What island in Hawaii has the least population, yet still has enough growth to have open jobs available?
Let’s look at the smaller half of the 8 main Hawaiian islands.
Kahoolawe: Used for target practice by US Navy bombers for about 50 years. The Navy had 10 years to clean up unexploded ordnance. They didn’t finish. Visits to Kahoolawe are tightly controlled and usually for cultural or environmental purposes.
Niihau: privately owned. Inhabited by about 100 people who agree to live an ancient Hawaiian lifestyle and use the Hawaiian language for everyday communication. Occasionally, the entire population is evacuated to Kauai when they run out of water. When the teachers in Hawaii went on strike in 2001, the kids on Niihau had to go to school because both the teachers showed up. Access to the island is tightly controlled. You basically have to be sponsored by a resident, and there are not any jobs to speak of.
Lanai: formerly a pineapple plantation and 98% owned by Castle & Cooke. More than half the population is of Filipino descent, or just plain Filipino. One public school, K-12 with a few hundred students. One village in the middle of the island. Three hotels, two operated by Four Seasons. Population shrinking over the past couple of years because of layoffs.
Molokai: the "Most Hawaiian Island", population, about 7000. One public high school. No traffic lights. More than half the population are of Native Hawaiian descent. More than 3/4 of the schoolchildren are. An unusual percentage of residents have more than half Native Hawaiian ancestry because many Hawaiian Home Lands kuleana are located there. The largest tourist attraction is what they used to call a Leper Colony back when Saint Damien was ministering to the Hansen’s Disease patients there.
The largest private employer shut down in 2008 in response to a campaign of protests by the locals to prevent a development of luxury homes that would leave a larger footprint than the largest town in the island. The shutdown included the only movie theater on the island, the only 18-hole golf course, and the only elevator on the island, at the hotel they called "The Lodge".
There is still one hotel operating, but it’s getting harder to get to the island. Jets quit flying there in 2004. You can arrive by propellor plane, or you can arrive by ferry across a rough channel. I once made the crossing in 16 foot swells. Unemployment is back up to about 11%. Even the government workers are being laid off or having their pay cut through the furloughs that shut down state and county offices maybe a couple of Fridays a month. More than most islands in Hawaii, Molokai is resistant to outsiders. It is difficult for locals to get a job. Unless you have particular qualifications that are in demand, employment outlook for someone from far away is not good.
Keep in mind that Hawaii is about two years behind the curve in the latest economic crisis. It is not as far into recovery as North America. There are currently 40,000 people in Hawaii without jobs, and many of the 5000 people in the state that don’t have a place to live actually do have jobs, but can’t afford to rent a place on the money they make. Between a quarter and a third of the homeless on Oahu right now came to Hawaii from some other place, thinking their lives would be better here somehow.
All that being said, the next biggest island to look at would be Kauai, which has about 40,000 people and 3 public high schools.
July 13th, 2010 at 6:07 am
Well, Molokai & Lanai are the smallest & least populated, but job prospects on both islands are poor. The whole state is not doing all that well in terms of employment, but I suppose Kauai would most closely fit your parameters.
References :
July 13th, 2010 at 6:48 am
Let’s look at the smaller half of the 8 main Hawaiian islands.
Kahoolawe: Used for target practice by US Navy bombers for about 50 years. The Navy had 10 years to clean up unexploded ordnance. They didn’t finish. Visits to Kahoolawe are tightly controlled and usually for cultural or environmental purposes.
Niihau: privately owned. Inhabited by about 100 people who agree to live an ancient Hawaiian lifestyle and use the Hawaiian language for everyday communication. Occasionally, the entire population is evacuated to Kauai when they run out of water. When the teachers in Hawaii went on strike in 2001, the kids on Niihau had to go to school because both the teachers showed up. Access to the island is tightly controlled. You basically have to be sponsored by a resident, and there are not any jobs to speak of.
Lanai: formerly a pineapple plantation and 98% owned by Castle & Cooke. More than half the population is of Filipino descent, or just plain Filipino. One public school, K-12 with a few hundred students. One village in the middle of the island. Three hotels, two operated by Four Seasons. Population shrinking over the past couple of years because of layoffs.
Molokai: the "Most Hawaiian Island", population, about 7000. One public high school. No traffic lights. More than half the population are of Native Hawaiian descent. More than 3/4 of the schoolchildren are. An unusual percentage of residents have more than half Native Hawaiian ancestry because many Hawaiian Home Lands kuleana are located there. The largest tourist attraction is what they used to call a Leper Colony back when Saint Damien was ministering to the Hansen’s Disease patients there.
The largest private employer shut down in 2008 in response to a campaign of protests by the locals to prevent a development of luxury homes that would leave a larger footprint than the largest town in the island. The shutdown included the only movie theater on the island, the only 18-hole golf course, and the only elevator on the island, at the hotel they called "The Lodge".
There is still one hotel operating, but it’s getting harder to get to the island. Jets quit flying there in 2004. You can arrive by propellor plane, or you can arrive by ferry across a rough channel. I once made the crossing in 16 foot swells. Unemployment is back up to about 11%. Even the government workers are being laid off or having their pay cut through the furloughs that shut down state and county offices maybe a couple of Fridays a month. More than most islands in Hawaii, Molokai is resistant to outsiders. It is difficult for locals to get a job. Unless you have particular qualifications that are in demand, employment outlook for someone from far away is not good.
Keep in mind that Hawaii is about two years behind the curve in the latest economic crisis. It is not as far into recovery as North America. There are currently 40,000 people in Hawaii without jobs, and many of the 5000 people in the state that don’t have a place to live actually do have jobs, but can’t afford to rent a place on the money they make. Between a quarter and a third of the homeless on Oahu right now came to Hawaii from some other place, thinking their lives would be better here somehow.
All that being said, the next biggest island to look at would be Kauai, which has about 40,000 people and 3 public high schools.
References :
10 years living and working on three different Hawaiian islands
July 13th, 2010 at 7:00 am
Nothing really fits your description.
It’s the Big Island that probably technically has the most room for growth, but it’s kind of sleepy and I don’t know that it’s rapidly developing or sitting on a ton of open jobs right now.
The islands in general need things like doctors and teachers, and if you have such skills to offer and don’t mind a pay cut, etc., you can probably find something somewhere.
References :