Education Fund for black children funded by higher work permit fees

I am heartened by the impact the recent Black Lives Matter protests are having in the US, Bermuda and globally. The murder of George Floyd appears to have awoken the human population. Although many black lives have been unjustly lost prior to George Floyd (over centuries) and devastatingly a number since, I believe something is different this time. Maybe the Covid-19 environment we live in has something to do with the majority finally coming to the realization that enough truly is enough!

One thing clear to me is that reparations for past injustices against the black population are long overdue. For decades so many have recognized that our public education system has failed a large portion of our youth. Yet successive governments have been unable to do enough about it. The fact that schools in general are less integrated today than when I was in school 40 to 50 years ago is nothing less than a disgrace, as is the fact that the quality of education for the majority is dictated by a families' wealth.   

In addition to the extensive support of local charities, international companies based in Bermuda can be commended for funding scholarships for those in financial need, the majority of which are black. These represent the brightest from our public school system who will hopefully return to Bermuda, following completion of their schooling, to lead Bermuda into a brighter and more sustainable future. More attention is needed to ensure wealth has no part to play in ensuring our younger children receive the highest quality of education available, in addition to their subsequent access to further education of the highest standard overseas...again regardless of financial position. The playing field needs to be levelled and white privilege eradicated.

Per the Labour Force Survey Report of November, 2019, there are just under 9,000 non-Bermudians in the workforce. This infers a large number of work permits, many of which are needed given the absence of sufficient Bermudian candidates with the required qualifications. Many others are needed for blue collar roles, where hourly wages are insufficient to sustain a Bermudian family, hence being filled by international workers, who often leave their families thousands of miles away to minimize their cost of living i.e. to survive. My focus is on the former, where the logical approach would be to charge a fee for a work permit which helps fund the education of black Bermudian children who, as a result, can be better positioned to apply for such roles once their formal education is completed.

The fee for a standard one year work permit is only $966. I recognize that there are other types of work permits of varying lengths which can be applied for, although use the one year standard as a simple example. For most exempt companies, this is insignificant and in no way provides an incentive for an employer to invest resources in training local talent to avoid such costs. Fortunately, most exempt companies are good corporate citizens and invest heavily in their staff and the local community (See RG article date July 14 highlighting $3m of donations by Abir members during pandemic). My proposal is to increase work permit fees by at least $2k/yr, with all such fees to be deposited in an education fund for black children in financial need, from primary school age on. That would equate to $2m/yr for 1,000 work permits and $10m/yr for 5,000 work permits, which equates to private education for 100 to 500 children per year in this simple example. A portion of the fees collected could also be allocated to raising the quality of education in our public schools. A private/public school collaboration should be considered with the best interest of our children...the future of Bermuda in mind. Pride and politics have no place in these discussions. As good corporate citizens, most exempt companies will view this as an investment in the community and their future workforce, while at the same time addressing racial inequalities which exist on an island whose population is ~60% black. Such companies should also be invited to provide input on international business training in schools, which would supplement the standard curriculum to better prepare many students for careers in (re)-insurance, public accounting, financial services, banking, investment management, IT etc. As "office work" is not made for everyone, I will look to submit a similar idea for funding a trade school which has been desperately needed for decades.