The directive from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) that job agencies discontinue the practice of charging recruits for overseas placements will deny them hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue, and appears to have caught the sector off guard.

"We knew that it was coming, but we never knew it was so drastic," said Denise Daley-Mohan, CEO of Island Plus Multi-Services in Kingston.

The decision comes on the heels of other changes regarding visa applications, with agencies already feeling the full effects of amendments to the regulations of the United States Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security to guide the placement of overseas workers recruited by private employment agencies.

Under the amendments, the cost of the H2B visas issued to temporary non-agricultural workers are not to be collected from recruits but covered by the employer.

Wednesday Business checks with various agencies indicate that recruits for overseas jobs are normally billed US$2,500 and upwards on successful placement, covering airfare, medical, housing, work permit and visa.

At current exchange rates that figure translates to J$222,500, which recruits often have to borrow, with a promise to repay from wages.

"They do make it back - even though it sounds like a lot when you convert it to our currency," said Daley-Mohan. Workers are generally paid between US$8.50 and US$10 per hour on contracts lasting six to nine months with the possibility of extension.

There are 70 overseas job placement agencies, including eight approved since August, and another 54 authorised to place workers locally.

In November Labour Minster Pearnel Charles restated the directive that applicants to H2B programmes should not pay fees imposed on them, saying the cost should be factored into the recruitment and absorbed by the overseas hotels.

Most agencies contacted by Wednesday Business declined to comment on how they would now manage those costs, nor what revenue streams they could potentially develop to plug the gap.

Local recruiters say the fee billed to successful placements includes the recovery of fees they pay to foreign based job agencies to place workers — which is normally billed at about US$400 to US$800 per client, according to Daley-Mohan.

The rest is other costs incurred by the agencies, plus the mark-ups.

"The only way you make money is to put a margin on the programme fee," said Daley-Mohan.

"Some persons go overboard but some persons' overhead will be higher than some, as well."

Profit margins

The agencies cater primarily to the hotel trade where women are traditionally recruited as housekeepers, cooks and kitchen assistants in the industry.

The new directive is, said Daley-Mohan, a complete overhaul of the way both the local and foreign agencies are used to operating.

"They are used to workers paying their way. For them to take on additional costs will be challenging."

Local agencies, she said, will have to find a way to present these employers with competi-tive packages and would, in all likelihood, cut out the middleman in the process.

She suggested as well that agencies should now consider partnering to find workers for open contracts.

The recruiter also noted that the lion's share of Canadian programmes, which often offer to cover costs for workers, were overseen directly by the MLSS, leaving private agencies in the cold.

In 2008, with more diversified demand, Canada employed Jamaicans as mushroom harvesters, construction workers, window cleaners, fast-food workers, janitors, practical nurses, welders, pipe fitters, seafood packers and farmhands.

The hourly rate for workers differed from province to province, but some workers earned as much as CDN$30 per hour, especially if they had passed the Canadian Red Seal examination for tradesmen.

In mid-2009, demand for some workers for Canadian programmes doubled, the MLSS farmwork officials said.

Mohan said the calamity to the private sector had been caused by agencies themselves, many of which registered workers for programmes knowing no such job existed, with some workers arriving in the United States to find that the places of work were empty buildings.

The new regulations, which have banned even worker registration fees, are to protect the workers, she acknowledged.

At a meeting with agencies earlier this year, Charles also pointed out that the job market overseas has changed and that Jamaicans will have to be proactive in order to maintain competitiveness.

He said the agencies have been a contribution to the country by facilitating the employment of hundreds of Jamaican workers, but unscrupulous recruiters who are preying on unsuspecting Jamaicans should and would be stopped.

The local meeting followed talks with members of the United States Department of Labor and Department of Homeland Security to discuss the welfare of overseas workers.

Scams were seen as being on the rise, with growing cases of recruiters exploiting the vulnerable as the financial crisis deepended.

"We encourage persons to verify the authenticity or legitimacy of employment agencies with the ministry prior to making any commitments," Charles said.

Approved agencies are listed online at mlss.gov.jm under employment opportunities and agencies.

The MLSS noted that 2,404 workers left the island between January and August 2009 for the US.

Sixty persons were engaged in the hospitality programme, whereas 1,841 gained employment on farms. Another 103 were dispatched under the J1 Work and Travel summer programme.

The data showed that the highest departures under the Canadian programme were recorded in April when 1,054 persons left mainly for farm work and seafood packing. The next highest months were 833 in July and 732 in May.

Under the US programmes, the highest departures were recorded in July at 502, May at 334 and April at 307.

avia.collinder@gleanerjm.com