Government has stopped issuing work permits for steel erectors until all available positions are filled with qualified Bermudians.

The statement made by Minister of Labour, Home Affairs and Public Safety Randy Horton (pictured) was made in light of the discovery of a second dodgy batch of steel workers in two weeks.

?I can confirm that on Friday, 24 March, Immigration inspectors responded to a complaint by a member of the public and went to the Government quarry to question workers who were erecting a prefabricated steel structure,? Mr. Horton said yesterday in a release. ?While the workers did have valid work permits, they did not have the permission of the Department of Immigration to work at that site. Investigations are still under way.

?Both I and the Department of Immigration have received complaints that Bermudian steel erectors are unemployed and local steel erecting companies are being underutilised, while non-Bermudians are being hired to erect steel. We have been vigilant in investigating these complaints,? Mr. Horton said. ?To this end, I have instructed the Department of Immigration to inform companies that we will not issue work permits for steel erectors until we are satisfied that all qualified Bermudian steel erectors have been hired and those local companies who employ Bermudian steel erectors are fully utilised.?

Bermuda Industrial Union (BIU) president Chris Furbert said Friday?s discovery highlighted Government?s need to clamp down on non-permit holding workers. ?They caught a couple illegal workers at the Government quarry,? Mr. Furbert confirmed yesterday. ?They caught four more workers. I believe they were Canadian.?

The union boss said the workers worked for a private contractor at the Government quarry.

?It is incumbent on the entire department to clamp down on work permits,? Mr. Furbert said. ?They are taking Government and Immigration for granted.?

On March 10, BIU immediate past president Derrick Burgess urged a public clamp down on illegal workers after three steel workers were arrested at a Warwick construction site.

Mr. Burgess said companies who hired illegal workers should have all their work permits pulled and predicted that over 100 more foreigners were working illegally on the Island.