Refired, not retired!

A group in South Africa refers to themselves as folks who have been 'refired', not retired - the members of the Caribbean Community of Retired Persons (CCRP) are living up to this description!

Kim Isava and Sarah Warren of CaribbeanJobs.com and Patrice Smith-Sterling of Digicel assist CCRP members

Watching the screen for instructions

Excerpt from column by Jean Lowrie-Chin in Jamaica Observer 6 July 2015:
Over 20 CCRP members CCRP attended a session with CaribbeanJobs.Com, hosted by the Digicel Foundation last Thursday.  They uploaded their resumes, having become available, post-retirement to re-enter the job market on either a full-time or part-time basis.  Companies would do well to hire such persons.  They are qualified and experienced and do not appear remotely old!   

One chic lady noted, “With our degrees and expertise on the job, we are just ready to tackle even bigger projects!” 

Rochelle Vassell of CaribbeanJobs.com gives pointers.

Indeed they are.  Companies are discovering that such individuals also bring strong ethics to the workplace and are excellent mentors for younger team members.  We recently had a data entry backlog at CCRP, and one of our retired members, Donna-Maria Freckleton worked for just a few hours per week, bringing us up to date in no time. More than 80 percent of our 1,400 members are computer literate, and more than half are on social media. 

For smaller businesses, such qualified professionals are a boon, as they can provide services part-time without burdening budgets with hefty salaries and perks.  Another interesting observation is that these folks in their sixties and seventies seem to be in better health than the youngsters – they rarely take sick days.

Younger members expand CCRP Caring Committee

Our younger CCRP members are also volunteering for our Caring Committee, chaired by the evergreen Irene Walter. Inspired by CCRP Chairman Professor Denise Eldemire-Shearer’s research, alerting us to the need for greater attention to Jamaica’s “old-old”, they plan to provide support to our elderly members.  

We are looking forward to a session with consultant psychiatrist Dr. E Anthony Allen who will guide us in making our visits as meaningful as possible, and help strengthen our advocacy for the protection of Jamaica’s elderly.