please help! traveling to hawaii(Kauai) with no plan/job (movers, find a job)
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Location: Was in Western New York but now in Hilo Hawaii
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Quote:
Originally Posted by winkosmosis
Every day driving to work I see people with surfboards on their roof racks. How do those people make a living? Credit? Parents? Crime?
I have an example
I dropped by my wife's work to give her something I parked next to a truck packed with water stuff on the racks were a surfboards/ one man canoe when I saw my wife i asked whoʻs truck? She says oh thats so an so she is water! I say huh? So she splains to me that if she has a lunch break she goes in the water in between work and school she goes in the watr after work she goes in the water in the morning before anything she goes in the water. To sum it up .... Water is Life and for her its her soul.
Quote:
Originally Posted by SkyBob
And here is where the problem lies. People who have not been to the islands, who have not tried to live there, do not know that they often need TWO jobs to cover their expenses.
Aloha Bob Havenʻt seen you on for a while!
Your point is so correct there are many people with 2 or 3 jobs just to make a living and they still have time to surf or just jump in the water. In fact I did it today i ran to the water to get wet and then go back to what i was doing.
And here is where the problem lies. People who have not been to the islands, who have not tried to live there, do not know that they often need TWO jobs to cover their expenses.
Can you tell me why that is? Hawaii should be a place where a person can work just ONE job and make enough to pay for a decent standard of living. If I lived there, I'd be a big time union organizer, as well as getting a petition going to dramatically raise the min wage - what is it now, same as the mainland? Imagine if the min wage was $15 an hour, with all jobs required to be at least 20 hours a week, so everyone can get the state-mandated health insurance (or is that 30 hours?)
I'm just getting a bit peeved reading about how hard it is to "make" it in Hawaii, as if it's a 3nd world country or something. I urge all residents who work or wish to work in Hawaii to demand MUCH higher wage levels, as well as better working conditions (like plenty of time off to go surfing and enjoy the beauty of the islands, etc).
Remember folks, Hawaii is supposed to be paradise on Earth, not some crappy backwater where people have to work 2-3 jobs just to get by. That is just so wrong, on so many levels.
Lots of reasons, but chief among them is lack of an economic driver robust enough to make all that possible.
Read up on Hawaiian history. Key chapters... this was a third world country, and in many ways still operates like one. Primary industries: agriculture, military, with a side business in tourism. After the collapse of the sugar industry here in the 90s, tourism became a more significant part of the business plan, but as a luxury business it is more subject to the fluctuations of the world economy than production of tangible goods, etc.
Now we're in a recession, tourism has been down, and business owners are trying to survive by splitting jobs in two, each with under 20 hours scheduled, to eliminate the cost of health insurance and other "full-time" benefits.
There's more, but that'll give you a taste. Unions today are in "giveback" mode here, agreeing to wage and benefit cuts to preserve jobs. To do what you suggest requires a big money pump that just doesn't exist.
Plus another factor in keeping prices high and wages low is pressure from the imported population. Folks are willing to move to Hawaii and work any job they can find just to live here so employers can offer low wages and find someone to take the job. There are also a lot of folks who want to buy property in Hawaii who have jobs in other places that pay a lot more as well as being in a lower cost of living area so they can afford to pay a lot more than the folks working locally. That drives the cost of housing up which increases the local expenses and makes it even more difficult for local folks.
If it wasn't so difficult to live here, there would be a whole lot more population here and the folks here are already living on somewhere around 85% imported everything. Price of shipping is going up so it's gonna get even tougher.
Plus another factor in keeping prices high and wages low is pressure from the imported population. Folks are willing to move to Hawaii and work any job they can find just to live here so employers can offer low wages and find someone to take the job. There are also a lot of folks who want to buy property in Hawaii who have jobs in other places that pay a lot more as well as being in a lower cost of living area so they can afford to pay a lot more than the folks working locally. That drives the cost of housing up which increases the local expenses and makes it even more difficult for local folks.
If it wasn't so difficult to live here, there would be a whole lot more population here and the folks here are already living on somewhere around 85% imported everything. Price of shipping is going up so it's gonna get even tougher.
That was the problem I noticed in Key West when I lived in South Florida - it being a small island, with wealthy "snowbirds" buying property at nosebleed prices just so they could spend a month or two down there each winter. That left the locals out in the cold as far as housing went, which actually made it difficult for hotels and the like to keep employees on staff - it cost just too much to live there. Of course, the locals could just take a drive up the Overseas Highway and find a much lower cost of living while remaining essentially in the same climate, an option many people in Hawaii don't have. I just had to laugh at the "poor employers" who complained about not being able to find "good help"...that's just karmic justice being doled out true and fair.
Know what I'd do if I was running the show in Hawaii? Since the "wealth" of Hawaii is apparently locked up in real estate, why not raise property taxes based on the value of homes there on non-residents, and make these taxes higher the more expensive the property is, such that the million-dollar properties would be subject to a very high tax rate. Not only would this raise enormous sums of money the government could use to subsidize housing for the poor, it would serve to drive the rich snobs away from Hawaii, lowering costs for everyone. Also, I would prohibit employers from "splitting" jobs just to get around the health requirement, hearing about stuff like that just really gets my goat. Also, I'd raise the min wage to a level that can actually support a decent standard of living (which really should apply to the whole country, with the way prices are going up).
Good thing I'm not moving to Hawaii, huh? I've got my own slice of paradise picked out anyhow - heck, I already live in paradise when compared to many areas of the US. I just think that people, no matter where they are, should never accept things "as they are", as there's always things we can do (citizens + government) to improve our overall standard of living.
Know what I'd do if I was running the show in Hawaii? Since the "wealth" of Hawaii is apparently locked up in real estate, why not raise property taxes based on the value of homes there on non-residents, and make these taxes higher the more expensive the property is, such that the million-dollar properties would be subject to a very high tax rate. Not only would this raise enormous sums of money the government could use to subsidize housing for the poor, it would serve to drive the rich snobs away from Hawaii, lowering costs for everyone. Also, I would prohibit employers from "splitting" jobs just to get around the health requirement, hearing about stuff like that just really gets my goat. Also, I'd raise the min wage to a level that can actually support a decent standard of living (which really should apply to the whole country, with the way prices are going up).
Good thing I'm not moving to Hawaii, huh? I've got my own slice of paradise picked out anyhow - heck, I already live in paradise when compared to many areas of the US. I just think that people, no matter where they are, should never accept things "as they are", as there's always things we can do (citizens + government) to improve our overall standard of living.
Much of that locked-up wealth in Hawaii residents is locked up because it is their home, and has been for sometimes several generations. If you sell your home that you live in, where do you then live? You have to buy another one!
Hawaii ALREADY taxes non-residents much higher on property taxes. How fair is it that a non-resident, who lives here part-time, has to pay more than their share of taxes to support infrastructure and services that they don't use?
So you want a law that tells employers how many MINIMUM hours they have to hire employees for? Employers would say F*#* that and hire no one.
Your idea that raising the minimum wage helps people is a farce.
Do you realize what happens to an economy when you arbitrarily raise the minimum wage? Low-end jobs disappear and go away as employers hire fewer people and the costs of their goods and services has to increase, making for INFLATION. BAD IDEA. The poor get squeezed even harder!
Hawaii already has a huge union presence that is well known as one of the biggest issues that this state is facing.
Hawaii does have many many decent paying jobs that a person can survive on! There are jobs that pay above any other similar job anywhere on the mainland. There are jobs that make people rich. But Hawaii isnl;t like the rest of the mainland whedre a company in Nevada manufactures items for use in NY or a company that does administartive work for companies in CA and TX. Most of Hawaii jobs are for in state work. That means the types and amount iof jobs that pays well are not here in the same number as on the mainland.
What jobs there are are the more lower paying because that is the business the island has. If the tourist industry started raising wages to meet employee needs, the rates for rooms will go up and tourist will go to the carribean or elsewhere meaning less employment for everyone. It may sound simple to do these things but what it really means is what you have to address when coming up with the solution.
As was said non-residents already pay higher property tax as does non domesticated business properties. before offering a solution you need to find oput if the solution you recommend isn;t already happening. I would suggest instead of telling Hawaii how to do things you fisrt learn what they are doing.
the medical insurance requirment was to reduce state payments for uninsured medical coverage. From everything written, Hawaii pays the lowest in uninsured medical expenses. That dont mean its perfect and not without problems, but forcing emploter to only hire for so many hours so they have to cover employee only means less employees they will have. Can you think of the uproar over the state telling businesses the minimum hours they must hire people?
When we had a presence on HAwaii we had a part time person who worked 20 hours. We had them work 20 hours because we only had a need for them for 20 hours. If we were told we had to increase the hours so they get medical insurance, we would do (as we finall;y did) contract with a private company in CA to process the paperwork. So not only do the peson not work, but what work was done on Haaii is done to a out of state company that pays no Hawaii business taxes.
Another reason Hawaii is not like the mainland is the lack of roafds, bridges and tunnels from one county to the other. How many people you know live in one countty of the mainlad and work in another. Heck I live in another state from where I work but the highways and bridges makes it a easier commute. I can live outside the county and state and still get to work. How is a person who lives in Honolulu county going to work in Maui county everyday? But you can live in Broward county and work in Miami-Dade with no issues. Look at all the people who work in NY that live in NJ. How many people on Hawaii can work in CA on a daily basis?
before comparing Hawaii to other US areas, you have to know what your talking about and if what may work in kansas can work in Hawaii.
Hotzcats, i was thinking to do that, or just sleep on the beach or something like that. I dont mind sleeping in the open,
So you want to be a freeloading BUM. Why didn't you say that at first. There is nothing that will hold you back from being a bum in hawaii just like you can be a bum in Florida or texas. The requirments for being a bum is about the same everywhere. I don;t understand why people want to be homeless bums in other peoples backyards and not their own?
Take the risk, but you should definitely think of a plan and i second that idea to get the round trip ticket in case it doesn't work out. Kauai is a very rural island, hopefully it fits you, but don't be surprised if its not what you expected.
That was the problem I noticed in Key West when I lived in South Florida - it being a small island, with wealthy "snowbirds" buying property at nosebleed prices just so they could spend a month or two down there each winter. That left the locals out in the cold as far as housing went, which actually made it difficult for hotels and the like to keep employees on staff - it cost just too much to live there. Of course, the locals could just take a drive up the Overseas Highway and find a much lower cost of living while remaining essentially in the same climate, an option many people in Hawaii don't have. I just had to laugh at the "poor employers" who complained about not being able to find "good help"...that's just karmic justice being doled out true and fair.
Know what I'd do if I was running the show in Hawaii? Since the "wealth" of Hawaii is apparently locked up in real estate, why not raise property taxes based on the value of homes there on non-residents, and make these taxes higher the more expensive the property is, such that the million-dollar properties would be subject to a very high tax rate. Not only would this raise enormous sums of money the government could use to subsidize housing for the poor, it would serve to drive the rich snobs away from Hawaii, lowering costs for everyone. Also, I would prohibit employers from "splitting" jobs just to get around the health requirement, hearing about stuff like that just really gets my goat. Also, I'd raise the min wage to a level that can actually support a decent standard of living (which really should apply to the whole country, with the way prices are going up).
Good thing I'm not moving to Hawaii, huh? I've got my own slice of paradise picked out anyhow - heck, I already live in paradise when compared to many areas of the US. I just think that people, no matter where they are, should never accept things "as they are", as there's always things we can do (citizens + government) to improve our overall standard of living.
I completely agree with you; Hawaii shouldn't be a place where people have to live in a tin box, scramble with 3 jobs in order to buy crappy imported food and loads of other junk shipped in from the mainland. A lot of this is due to the historical circumstances that accompanied the annexation of Hawaii--turning it over to the corporate stewardship of the descendants of missionaries who seized land and made people work terrible hours on their plantations in order to export sugar cane and etc.
We do need a higher minimum wage (hell, we need living wages for all, and we have proof that this policy works when enacted), we do need single-payer healthcare, we do need cooperative businesses here. We can get there by making Hawaii a self-sufficient place again, producing all of our own, healthy organic food, all of our own energy (solar, wind, tidal), and actually allowing people to enjoy the bounty, and letting those who just wanted to huddle in their mansions and focus on mainland politics and industrial activities to leave. Island nations which have never had the imposition of western economic philosophy forced upon them don't have to struggle like this. We can simplify things, take care of ourselves and go on an independent track.
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Also, I'd raise the min wage to a level that can actually support a decent standard of living (which really should apply to the whole country, with the way prices are going up).
