ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI — A small business identifies a skills shortage, searches for qualified personnel and eventually looks overseas to find the expertise it needs.

The owner navigates the applicable labour and work-permit requirements, invests time and money in recruitment, and makes arrangements to bring the employee into the Territory.

The business then invests further in training, integration and development, hoping to retain the worker and build a stronger operation.

Then government offers that employee a position.

The worker accepts.

The business is left with a vacancy, the cost of finding a replacement and the prospect of repeating a process that may already have been expensive and time-consuming.

For some businesses, this may be an ordinary employment challenge. But when it becomes a recurring pattern in a small labour market, it raises a broader economic question.

Is government sufficiently considering the impact of its recruitment practices on the private businesses that invest in bringing skilled workers into the Virgin Islands?

This is not an argument that government should be prohibited from hiring qualified people. Nor is it an argument that workers should be prevented from pursuing better opportunities.

It is an argument that government must recognise the consequences of its considerable purchasing power and position as a major employer.

PRIVATE BUSINESSES CARRY THE INITIAL BURDEN

Recruiting skilled workers from outside the Territory can involve a substantial commitment.

Depending on the position and applicable requirements, an employer may need to advertise the vacancy, demonstrate compliance with labour-market rules, identify suitable candidates, submit work-permit documentation, pay applicable fees and arrange the employee’s relocation.

The process takes time and administrative effort.

There may also be recruitment expenses, travel costs, temporary accommodation, onboarding and training.

Once the employee arrives, the business must integrate that person into its operations and invest in the working relationship.

In specialist fields, finding a suitably experienced candidate can be especially difficult.

A media company, for example, may need someone who can write, report, present, film, edit or operate production equipment. The combination of skills required may not be readily available in the local labour market.

Other businesses face similar challenges in technical, professional and specialised occupations.

When employers cannot find suitable candidates locally, recruiting overseas may be necessary to maintain their services and grow their operations.

These businesses are not simply filling vacancies. They are making investments intended to strengthen the Territory’s private sector.

That investment should form part of the discussion when government seeks to recruit workers from the same limited pool of skilled personnel.

WHEN GOVERNMENT BECOMES THE COMPETITOR

Government is one of the Territory’s major employers.

It can offer career opportunities, structured employment arrangements and benefits that may be difficult for a small business to match.

For workers, a government position may represent a welcome opportunity for professional development, greater stability or improved compensation.

There is nothing inherently wrong with that.

Employees are not the property of their employers, and businesses cannot expect workers to remain indefinitely simply because they invested in recruiting them.

However, the situation becomes more complicated when a small company has gone through the expense and administrative burden of recruiting a worker from overseas, only to lose that person to a government position after they have become established in the Territory.

The private employer may then have to repeat the recruitment process, absorb additional costs and manage the disruption caused by the departure.

Government, meanwhile, may be recruiting a worker whose availability in the local labour market was made possible in part by the original employer’s efforts.

This does not mean that the original employer owns the benefit of the worker’s presence or that government should never recruit from private companies.

It does mean that the wider economic consequences deserve consideration.

When government competes with small businesses for scarce skills, it should ask whether its recruitment decisions are necessary, whether alternatives exist and whether the cumulative effect is weakening the private sector.

THE COST DOES NOT END WHEN AN EMPLOYEE LEAVES

The immediate consequence of losing an employee is a vacancy.

But the broader costs may include delayed projects, reduced productivity, disrupted customer service, increased workloads for remaining staff and additional recruitment expenses.

A replacement may require months to identify, recruit and establish.

In the meantime, other employees may have to take on additional responsibilities, or the business may have to reduce the services it offers.

For small companies operating with limited financial reserves, the disruption can be significant.

Repeated departures can also discourage employers from investing in specialised positions if they believe they will struggle to retain the workers they recruit.

This is especially concerning in a small economy that wants businesses to expand, diversify and create more employment opportunities.

The question is not whether every employee departure is preventable. It is whether the overall environment allows private businesses a reasonable opportunity to build and maintain the skilled workforces they need.

THE GOVERNMENT’S BUYING POWER MATTERS

Government does not operate under precisely the same commercial conditions as a private company.

Private businesses must generate revenue, manage costs and remain financially sustainable. Government operates through public funding and has responsibilities that extend beyond commercial profitability.

That distinction is important when government competes with private businesses for workers or undertakes activities that overlap with existing private-sector services.

Government must be able to recruit the people it needs to deliver essential services. But it should also recognise that its decisions can have consequences that extend beyond its own workforce.

If government consistently attracts scarce professionals away from private employers, those employers may struggle to retain the expertise needed to sustain their operations.

If government duplicates services already available through private companies, businesses may find themselves competing against an institution with a very different financial structure.

Neither outcome should be assumed to occur in every case. Both, however, are legitimate matters for policy review.

The appropriate response is not to restrict government from operating or workers from moving between jobs. It is to establish a more thoughtful approach to recruitment, workforce development and the relationship between government and the private sector.

Government should be a partner in creating a stronger economy, not an institution that overlooks the costs its decisions may impose on the businesses expected to sustain it.

WHAT DOES THIS MEAN FOR THE MEDIA?

The issue is particularly important in the media sector.

As discussed in Part Two of this series, independent media companies in the Virgin Islands depend on a relatively small pool of experienced journalists, presenters, producers and technical professionals.

Recruiting and retaining those workers can be difficult.

When a media organisation loses a key employee, the effects can extend across its entire operation. The company may need to reduce its output, redistribute responsibilities or begin another recruitment exercise.

If the worker was originally recruited from overseas, the employer may have already navigated the applicable labour and work-permit process and invested considerable resources in establishing that person in the Territory.

The concern is that government recruitment can place additional pressure on businesses that already face financial and operational challenges.

The suspension of 284 News by 284 Media on September 30, 2026, has added urgency to the wider conversation about the sustainability of independent journalism.

The company’s announcement did not establish that government recruitment caused the suspension. Any such connection must be verified with the company and supported by evidence.

Nevertheless, the situation highlights the importance of ensuring that the Territory has a sustainable independent media sector, with sufficient skilled personnel to report on public affairs and hold institutions accountable.

The same principle applies beyond journalism. A private business cannot contribute fully to economic development if it continually struggles to retain the people required to operate.

WHO SHOULD BEAR THE COST OF WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT?

There is another question that deserves attention.

When businesses recruit from overseas, they help bring skills into the Territory. They also assume the immediate costs and administrative responsibilities associated with the recruitment process.

If those employees subsequently move into government positions, the private employers may have to start again.

This raises questions about how the Territory should approach workforce development.

Could more be done to develop local talent before vacancies arise?

Are there opportunities for partnerships between government, educational institutions and private businesses to train Virgin Islanders for specialised positions?

Can government identify genuine skills shortages and distinguish them from situations where the necessary expertise is already available locally?

Could recruitment practices be reviewed to improve coordination between public-sector workforce needs and the realities facing private employers?

These questions are particularly important in specialist fields where the local labour pool is limited.

Developing more local talent would not eliminate competition for workers. Nor would it mean that overseas recruitment should stop.

The Territory will continue to need international expertise in some areas.

But a stronger workforce-development strategy could reduce reliance on repeated overseas recruitment and create more opportunities for Virgin Islanders to enter skilled professions.

BOUNDARIES, NOT BARRIERS

The solution is not to create barriers that prevent people from moving between the public and private sectors.

Workers must retain the freedom to pursue opportunities. Government must remain capable of recruiting qualified professionals. Private businesses must compete on the quality of their employment offers and the strength of their operations.

But freedom to compete does not remove the need for responsible policy.

Government should assess the cumulative impact of recruitment practices in sectors where the available pool of qualified personnel is small.

It should maintain dialogue with private employers, understand their recruitment challenges and consider the wider implications of drawing skilled workers away from existing businesses.

Where government communications activities overlap with services available from private providers, it should also consider whether duplication is necessary and whether public resources are being used efficiently.

These measures would not guarantee that businesses never lose employees. They would, however, demonstrate that government recognises the importance of a sustainable private sector.

The objective should be a relationship in which government and business can both grow without unnecessary damage to the other’s capacity.

QUESTIONS THE GOVERNMENT SHOULD ADDRESS

The issue deserves more than informal discussion.

Government should be prepared to explain:

• Whether it has assessed the impact of public-sector recruitment on businesses operating in sectors with limited pools of skilled workers.
• Whether it tracks workforce shortages and the movement of specialist personnel between government and private employers.
• What steps are being taken to develop local talent in journalism, technical production and other specialised occupations.
• Whether its recruitment and communications strategies risk duplicating services that private businesses already provide.
• How it intends to support a business environment in which employers can invest in overseas recruitment and local training without facing unnecessary barriers to retaining skilled personnel.

These questions do not presume wrongdoing. They ask whether government is considering the full economic consequences of its decisions.

That is a reasonable expectation of responsible leadership.

A STRONGER GOVERNMENT SHOULD MEAN A STRONGER PRIVATE SECTOR

The Virgin Islands needs a capable government, thriving small businesses and a sustainable independent media.

These are not competing objectives.

Government needs qualified people to deliver public services. Businesses need qualified people to provide goods and services, create jobs and contribute to economic growth. Independent media needs skilled personnel to inform the public and scrutinise those in power.

The challenge is to ensure that the Territory’s limited supply of skilled workers is developed and used in ways that strengthen the economy as a whole.

A government that encourages entrepreneurship must also consider how its own employment and purchasing decisions affect entrepreneurs.

A government that speaks about creating jobs must recognise that private employers need a reasonable opportunity to recruit, train and retain workers.

And a government that values transparency must recognise the importance of a viable independent media sector.

The question is not whether government has the right to recruit from the private sector. It is whether government is sufficiently mindful of the investment private employers have made and the consequences when those businesses lose the workers they have worked so hard to recruit.

The answer should be reflected in policy, workforce planning and meaningful engagement with the private sector.

Because when a small business loses a skilled employee, the cost may be much greater than one vacant position.

It may mean another recruitment exercise, another period of uncertainty and another setback for a business trying to grow in the Virgin Islands.

The Territory should want government to succeed. But it should also want its private businesses to succeed.

The goal must be a stronger economy in which government, the private sector and independent media can each fulfil their responsibilities without unnecessarily weakening the others.

That is the balance worth pursuing.

 

GUAVABERRY MEDIA

Independent reporting. Public accountability. The people’s right to know.