A group of 100 Salvadorians have been selected to take part in the
IOM-managed labour migration programme with Maple Leaf Foods in
Canada.

Two groups totalling 41 persons are travelling this week and
next to take up their new positions in the company's plant in
Saskatoon.  Another group of 34 persons will travel to Canada
in March to work in the Maple Leaf plant in Lethbridge, and the
remaining 25 workers will travel to Canada once the company decides
in which plants they are needed.

The selected applicants received pre-departure cultural training
from IOM, Canadian officials in El Salvador, and the Government of
El Salvador. IOM staff escort the migrants and help them settle
into their new homes.

Roxana Arely Flamenco was one of the labour migrants to travel
in the first group.  She told IOM's Adela Joza: "I appreciate
all of the support we received from IOM and the Salvadorian
Government.  The IOM staff has been very supportive and
provided vital information for our new life in Canada.  IOM
has been very kind to us and even travelled with us to
Canada.  We hope IOM will not abandon us."

IOM's labour migration selection process begins, following a
request from the employer, with advertisements in local media, and
then continues with the processing and screening of applications,
pre- selection interviews, visits to the applicants' homes, and
medical check-ups.  The final selection is carried out by the
employer during a face-to-face interview with the candidates
pre-selected by IOM.

After the final selection, the applicants receive IOM assistance
in gathering documents and filling in forms to obtain travel
documents, support in case of questions regarding their employment
contracts, medical exams, language training and cultural
orientation.

As part of its labour migration agreement with Maple Leaf Foods,
IOM has also assisted 308 Colombians, 175 Hondurans and 152
Mauritians for employment in Canada.

Maple Leaf Foods is a Canadian-based food processing company
with more than 23,500 employees across Canada, the United States,
the United Kingdom and Asia, and operates more than 100
facilities.

For more information please contact:

Adela Joza

IOM El Salvador

Tel.: + 503 2 264-6590/ 91

E-mail: "mailto:ajoza@iom.int">ajoza@iom.int or "paragraph-link-no-underline" href=
"mailto:iomsansalv@iom.int">iomsansalv@iom.int