Local businesses are heavily burdened by the vast number of public holidays presently issued in the territory.
This is according to Representative for the Ninth District Honourable Vincent Wheatley who made the statement in a recent House of Assembly Sitting.
For the year 2022, the BVI will have a total of 16 public holidays, a number that Wheatley says will have an impact on both small and large local companies.
The former Minister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration said businesses are still rebounding from the catastrophic hurricanes of 2017 and the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
He believes that a system similar to the one used within the United States should be considered, where businesses are not mandated to pay employers who do not work during the holidays.