When we think of Jamaica, we immediately think of images of an ideal vacation spot, white sandy beaches and crystal clear blue waters; we rarely take into consideration what workers go through, how their economy is doing, how people are affected every day by income, poverty, production and jobs; hopefully this article provides some insight into the lives of not only workers, but everyone living in Jamaica right now. As you can imagine, many people work at various resorts and beaches in Jamaica; Tourism has a huge source of income with around 60% of the gross domestic product, GDP. The average worker, if not working at a resort or beach, has a job as a store clerk, retail clerk, supermarket clerk; some people in Jamaica even work for themselves, producing and selling their own crops and some even participate in the illegal drug trade as a source of income. Jamaica's employment rate is slowly declining, many older Jamaicans are retiring, and young people are starting to enter the workforce with little education or experience under their belts. Younger workers shouldn't expect to immediately have a high-paying, overtime job; training and education are often not of the highest quality, leaving many unskilled in their field of work. The ILO, the International Labor Organization, has set standards for the minimum wage: for a week, the average worker will earn around 5,000 Jamaican dollars, which is equivalent to around 50-100 US dollars, this works out to around 1 million Jamaicans in poverty. The International Monetary Fund reports that Jamaican workers will receive US$2.50 or less per day. The average workers will work 6 days a week, with Sunday as a day off, so that will get around 40 hours a week for the workers... middle of paper... and everything that happens internally regarding the IMF, GDP, income, poverty, unemployment, you may need to open your eyes and see the bigger picture; yes it sounds beautiful but people struggle every day in Jamaica. Works Cited “Working in Jamaica.” Expat communities for expats around the world. InterNations, 2014."Encyclopedia of Nations." Working conditions in Jamaica, information on working conditions in Jamaica. National Encyclopedia, 2013. Web. 22 April 2014."CEPAL - Changes in the economy." CEPAL - Changes in income distribution and new economic model in Jamaica. CEPAL, 2005. “Jamaica Gleaner” Gap between rich and poor: Jamaica. GLEANER, July 2013."Jamaica." Economy: population, GDP, inflation, business, trade, foreign direct investment, corruption. Heritage, 2014.Ewin, James. "Jamaica and Economic Growth - Columns". Jamaica Observer News. Jamaica Observer, 2012.