Just how easy is it to get a job?

The job market is variable, depending on the time of year and what marketable skills you have. The reason that people move here with no secured job is because employers here need to see people face to face and generally ignore emails and letters from off-islanders seeking employment - and with good reason as there is a high attrition rate among "newbies" who often leave island very quickly after discovering that island life just isn't their cup of tea.

You can work from home but still need to obtain a business license in order to do so and, as far as selling directly to tourists, you would need to obtain a vendor's license to do so.

A brief response but hope this helps a little!

Everytime I read that people recommend that you have to come in person to get a job I really wonder. The risk of someone leaving would be pretty much the same in my opinian. I was a chef for over 10 years and all my job where in resourts who could have used that same excuse. All my jobs I got by first sending in my resume and then visiting in person after an interview was requested. Why should this be any different on the VI Island. I would think that a person who leaves everything behind without having secured their livelyhood is also a person who might take off as soon as it gets difficult or boring. There is a lack of responsibility and commitment regarteless.

I do hope that a persons work history would be considered. I remember when my husband got a job with a new company they actually had a mentioning on his file that he is most likely to stay with the company for a long time. His work history had shown that. The only reason he left was due to downsizing the computer support at that company. Such a person does not leave a job and takes off without securing another position. Neither does a responsible family person.

everyone i know who's gotten a job in the VI was on island at the time of hiring. no one i know of has been hired long distance. you need to be on island or else most people won't take a chance on you. i think it's done this way because so many people say they want to live and work in the VI, but when they actually get down there, their attitudes change, and they head back to the states. i think hiring on-island is the employers' way of protecting themselves from people who might not work out.

I wonder if someone has ever done a study on this. It is one thing to come down for an interview another to come down not knowing what will come next. In my 20th I might have done this or if I did not have any family. However, now I would come for an interview no problem but would only commit to staying if I had a job lined up. I would think even people who visit cold turkey are a risk for leaving. Unless off course they come with so little money that they have to first work for their ticket back home lol. I just can't imaging starting my new live on STX in hartship. Even if that means we have to visit several times for interviews. I guess one could visit for a vacation and get work that way. I would assume that most people allow you to give your job propper notice.

i should also mention that everyone i know who has searched for work in the VI has found it, so the job market mustn't be too shabby.

The one industry that has been know to hire without meeting you is in retail jewelry sales-especially in STT.

Iris: There are some positions that can be secured from away, but many cannot. Why? Because.

You can try sending resumes for a chef position. You may or may not get responses. If you were here and brought your resume to the place in person, you might get a response, depending on several factors.

Many employers hear from stateside people who never show up, or who hate it and leave quickly. Hence the "Call me when you get on island" line.

You said: "I would think that a person who leaves everything behind without having secured their livelyhood is also a person who might take off as soon as it gets difficult or boring" Well, yes. But a bird in the hand is worth two still stateside! Someone who is here, is here.

If you try to make sense of this, you are in trouble! 😉 I wish you much luck in your search.

Iris Richardson - just curious, but do you live in the Virgin Islands!

When I arrived on island I had secured the job while in Orlando, FL. Upon arrival I found the job was nothing like what was promised and decided to leave it almost immediately. I interviewed for a position for which I was uniquely qualified and was turned down on the basis that I had not been on island long enough. Ran into the owner of the company six years later and she said "Wish I had hired you - sigh". But in those six years it has become easier to understand. It's not so much that the "newbies" leave it is that it is so simple to leave here. A great many of arrive with little more than a couple of suitcases and our pets. You rent a furnished apartment, drive an island car and adapt. I've had people working for me who just took a taxi to the airport and went home. It's an odd thing.

Pamela

Well, I can say that for the past few weeks I have e-mailed and faxed resumes to both STT and STX - I fel like it is to a black hole, because I have not gotten any response at all. BUT, I do understand.....and your discussions here actually make me feel better (like its not me, just the things you descrbe here).
We will be making a pre-move visit in 2 weeks, so that will be very helpful. I truly think, tho at some point we will just have to take a 'leap of faith' and do it. We are both very dependable and hard-working so I feel we are very employable. We are mature and have traveled. We are taking it step by step.....then the big LEAP!!