Minister of Labour and Social Security, Pearnel Charles (right), shares a handshake with Canadian employer, Alex DiUlis (left), of Resform Group of Companies. Mr. DiUlis, along with Mike York (second right) and Christopher Campbell of the Carpenters' Union, yesterday recruited some 41 carpenters to take up employment in Canada in March. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

Some 41 carpenters have been selected for employment in Toronto, Canada.

The workmen were chosen from a group of 72 individuals, certified by the Heart/NTA, after a series of interviews conducted by representatives from Canada.

According to the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, this is the first batch of workers to be selected for this progamme, and the men will depart the island sometime in March.

Walter Tracogna, of the Carpenters' Union in Toronto, said he was impressed by the professional attitudes displayed by the Jamaican workers.

"We came down thinking that this would have been a pilot project, looking for about 20 gentlemen to come up to Canada. We came out of the interview process and we've doubled our expectations," he said.

Tony Patullo, of Avenue Formwork in Canada, said from all indications this number may increase in the future. "We appreciate, very much, this opportunity and hope that we can go from this pilot programme into a permanent programme," he said.

The ministry yesterday also commenced interviews with some 4,000 workers, at its East Street office in Kingston, who are seeking employment in Canada and the United States in the area of agriculture.

This follows an intense recruitment exercise, which was conducted over a period of several weeks, in which individuals were screened and pre-selected for yesterday's interviews.

Donna Adams, director of manpower services at the ministry told The Gleaner that the interview process will continue until January 23 and will see individuals from all across the island.

On Friday, the ministry will continue interviews for the parishes of Manchester and St. Elizabeth at the Fayors Entertainment Centre, Mandeville.

Ms. Adams however cautioned that interested persons who were not selected for an interview should not visit the interview site as the recruitment exercise is now in its final stages.

"We are not taking applications from the general public, at this time, as the process has already started and this is just basically the conclusion of the exercise," she said.