Topic: Tara Rivers
Hundreds of students explore job fair
More than 500 students attended a career fair last month to learn about jobs ranging from handling drug-sniffing dogs to working in a medical lab and operating drones. The Careers Fair, hosted by Cayman Academy at the University College of the Cayman Islands, drew students from Cayman’s public and private schools.
Pensioners soon able to withdraw more each year
The maximum amount retirees can withdraw from their savings in a private sector pension plan each year will be increased as of early 2017, Employment Minister Tara Rivers announced this week.
Pension law changes to come into effect in January
With the New Year comes a raft of changes to Cayman’s retirement system, starting Jan. 1 with the increase of the retirement age from 60 to 65. The first set of changes will also increase the salary maximum so employers will have to contribute to pensions on up to $87,000 worth in salary.
Job programs aim to get Cayman working
The Employment Ministry highlighted a number of new initiatives, including a partnership between the Further Education Centre and the Public Works Department to offer an apprenticeship to students at the school. An internship scheme has also been started for job-seekers signed up with the National Workforce Development Agency.
55 find work through Ready2Work jobs program
A planned $1.7 million back-to work program for the unemployed has cost less than 5 percent of the amount budgeted after the majority of employers turned down government’s offer to pay salaries for risky new hires. Tasha Ebanks Garcia said the actual spending equated to $700 per person, roughly $80,000 in total.
Fewer sign up this year for Christmas cleanup work
More than 300 people turned up at the Lions Community Centre on Wednesday looking for Christmas work under a government-sponsored program. Last year, more than 700 people signed up for temporary work under the National Community Enhancement Project.
Government to fund Christmas cleanup again
Unemployed Caymanians, spouses of Caymanians and permanent residents will have a chance to get temporary jobs during the upcoming holiday season as the government once again holds its “National Community Enhancement Project.”
Gov’t to require jobs to be registered with NWDA
Employers will have to register job vacancies with the National Workforce Development Agency at least two weeks before applying for a work permit to hire a non-Caymanian following a vote last week in the Legislative Assembly.
Lawmakers’ debate turns into political fight
A Cayman Islands Legislative Assembly debate this week over changes to the public bidding rules turned into a political fight ahead of the May 2017 general election. The Progressives-led government brought forward a long-recommended Procurement Bill, which was approved by lawmakers late Monday after some debate over what amounted to “political interference” in the public sector bidding process.
EDITORIAL – ‘Taking attendance’ at Cayman’s public schools
Winston Connolly has done it again. The George Town lawmaker’s “Diogenes” gene has re-activated — meaning that Mr. Connolly has gone and said something amazingly honest, with no regard to the political consequences. We admire and applaud him for that.
No new primary school for Bodden Town
A new primary school in Bodden Town is not part of government’s immediate plans and is not needed at this stage, based on projections for likely student numbers in the near future, Education Minister Tara Rivers told legislators last week.
Government drops effort to cement political parties in Elections Bill
Facing pressure from one of its ministers, as well as from opposition politicians, the Progressives-led government on Friday appeared ready to abandon efforts to legally force the registration of groups believed to be operating as political parties before the May 2017 general election.
Accountants gala honors dozens of Caymanians
Nearly 30 Caymanian accountants who have recently received either their bachelor’s or master’s degrees, or who have attained a professional qualification, were honored at the annual Cayman Islands Institute of Professional Accountants gala at The Ritz-Carlton, Grand Cayman on Saturday night.
Schools to receive arts and culture journal
The latest volume of the Cayman National Cultural Foundation’s arts and culture publication is being distributed to all Cayman schools. The latest volume of “Foundation, the Arts & Culture Journal of the Cayman Islands,” the fourth to be published, features the Sister Islands, covering the years from early settlement to modern-day.
EDITORIAL – Speaking up for West Bay’s schoolchildren
How can issues as obvious as broken equipment, “debris,” and mold be present in a primary school in a country as wealthy as ours, within a public education system as well-funded as ours? And, for the record, smack in the backyard of Education Minister Tara Rivers?
Hewitt bankruptcy hearing delayed till Oct. 3
Bankruptcy hearings against West Bay’s John Gordon Hewitt and wife Velma Powery-Hewitt were adjourned this week for the fifth time and rescheduled for Oct. 3. The ongoing case seeks reimbursement for nearly $140,000 in court costs and another nearly $77,000 in additional costs – mandated by the courts.
Prayer service kicks off Sir John A. Cumber School year
With a new principal and lots of exciting plans in the works, West Bay’s Sir John A. Cumber Primary School kicked off a new school year with a visit from Education Minister Tara Rivers and a special prayer service.
EDITORIAL – One employer’s experience: The challenges of ‘hiring Caymanian’
Friday’s front page featured photos and a story on the 12th anniversary of the landfall of Category 5 Hurricane Ivan. That was the second-most...
Donation helps kids ‘find magic in reading’
The first delivery of Roald Dahl books arrived at George Town Primary School on Tuesday morning, courtesy of Camana Bay and Books & Books. In all, 120 Dahl books are being donated to all 15 public primary and secondary schools in Cayman.
EDITORIAL – Minister Rivers takes a ‘pass’ on schools report
Education Minister Tara Rivers appears to be missing, or willfully overlooking, the central point of the report her own government commissioned — that Cayman’s government should get out of the business of running schools altogether.
New plan to deal with school disorder
Cayman’s public schools are adopting a new U.S.-style management system to deal with disorderly behavior in class.
Funding approved for 50 new public school positions
Cabinet has approved additional funding for 50 new posts across the public school system, Education Minister Tara Rivers announced Wednesday.
EDITORIAL – School woes not just ‘on paper’
We’ve all heard of, “No more pencils, no more books” — but no more paper?
Hewitt bankruptcy hearing set
John Gordon Hewitt and Velma Powery-Hewitt are to appear Thursday afternoon, July 21, for bankruptcy proceedings amounting to nearly $140,000 related to a 2013 courtroom battle establishing Minister Tara Rivers’s eligibility to stand for elective office.
EDITORIAL – Delinquent pensions: Mission accomplished? We think not
The problem of employers not paying their employees’ pensions (and, more despicably, sometimes stealing their employees’ contributions to their pension plans) has not been solved at all.
Six years after critical report, minister says pension system finally in compliance
A 2010 report from the Office of the Complaints Commissioner criticized government and the National Pensions Office, calling Cayman’s pension system a “ticking time-bomb,” ignored by many employers and neglected by politicians.
Pensions law changes ‘within 18 months’
More than 50 changes to the Cayman Islands National Pensions Law will be brought into effect within the next 18 months, Legislative Assembly members heard Monday.
West Bay youngsters spread sunshine
Brownies and Rainbows from Sir John A. Cumber Primary School recently did their part for their community, hosting a tea party for West Bay seniors at the school.
Students build golf cart to raise funds for charity
A golf cart built by students at the Cayman Islands Further Education Centre will be auctioned next month for charity.
Rivers: Labour Relations Bill to be revised
Cayman Islands Employment Minister Tara Rivers confirmed Thursday that the government intends to bring a revised version of updated labor legislation to the Legislative Assembly during 2016.
Women celebrate their Passport2Success
After 16 weeks in the Passport2Success program, it was an afternoon of success for the women who graduated from the program’s 19th cohort on April 22.
Hewitt bankruptcy hearing adjourned till June 2
Grand Court Justice Ingrid Mangatal on Thursday morning continued bankruptcy proceedings by Minister of Education, Employment and Gender Affairs Tara Rivers against John Gordon Hewitt – and wife Velma Powery-Hewitt – until Thursday June 2.
EDITORIAL – When 98 percent of NWDA clients are ‘not work ready’ …
The prospects of employment for the out-of-work Caymanian population are (pick your own description) “not pretty,” “challenging” or “grim.”
Rivers at UN for anti-discrimination treaty extension
Minister for Gender Affairs Tara Rivers was at the United Nations on Wednesday to witness the extension to the Cayman Islands of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women.
Women’s rights treaty ratified for Cayman
After more than a decade of working toward the goal, the Cayman Islands government announced Tuesday that the United Nations would extend the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women – often referred to as CEDAW – to the Cayman Islands.
Fundraising seeks to prevent Hewitt bankruptcy
Supporters of Gordon Hewitt and former West Bay political candidate Velma Powery-Hewitt last week launched a fundraising appeal to defray court costs of nearly $140,000, incurred in the couple’s 2013 challenge to candidate Tara Rivers’ election to Legislative Assembly.
EDITORIAL – Rivers versus the Hewitts: At what cost?
“[Tara Rivers] therefore prays that … on the hearing of this petition, the said John Gordon Hewitt may be adjudged bankrupt.” … Politics ain’t beanbag.
Government issues minimum wage order
The Progressives-led Cabinet is proceeding with its plans for a $6 per hour minimum wage despite a recent high-profile dispute between Employment Minister Tara Rivers and Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce, the territory’s largest business representative organization over sweeping changes to the Labour Law.
Minister Rivers calls for Hewitt bankruptcy
A late January filing in the Grand Court seeks to bankrupt West Bay’s John Gordon Hewitt and wife Velma Powery-Hewitt for failing to pay nearly $140,000 in costs to Education Minister Tara Rivers.
EDITORIAL – On tact and tactics: The premier’s lesson for Minister Rivers
The counterattack by Employment Minister Tara Rivers against the Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce has revealed the existence of an information rift not only between herself and the business group, but also, apparently, between herself and Premier Alden McLaughlin.
Minister dismisses Chamber criticism
Employment Minister Tara Rivers says she is “surprised and deeply disappointed” over criticism by former Chamber of Commerce president Barry Bodden about a lack of communication from government on the Labour Relations Bill.
EDITORIAL – The Chamber’s changing of the guard
Let us extend a welcoming hand to new Chamber of Commerce President Paul Pearson, and offer a congratulatory pat on the back to outgoing Chamber President Barry Bodden for a job well done.
MLA Connolly leaves Progressives caucus, says he’s ‘not a politician’
George Town MLA Winston Connolly announced late Monday that he will no longer be a member of the Progressives political party caucus and is...
Constitutional Commission: 9-member government bench possible
Cayman's Constitutional Commission weighs in on the Legislative Assembly numbers debate.
A month-by-month roundup of Cayman’s 2015 news stories
Top stories of 2015 in the Cayman Islands
Book donations embrace bilingualism
Three primary schools recieved a total of $2,600 worth of new books thanks to Rotary Sunrise.
Alva Suckoo resigns from PPM
Bodden Town representative Alva Suckoo resigned from the ruling Progressives party Wednesday, saying he believed the country’s Christian foundations were “under attack”.
MLA McTaggart joins Progressives
George Town MLA Roy McTaggart removed the “independent” from his title Tuesday, joining the Progressives political party and announcing that he would campaign with the Progressives for re-election in 2017.
Sir John A. Cumber Primary Christmas shows impress
The West Bay primary school holds its annual Christmas concerts.
Eden's Progressives departure sets off political uproar
The departure of long-serving Bodden Town MLA Anthony Eden from the Progressives-led government last week sparked a behind-the-scenes political scramble and was viewed by some Cayman politics insiders as a potential foreshadowing of others leaving the Progressives party.
Mr. Eden said he would sit on the other side of the Legislative Assembly when the House next meets in the new year.
Dictionary donation
Year 5 classes of the Sir John A. Cumber School received a donation of 93 brand new dictionaries.
EY Report update: Few job cuts, less outsourcing in gov’t plan
Although proposals will initially lead to few job losses and no outsourcing of functions to the private sector, the Cayman Islands government announced Monday that it would seek to move forward with a total of 51 recommendations derived from a 2014 consultant report.
Design mishaps boost school work cost
Mechanical, electrical and plumbing work at additional classrooms at North Side district’s Edna Moyle Primary School went nearly 30 percent over budget largely due to design flaws, the Legislative Assembly heard last week.
Legislators approve ‘one man, one vote’ for 2017
Cayman Islands lawmakers have approved a long-debated change to ‘one
man, one vote’ for the British territory’s next general election cycle.
Business in brief
KeyTech Ltd. and CellOne to combine operations; The Security Centre Ltd. celebrates new office opening; Cayman Finance’s student program a success; Harneys opens Bermuda office; Maples and Calder grants scholarships to six Caymanians; Caymanian seconded to Intertrust Hong Kong
CISPA honors pioneers and new accountants
The Cayman Islands Society of Professional Accountants celebrated both newcomers to the profession and pioneers of the industry at the organization’s annual gala event on Saturday at The Ritz-Carlton.
Michael Austin, Paul Harris, Chris Johnson and Paul Sleep, four of the original six members who signed CISPA’s memorandum and articles of association 45 years ago, received the first CISPA Pioneers Awards.
The honorees were joined by four newly qualified accountants, Matthew Hale,
Jerrica Merren, Claire O’Dea and Taylor Wright, who recently received
their professional designations, and six graduates with Bachelor’s
Degrees in Accounting from the International College of the Cayman
Islands or the University College of the Cayman Islands.
Head of the class: Chief Officer Christen Suckoo
Mr. Suckoo, it’s your turn to present.
Chamber of Commerce pans proposed labor legislation
The Cayman Islands Chamber of Commerce will not back the current draft of revamped labor legislation due to what the organization’s president described Wednesday as the “potential economic fallout” it could cause.
East End school launches home reading program
East End Primary School has launched a home reading program that encourages children to embrace books and, organizers hope, will lay the foundation for young students to become lifelong readers.
Students awarded in regional poster competition
Clifton Hunter High School student Anissa Hoyte and Cayman Prep and High School student Tijana Parker have been recognized for their entries in the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association Environmental Poster Competition.
Scholarship offered to doctors for specialist training
The Cayman Islands Seafarers Association will sponsor two Caymanian doctors over the next four years as they train to become specialists.
Engaging our community in our schools
KPMG's suggested model of "Cayman Partnership Schools" provides the disruptive discontinuity that our long under-performing school system desperately requires.
UCCI teaching programs receive accreditation
Teacher-training programs at the University College of the Cayman Islands recently received validation by the Joint Board of Teacher Education.
Public education: Cayman's most important test
The general tenor of the inspection reports on Cayman Islands government schools is not surprising — but it is scathing.
Poor teaching blamed for school failures
Inspectors were highly critical of teaching standards across Cayman’s schools in a series of damning reports that recommend substantial changes across the islands’ education system.
More families opting for private schools
More parents in the Cayman Islands are opting to send their children to private schools, new statistics show. Both the Cayman International School and Triple C have added staff and classrooms after reporting record enrollment figures for the 2015/16 academic year.
On Literacy Day, minister cites local issues
Education Minister Tara Rivers said there are still students leaving school without the reading and writing skills they need for the modern workplace.
Cayman government working on pay inequity
Civil service leaders insist they are still seeking to address concerns over pay inequality across government.
Education officials defend public schools inspection reports
Education officials have defended their decision to bring in a British inspection team to assess standards in Cayman’s schools.
School inspections: A welcome ‘first step’ toward improvement
Q. Why did the ministry have an independent U.K. consultant inspect Cayman’s schools? A. “Because it was the proper thing to do. That’s why.”
Students celebrate exam success
The exam performance of students in Cayman’s public schools continues to edge steadily upward.
