Businesses that haven’t filed their Business Staffing Plans have been given a bit of reprieve.
But they’ll still have to do them.
Business Staffing Plan Board Chairman Mrs. Sophia Ann Harris announced Wednesday at a Chamber of Commerce lunch meeting that the deadline for submission of the plans has been extended to the end of the year.
The deadline had been in June.
Chamber President Mr. Morgan DaCosta said the lunch was held to give business owners a chance to get updated on the Business Staffing Plan law and to allow those with questions to ask them of the people who oversee and enforce the law.
‘Most businesses are willing to share their plans, but there are numerous problems with the interpretation and implementation of the law,’ he said. ‘During this period of uncertainty with the interpretation of the law and to ensure continuity in all areas of business, it may be prudent for the Government to suspend the roll-over policy until it can work out a new solution. Otherwise, the loss of talented and committed employees in the financial services, tourism, construction and the teaching professions and the disruption and cost to recruit new staff will be costly and disruptive to the economic expansion that we are currently experiencing.’
Legislators approved the law in 1003 and it came into effect in January 2004.
The law mandates that all businesses that employ more than 15 work permit holders file a business staffing plan with the board. So far 65 of an estimated 150 businesses that are required to file the plans have done so.
Debate and uncertainty remain about the interpretation of the law, particularly for terms such as exempted employee. Too, many employers are still uneasy with the roll-over policy and the potential long-term impact on businesses. The roll-over policy forces work permit holders who have been in Cayman for seven years to leave unless they have applied for permanent residency.
Some businesses, such as Vigoro Nursery, are already being negatively impacted by the roll-over position. Six of that company’s employees have received letters telling them they have reached the seven-year term limit and must leave the country.
As confusion about the law abounds, an Immigration Review Team chaired by Mr. David Ritch is looking at the law along with the elected Government.
In the meantime, businesses are still required to submit their plans.
While there isn’t a backlog of plans to be considered by the board, there has been a delay in the process, she said.
Measures are now in place to shorten the time between submission and approval.
Those include:
A new form, which is also accessible on-line.
A specific drop off slot allocated to the plans as of 1 March, keeping them out of the Immigration Department regular mail.
A specific person to collect the plans on a daily basis, file an accounts form and allocate the plan application to its respective file where it will be submitted in a timely manner to the BSP secretaries to add to the agenda.
‘Believe it or not this simple measure will save in some cases over a month to three weeks of time delay in dealing with your application,’ she said.
‘However, we should add, if we are able to accomplish what we are purporting to deliver, it is essential that you do your part to assist us,’ she said.
Related Videos
