Students’ work and travel programme back on course

Mark Foster, CEO of the Student's Work and Travel Productions Limited (SWAT), is assuring students that the programme is back after COVID-19 forced a disruption last year.

"The partners overseas have made provisions in the insurance aspect of the contract to protect students. So if by any chance they get COVID, they don't have to worry about missing work and not making money, and their medical expenses will be covered. They have things in place such as masks and proper sanitisation units ready for students to arrive," he said.

Some 8,000 students were affected last year when, because of the global COVID-19 pandemic, US President Trump had issued an executive order to prevent student travel into the country for work.

According to Foster, this order is now non-existent, as partnering agencies had filed an injunction against the order and won.

"They were recruiting and ready to take students and then Trump closed the door on them. So they were in great financial problems. The injunction was that the ban against students coming into the US would be lifted immediately, and they won it on October 1st last year," he said. This recent victory has given Foster confidence to tell students that the programme is a go.

POOR TURNOUT

SWAT started registration of students last November, but Foster revealed that the student turnout is poor in comparison to previous years. He theorises that students are reluctant as they fear losing some of their money like last year.

"Fret not, everything will work out because the employees overseas are working twice as hard to have the students over," he said. "Coming from the statistics for last summer, employees overseas were frustrated as well, because their businesses were at a halt. They couldn't get the workforce to manage those businesses, as many Americans were just home waiting on unemployment benefits. So they need the students back."

Foster is also urging the students not to be deterred by COVID-19, as he believes there is ample time for the virus to be controlled before the summer.

"The vaccine is also out and over 10 million Americans have taken it already. So the numbers are going to fall. The airports are also making sure that persons have negative a COVID test three days before travel to America and, when they reach, another test is required, then seven days' quarantine," said Foster.

He said that the US embassy would be processing student visas as soon as March, in preparation for travel this summer.