Thinking of working abroad? While earnings from this remittance source may have dipped in 2009, projections are that the end of the recession will see a rise in demand for workers in the next year.

Doreen Moodie, who will retire from her position as head of the overseas employment work programme at the Ministry of Labour in 2009, said that hopes are up for 2010.

"We have had an excellent season in 2009 for farm workers, both for Canada and the United states (US). We are coming to the end of the season now and it is back-to-back flights."

She said that in Canada demand for seafood workers has seen a 100 per cent increase, adding that in general the work-study programmes (HI) have also been doing well and there was some demand for construction workers.

Remittances

However, there has been no call for hospitality workers, either in the US or Canada, Moodie said.

According to data provided by the overseas employment unit of the Ministry of Labour, money sent back by workers from Canada in 2007 was $732.6 million while that from US farm workers was $400.2. million and from the US hotel - $584. 8 million.

In 2008, remittances from Canadian workers was $727.7 million, that from US hotel workers $265.1 million and that from farm work $461.7 million.

The figure represents the 20 per cent of workers' pay which is mandatorily sent back through Ministry of Labour arrangements, so if one multiply by five, one can I have some idea of what the real earnings are. For Canada, real earnings in 2008 would therefore be $3.63 billion and that for the US for the same year would be $2.3 billion.

In 2007, 6,045 workers were employed in the Canadian worker' programme, five less than were employed in 2008.

Among them were mushroom harvesters, construction workers, window cleaners, hotel workers, fast-food workers, janitorial workers, practical nurses, seafood packers, sheep rearing, tree planting, hydroponics (technique of growing plants (without soil) in water containing dissolved nutrients) and pig rearing.

In 2008, some 1,738 workers were employed in the US Hotel Workers (H2B) 88 in the J-1 programme (summer) and 3894 farm workers. Total US workers in 2008 were 5,715. In 2008, a total of 12,060 were employed abroad.

Avia.collinder@gleanerjm.com

It should be noted that apart from the farm-work programme which is run by the Ministry of Labour, dozens of agencies are certified by the ministry for the H2B and H1 or student programme. Checks with the ministry's overseas agency unit will indicate which ones are certified and have actual programmes as against those which are not.

Officials in this unit states that applicants to H2B programmes should not pay for these, but instead the recruitment cost is paid by hotels overseas.

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