Thread: Barbados: NO MORE CHINESE!

NO MORE CHINESE!
Published on: 7/25/07.

by TRACY MOORE

MORE THAN 150 work permits have been requested for more Chinese labourers to work on the multi-million dollar Four Seasons Resort at Paradise, St Michael.

General secretary of the Barbados Workers' Union (BWU), Sir Roy Trotman, is adamant they should not be granted – not until the available jobs are filled first by local and then regional labourers.

Sir Roy spoke to the Press yesterday shortly after meeting with the Minister of State in the Prime Minister's Office, Rev. Joseph Atherley and Chief Immigration Officer Gilbert Greaves at Solidarity House, Harmony Hall, St Michael.

While neither Atherley nor Greaves had any comment for the Press, Sir Roy said he was informed by both men that the 159 permits were requested "some time ago", most likely since last December.

Sir Roy said the timing did not give enough time to satisfy the reasoning that Barbadians or people in the rest of the region were refusing the work.

In fact, the general secretary announced he met with some of the local contractors, who now collectively call themselves the Barbados Construction Association, before meeting with the minister and Greaves and was informed they were satisfied that if they pooled their resources they could have provided enough manpower to work on the site in any capacity – whether it's from the point of view of technical expertise, engineering skills or labourers.

"[It] is clear to me that the developers of the Four Seasons project, having interviewed several of those [local] contractors, chose not to engage them as individuals or as a body, even though there could be no real reason in my mind why they could not do the job."

The ongoing controversy about the proposed employment of more than 600 Chinese workers for the Four Seasons project also led Sir Roy to conclude that the 53 Chinese, still on the island on temporary work permits, should be sent back.

"This was not a short-term issue," said Sir Roy. "It does not only relate to the Four Seasons project but more with the long-term plans to keep viable, sustainable employment always available to the people of Barbados.

"It was perceived that it was a Chinese project and there was no Bajan who was going to waste their time again to go to a Chinese site and apply for a job when the people there would pretend they don't speak English. They have gone and applied before."

http://www.nationnews.com/story/289432393893973.php

"It was perceived that it was a Chinese project and there was no Bajan who was going to waste their time again to go to a Chinese site and apply for a job when the people there would pretend they don't speak English. They have gone and applied before."


This is the reason a lot of Americans no longer apply at certain jobs. They know they are 'illegal's jobs' and they won't get hired. Then they can say, 'No American wants the job.'.

Good for Barbados - I only wish our government cared as much about it's people.