There are excellent recruitment and employment companies located on Grand Cayman. Some agencies specialise in finding talent for legal and financial firms, while others offer employment opportunities for candidates with IT or other technical skills.
Cayman Islands has numerous employment opportunities in the financial services industry, making it a desirable jurisdiction to be employed in and attractive to professionals from around the world. Financial service businesses, including reinsurance firms and family offices of high-net-worth individuals, have been continuously moving to Cayman in recent years. The need to show an economic presence in Cayman has incited some of this growth, as has the huge need for compliance workers who are quickly snapped up by legal and corporate services firms.
Jobs in other sectors (medical, education, construction, retail) exist mainly to meet the demands of the local market. Many jobs are available in these fields, and we discuss them in detail here. The Island has a well-educated local workforce, but the need for qualified accounting, finance, actuarial, compliance and financial services professionals, especially those who are designated and have at least a few years of experience, completely outstrips the number of qualified candidates available locally.
The Labour Force Survey (LFS) Fall 2023, which was published in April 2024, estimates that the total labour force has increased to reach 60,513 people, a rise of 5% compared to the 2022 figures, while the percentage of those unemployed was 3.3%. The LFS Report also estimates that the population of the Islands as of Fall 2023 was 84,738, and of those, 38,926 were Caymanians, 6,433 were Permanent Residents and 38,312 were non-Caymanians. Therefore, foreign workers make up a large percentage of the workforce and come from 137 different countries
Work Permit Numbers
As of July 2024, there were 37,334 work permits in effect, up from 36,263 in 2023 and 32,184 in 2022. These work permit holders hail from 137 different countries, including Jamaica (15,427), the Philippines (6,463), India (2,081), the UK (2,024), Nepal (1,246), Canada (1,197), Honduras (1,172), USA (919), Nicaragua (715), South Africa (675), Ireland (372), Kenya (334), Dominican Republic (328), Guyana (299), Cuba (279), Sri Lanka (243), Australia (213), Columbia (204), Trinidad and Tobago (189), Italy (177), Zimbabwe (165), Mexico (150), Barbados (144), Brazil (121, Costa Rica (121), Peru (100), Spain (88), New Zealand (87), Turkey (85) and France (83).
Occupations of Non Caymanians
Of the 37,334 work permits, the following jobs have the largest number of work permit holders: domestic helps (4,210), waiter/waitress (2,324), masons (1,780), carpenters (1,115), kitchen helpers (1,096), gardeners (1,058), security officers (761), retail cashiers (740), line cooks (740), building construction labourers (487), cooks (413), Registered Nurses (399), Primary School Teachers (333), Pre-School Teachers (326), Auto Mechanic (317), bartenders (315), car cleaners (294), lawyers 243, accountants (51), audit officers (64), physio therapists (60), and more.
Despite a growing population, there are still many employment opportunities available in the Cayman Islands. Those with qualifications and experience in the financial services field, especially in compliance, are readily snapped up. Companies no longer have to advertise jobs in one of the two local newspapers in order to secure a work permit, although they do have to advertise the job for two weeks on the JobsCayman website (part of WORC), therefore all jobs that are advertised in the local newspaper can be considered genuine job vacancies.
This is a time of amazing opportunity for Caymanians in the financial services field as they are highly sought after and in much demand. Although there are 37,334 work permits in issue as of July 2024 (up from 36,263 in July 2023), these jobs have filled a genuine need and cross the span of everything from gardener to a managing director at a bank. Another option to investigate is whether your business could set up a branch within Cayman Enterprise City and you then work here. Alternatively, keep an eye on LinkedIn, check out the careers page of Cayman companies that you are interested in, or email them directly, and don't underestimate the option, for both local or expat, of registering with an employment agency: they are often tasked with finding suitable candidates and would be far better placed to know what is available and to suggest a candidate to a business which they know has an opening.
Also, with Cayman being a global financial centre, and with businesses wanting to hire the best of the best in such a competitive global market, it is not surprising that the recruitment of human capital from overseas is necessary. Although we have an educated population, there are many specialised positions either currently filled or needing to be filled, that our small population cannot fill.
Cayman has attracted globally recognised and outstanding recruitment agencies, a few that specialise in finding talent for legal and financial firms. Often these firms have a lawyer recruiting for law firms, so they know what questions you will want answering and how the process works. Other recruitment firms specialise in candidates with IT or other technical skills.
Many of the agencies listed below post the jobs that are available on their websites and they are in constant contact with Cayman-based firms who know what their employment needs are going to be.
