Working in USVI's Realistic ?

[mikeybgoode]

I was wondering how realistic it is to hope to find work in us vi as a livaboard and make enuff $$$ to save a little for cruising. I'm thinking about living the
cheap way $750 mth?

is anyone doing this?

[bruce smith]

$750 in the USVI is about a weeks worth of mad money. It is easy enough to get it ,but that is a very 'spensive place to live.
What work have you got in mind?
week after a hurricane,,, make three grand roofing
, week before a hurricane, three hundred weed wacking.

[Cheechako]

the unemployment rate seems to be 9-10%. not bad as i would have thought, i suspect the numbers for sure.... like many people no longer considered in the numbers. i've heard (for what that is worth!) that much of the caribe suffers from 50%. still, if you have something unusual to offer...?

[bobconnie]

Connie being a nurse has worked there a couple of times and we lived on the boat. I would think ya would need a good trade to get much work there! except as said above , after a hurrycane !!

[GypsyGal]

It depends what skills you have and how reliable you are. There is still work in construction and maintenance for builders and gardening/landscaping, but not much else is going on here unless you are a Divemaster/Instructor or are willing to work bar.

As Bruce said, $750 will not last you a month - I live fairly frugally but am still spending upwards of $1K a month - but that also does depend on which island you choose to live. St John (my anchorage) is the most expensive to exist on but to me the most beautiful. St Thomas is less so and commodities are more freely available at better prices. St Croix is the cheapest....but there is high unemployment on that island right now so unless you have an income, which you are looking to supplement, STX is out.
Good luck on your plan, several friends here (and myself) have made it work!

[Aslan]

If you are trustworthy and reliable you will be able to easily find a source of income on St. Thomas. All three of those islands have a severe shortage of people with any kind of work ethic. I lived and worked on STT and STX for almost 4 years. I had more work than I could handle. 80+ hours a week. But I am a licensed commercial Captain with years of hospitality management (restaurant) experience on top of it. Those two fields always have a shortage of help on those two islands. St John is mostly a national park. Not much to do there for work unless you are an experienced bartender or dive master.

Depending on your skill base, you may or may not be able to find work in your field. But if you are willing to do anything to make money, there are plenty of charter boats and restaurant jobs available.

Major hurricanes hit the USVI on average about every 30 to 40 years. Hoping to capitalize on a weather disaster might have you losing a few pounds. When I was there we had a glancing Cat 3 that did basically no damage. Just lots of rain.

But if you can wait tables or bartend you can easily make $100 to $200 a day in tips. Same with running a charter cat or some other type of excursion boat. If you can scratch together enough sea time to write a small captain license then you'd be golden down there. Maybe an OUPV license or something along those lines. Very easy to obtain but will make good money if you're living on a morring with few expenses. A descent place to rent down there will run you over a grand plus utilities.

You can grocery shop at the local store or up at the Sam's club to save on food costs. If you frequent the tourist areas then your money will quickly run out.

Crime doesn't pay down there either unless you work for the government.

Best of luck.