Employment

“Okay… paradise is nice and all, but I still need to work.”

Depending on your field, there are actually a lot of job opportunities if you know where to look. Perhaps you would work well in a bar or brewery. In addition to all the bars on the island, there are several breweries such as the Kona Brewing Co.

Or perhaps you want to get involved in Hawai’i’s budding cannabis industry (pun intended). There are 5 dispensaries on the Big Island and at least 9 smoke shops.

'Okay, but what about careers? What's in demand?'

Animals
If you like to work with animals, there aren't many places in the world better than the Big Island! With a population of people who care deeply about the environment and wildlife, and so many locals with pets, and the various zoos and aquariums, you have a lot of different options from no experience to full degrees required.

Did you graduate high school or take an equivalency exam? Don't have a criminal record? Why not try your hand at being an animal handler at the only natural tropical rainforest zoo in the U.S.

Perhaps you've been taking the veterinary path and have a veterinary license. There are over a dozen veterinary clinics around the Big Island.

Want something a little more flexible? Why not do some dog walking? People value dog walkers on the island so much that several locals post ads on Indeed just to find a reliable one. Some of these people own prized animals and as such pay more than you would normally get. $15 an hour to walk and play with dogs is a great way to get some exercise and get paid doing it!

Even more corporate places like PetCo are a good option as PetCo has a $500 bonus as a benefit for groomers.

If you love animals (and you better ), the Big Island will surely feel like home as you surround yourself by all of the wildlife and conservation efforts.

Construction
There are many jobs working with construction firms – and home renovation firms. People are putting a lot of money into rehabbing their homes and need help. Tilers and roofers are always in demand.

Those with skills they can use online to make $ can move to Hawaii easily. If you can do web development or writing or have some other valuable skills that enable you to cyber-commute you can build up a couple of jobs (gigs) and move. You’ll have money until the projects run out – and by then you’ll have worked hard enough to get more to replenish them and stay in Hawaii.

Information Technology
This is another employment field that does well in Hawaii. I have a few articles about my experiences getting IT jobs in Hawaii below – click one for more information.

https://www.livinginhawaii.com/hawaii-jobs/how-i-landed-my-first-it-job-in-hawaii/

https://www.livinginhawaii.com/hawaii-jobs/how-i-landed-my-second-it-job-in-hawaii/

https://www.livinginhawaii.com/hawaii-jobs/my-third-it-job-in-hawaii-toast/

Medical Field
The huge “medical” field or health field appears to be the best career field in Hawaii. Best meaning – lots of opportunity and a competitive salary to match Hawaii’s high cost of living.

Hawaii has an aging population. It’s a place where many from California, Michigan, and countries all over the world go to retire. The cost of medical care for elderly on an out-patient basis is very high. Often families will choose to hire their own in-house personal care aide to help their elderly parents to save some money and allow the flexibility of keeping the parents at home and not in a much too expensive seniors’ facility.

Medical transcription is one job that has surfaced, and is paying about $15-17 per hour based on experience. If your vocabulary and typing skills are up to it you might try that as a start, though at full time you’re only going to earn $30-$34k which won’t even come close to supporting a single lifestyle, i.e. you’ll need roommates or a soulmate that can supply more household income. Nearly all the jobs on Craigslist.org are for telecommuters so you can live in Hawaii and work with any number of medical facilities across the USA. I saw an online course among the ads that said it certified people for being medical transcriptionists. Seems like a good job.

Hawaii business is focused on a couple things and if you work in one of these areas you can likely move there and find a job quickly.

Healthcare
There are lots of aging people on Oahu and the other islands. They need in-home care, but not necessarily nurses. There are many live-in opportunities for those that want to trade some hours of taking care of a person in need in exchange for a room and sometimes food. There are also plenty of counseling jobs and jobs working with veterans or those that need mental health services. Plenty of jobs.

Tourism
If you want to do sales, answering phones, or working in the hotel industry and have experience you’ll find a job quickly. If you sell condominiums or time-share and want to make your mark in Maui or one of the other islands -there is ample opportunity to do so.