THE EDITOR: As a layman and a concerned citizen, I am inclined to make a contribution which can arouse pertinent discussions amongst the various stakeholders in reference to the economic situation in St. Lucia.
It is an acceptable fact that employers complain that they fail to get a fair day’s work from their employees — and vice versa, employees feel that their wages are not consistent with their production.
Another concern by many St. Lucians is the fact that various concessions given are too much and appear unfair to the ordinary man in particular reference to the hospitality industry.
Listening to a program aired on CNN over the weekend based on an interview with a Chinese entrepreneur, the individual highlighted the strategies of the Chinese people by way of cost-cutting measures at every level to keep abreast with an ever changing world.
Having carefully listened to the techniques used, it suddenly dawned on me that my views should be shared with the St. Lucian public.
The principle reasons why concessions are so important is to ensure that an investment remains viable based on the high number of employees required in the industry, the level of theft and the level of incompetence based on the fact that countries like Mexico and the Dominican Republic can offer similar services at much lower operating costs.
Here in St. Lucia, if we wish to remain strong in the hospitality industry and are prepared to work more efficiently and diligently, investors would probably require fewer concessions and automatically government would receive a higher yield on hospitality revenues, which would go towards increased earnings, thereby permitting various administrations to use those funds towards other related departments.
This is an important topic which requires some form of feedback from the public. (Global Observer)