I am from Detroit, Michigan, USA. I have strong interest in Jamaica, its culture, music, people, and land... I have visited multiple times and for some reason am strong on wanting to move there in the next couple years. I work in the Group Home field. I work with people with developmental disabilities (handicapped). I guess you would call me a caregiver. Would this line of work draw any interest from possible employers in Jamaica? Are there mentally challenged people in Jamaica and are there any residential "homes"??
If anyone has any ideas for me, please don't hesitate to respond....
Thanks...

Hi and welcome

In order for you to be able to work here without being a citizen or married to a citizen you are going to have to be hired by a J'can company and I can tell you right now I doubt there will be anything for you. ( the only reason I say that is because being a caregiver doesn't really have special skills and there are alot of J'can caregivers already) The only way you will get a job is if there are no J'cans to fill that spot or that don't have the skill to do it. The company that hires you will have to apply for work permit on your behalf and you may not get it. You can however, come down for 3 mths and extend it to 6 mths and do charity work but you can't work and earn an imcome. And you may have to provide prove that you have the means to support yourself during an extended stay.

Have you checked out the Ministry of Labour website yet? If not, please do, it gives you all sorts of info regarding working in JA. You can also call them and they will be able to answer your questions directly. Just allow the phone to ring and ring and ring...lol Trust me..let it ring.

If I am giving out false info can someone please correct me.

Quilo I have seen children's organizations that work with mentally and physically challenged children. They always accept help, although from what I knew it was on a short term volunteer basis.

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I am also a carer in London, i work with physically and mentally disabled adults and children as well as the elderly...and IMO this is a job where many agencies here or in Ja would be able to find alot of people to work for them, so IMO i wouldnt go to Jamaica with only that job in mind

also...do they still use the work handicapped in the USA i know in jamaica they do...but here in london, especailly in the health or care professions we dont use the word handicapped...anyways jus asking.

im british and worked with young offenders and 'disturbed' youth so i guess that could come under the same umbrella. my qualifications and experienced got me nowhere in Ja. they just dont have the same kind of social system as us and where they do they have enough Jamaican people to employ. there is a GREAT need for mental health care in Ja but unfortunately not enough funding (no we dont say handicapped or retards in uk either). however you can offer your services for free with many charities and organisations - but your still SUPPOSED to have a work permit for that so tread carefully. i was invited to help out at a local school which could class as volunatry but, like most things in Ja, its cos i knew someone who gave me the link. you have to know people in Ja.

try not to be disheartened. if Jamaica were to open its doors to all of us foreigners who were lucky enough to receive good free education and well-paid government jobs, who wanted to live in a beautiful hot country, then God help the Jamaicans who didnt have the same privilege. Its only fair. probably the best way to help people in Jamaica is to get a business and employ people - hopefully something that will also benefit the community too.

I like the fact that JA doesn't get away all it's jobs to foreigners..I like that they require any foreign companies to hire J'can first. That's only fair. They are buying up land and kicking out the locals at such a pace the least they could do is give them a job...oh, a raise would be nice too. I am watching these fancy places going up on A1...just wait and see..when they are done the homes across the highway will have to be moved because they are 'unsightly' to the tourists.

It sickens me sometimes to see all these hotels go up and here you have these guys busting their backsides for maybe $7-10 K JMD a week....and they are building places that they may never be able afford to spend one night in. And all the beachfront property is being sold off..I'd like to know where are the locals supposed to go when they want to go to the beach? Not everyone can afford the cost of Dr's Cave.

well said, and i agree 100%.