Bermuda's electricians, welders and mechanics will have to gain official certifications from the National Trading Board (NTB) in order to legally ply their trade.

The Government yesterday announced the re-launch of the compulsory National Certification Programme for tradespersons, intended to protect consumers from unqualified workers who provide substandard services.

Minister of Labour, Home Affairs and Housing David Burch called the National Certification Programme "comparable to international standards", adding that electricians, welders and automotive service technicians must be licensed by December 31, or risk being unable to continue working.

"Becoming fully certified is an important step for the tradesperson, because the trades are an important part of our economy and as such need to be held to the highest standard," Senator Burch said at a press conference held yesterday to unveil the programme.

"Having nationally certified tradespersons is vital for the consumer who is seeking these types of services. "It enables the consumer to make an informed choice and assures them that the people they hire are qualified to perform the job. Far too often we hear of customers who have had to pay twice for jobs they thought were handled correctly only to find that mistakes were made and not uncovered until it's too late."

Part-time or full-time electricians, welders or automotive technicians can visit the NTB offices to start the certification process as of today. NTB executive director Pandora Glasford estimates that the entire programme will take about six to eight weeks to complete, and includes application, training, assessment and certification.

Those who already have some qualifications will be able to skip steps in the process, but will have to complete other requirements, for instance electrical code training and customer service training.

Sen. Burch said that while tradespeople with decades of experience will still be expected to complete the National Certification Programme, their "track record of success" will be taken into account.

The NTB will be contacting employers, visiting job sites and reaching out to HR departments in order to let all local tradespeople know what is expected of them.