A joint initiative with TRANS-TEL CENTRAL INC. and its partner All Rounder Systems LLC will fill skilled and unskilled positions on multiple projects in support of the Virgin Islands Broadband Technology Opportunities Program (BTOP), which is funded by the federal government. Through this effort, interviews were recently organized and conducted at two job fairs in the districts of St. Thomas-St. John and St. Croix, according to a press release issued on Monday by the V.I. Department of Labor.
“Our Employer Services unit is an important resource to assist small businesses. It acts in many ways as a Human Resources Department for potential employees in the community. By partnering with the people who actually employ our clients, we are assured greater access to jobs, better placements and insider information about what skills our workforce needs to succeed in this ever-challenging environment. Our job is to help prepare the territory’s workforce as much as possible so that our workers can embrace each and every opportunity in the job market. Efforts like this one go a long way in providing that type of support," said Labor Commissioner Albert Bryan Jr.
BTOP is a high technology program to extend broadband fiber optic cable access to underserved areas in the territory and throughout the United States. Thus far, the joint venture team has won four fiber optic cabling and construction projects, including:
a) Pulling 260,000 feet of fiber optic cable, 80,000 feet of 1 1/4 inner duct, and 105,000 feet of fabric inner duct on the island of St. Thomas.
b) Pulling 300,000 feet of fiber optic cable, 130,000 feet of HDPE, and 130,000 feet of fabric inner duct on the island of St. Croix.
c) Aerial construction to install 44.6 miles of aerial fiber optic cable and associated hanging material on St. Thomas, St. John and Water Island.
d) Fiber optic cable splicing on St. Thomas, St, John, and Water Island.
e) Fiber optic cable splicing on St Croix.
The Virgin Islands Department of Labor provided facilities, personnel and other services for the two recent job fairs. The table below summarizes the level of application activity at each location. To date, 13 hires have occurred on St. Thomas and eight on St. Croix. A total of four veterans, two per district, have been hired. There is a potential of adding additional laborers or flagmen in each district as work progresses, bringing the potential local hires to a total of approximately 25 persons.

US Virgin Islands Job Fairs for BTOP Program
Job Fair Location/ Labor Categories/ # Applicants/ # Interviews/ # Processed
St. Thomas-St. John: Laborer — Traffic Flagger/ 37/ 37/ 25
2/5/2013: Administrative Assistant/ 19/ 19/ 10
St. Croix:20 Laborer — Traffic Flagger/ 69/ 69/ 28
2/7/13: Administrative Assistant/ 21/ 21/ 10
Totals: 146/ 146/ 73

The department offers its services, resources, pool of qualified applicants and facilities to employers throughout the territory. For more information, contact our offices on St. Thomas at 776-3700 or on St. Croix at 773-1994 and “Let Labor Work for You.”