatens to hamper the pace of reconstruction on storm-ravaged Abaco.

Hurricane Dorian decimated communities in Abaco and Grand Bahama in September 2019.

4 comments

Just realised that the………first thing is to identify the skills required for the future of the country. What are those skills that will enable the country to progress and develop to the future.

ISN’T IT FUNNY HOW HE COMPLAINS ABOUT THE SKILLS GAP
BUT HE HAS A JOB HE HAS NO SKILLS FOR

FOR EXAMPLE SECURITY YOU CAN BE WORKING FOR 15 YEARS AS A SECURITY GUARD AND A PERSON JUST STARTING OUT CAN MAKE THE SAME AMOUNT OF MONEY AS YOU IN THE BAHAMAS???

WHAT GOOD IS ACQUIRING THE SKILLS IF THE GOVERNMENT WOULD NOT PUSH THE COMPANIES TO PAY FAIRLY

WHY WOULDN’T THE GOVERNMENT RAISE MINIMUM WAGE BUT THEY DID & WILL RAISE TAXES.

Working on a job site and not picking up different skills hurts so many Bahamians. The attitude is let me get by this week and see what happens, the less I have to do the less im called to do. But when pay day comes they are the loudest and the most active about they are owed instead of improving for the next workday.

How can we start a trade school for the out of work and todays youth, aka: tomorrows future ? Laborers, Operating Engineers, Masons, Carpenters, Electricians, Plumbers, HVAC, Roofing, Low Volt Tel/Data, Tile setting, Painting,etc..

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