Hard economic times, partially put off by an influx of recovery money after 2008’s Hurricane Paloma, are about to strike Cayman Brac and Little Cayman with full force, according to Sister Islands MLA Moses Kirkconnell.

Mr. Kirkconnell told a political meeting in Savannah Tuesday night that he expected between 200 and 250 construction-related jobs mainly created in the rebuilding effort following Paloma to end when the final $1 million dollars from the reconstruction effort is allocated.

“We will probably lose (those jobs) within the next 30 days,” he said.

The Islands are also facing the spectre of salary cuts, as well as temporary pension reductions and increased health care premiums – that are expected to affect 70 per cent of the local work force who depend on central government or statutory authorities for employment.

“My constituents are scared,” Mr. Kirkconnell told a group of about 200 political party supporters on the lawn of a Savannah-area home. “They come to my office and talk about ‘what are they going to do’.”

Mr. Kirkconnell said signs of economic distress began to appear in the Brac in 2009, and were more pronounced last month when one of two local dive operations – Indepth Watersports – went out of business last month.

The Brac MLA said now is not the time to cut civil servant salaries between five and 15 per cent.

“Imagine what that will actually do to Cayman Brac and Little Cayman,” Mr. Kirkconnell said. “If you take that kind of money out of your pay structure, just put it right back into social services because those people are not going to be able to make ends meet.”

Mr. Kirkconnell said the proposed salary cuts could also create the situation where civil service department supervisors would actually end up making less than some of the employees who work under them.

For instance, he said an individual who made $3,100 a month that received a five per cent salary cut and had to pay 50 per cent of the monthly health care premiums would actually make less overall than someone making $2,900 a month who had no salary cut at all.

“I say that just to bring out how these things have to be worked through, and they just can’t be thrown out…to a community that doesn’t have time to understand and doesn’t have outside jobs and other stimulus for the economy,” he said. “That is how the economy shrinks and shrinks in a hurry. Take 10 per cent out of the Cayman Brac and Little Cayman economy and see what happens.”  

Premier McKeeva Bush has said those making between $3,000 and $4,499 a month in the civil service would not have to contribute 50 per cent toward their monthly health coverage premiums, although a memo from the financial secretary’s office issued on 4 March indicated that they would have to pay.  

The salary reductions were proposed for the current month’s pay period.

Those making between $4,500 and $9,999 would receive a ten per cent salary cut. Any civil servants making more than $10,000 per month would receive a 15 per cent pay reduction. Additionally, the government plans to temporarily suspend pension payments for civil servants.