An IOM-managed labour migration programme to Canada from Guatemala
will assist the 10,000th person this week.

Since the programme began in 2003 as a two-year pilot project
with 215 workers, its success has led to an annual increase in the
number of participants.  So far this year, 2,000 migrants have
departed for Canada with temporary labour contracts.  By the
end of 2009, IOM in Guatemala expects the total for the year to
reach 3,500 Guatemalans.

IOM provides technical assistance to the Guatemalan government,
participates in the selection of workers, advises those selected on
travel documents and other requirements for travel to Canada, and
arranges their flights.

More than 94 per cent of all Guatemalan migrants assisted by IOM
travel to the Province of Quebec where IOM works with FERME or
Fondation des Entreprises en Recrutement de Main-d'oeuvre agricole
Etrangere, an employer association in Montreal that represents
hundreds of employers and coordinates the seasonal hiring of
temporary migrant workers.

Some 90 per cent of the participants work in the agricultural
sector, but the programme has been extended to others areas
including poultry, construction, dairy, landscaping, and laundry
services.

According to a 2008 IOM survey conducted amongst the migrants,
95 per cent said they were happy with the working and living
conditions as well as the relationship with employers.  Nearly
all immediate supervisors speak Spanish, and in some cases the
migrants have started to learn French.

Almost all migrants told IOM they wanted to work more hours than
the 40 hours per week guaranteed in the contract.  The
migrants are eager to increase their wages so they can send more
remittances to their families back home.

Stefan Mantsch, IOM Labour Migration Specialist and Programme
Manager in Guatemala, says this circular temporary labour migration
programme benefits everyone.

"The migrants invest their earnings in buying land, building or
extending houses, and providing a higher level of education for
their children.  And they also apply the technical skills
learned in Canada when they return home," explains Mantsch. "The
Canadian employers are very satisfied with the knowledge and
willingness of the workers to learn new skills.  This is
confirmed by the high rate of requests we receive each season," he
adds.

The agreement stipulates that all migrants must return to their
country of origin at the end of their contracts, which range
between four and six months, and provide coverage under Canadian
labour laws.

For more information, please contact:

Stefan Mantsch

IOM Guatemala

Tel: +502-23628367

E-mail: "mailto:smantsch@iom.int">smantsch@iom.int