FOR SEVERAL decades, Jamaicans have been travelling to Canada to work on farms temporarily to provide for their themselves and their families left behind, as part of the Seasonal Agricultural Workers’ Programme.
The farms are typically located in remote areas and the workers are taken by bus, generally once a week, to purchase groceries, send remittances back home to their families and loved ones, among other personal errands.
For Carlton Tennant, a Jamaican seasonal agricultural worker, more commonly called a ‘farm worker’, who has been working on farms in Canada for the past 24 years, being able to send money to his family in Jamaica only once a week proved highly inconvenient, especially when emergencies arose.
However, he lauded JN Money Services, owners and operators of the Jamaican-owned JN Money brand, which has put in place the JN Money Seasonal Remittance Programme, which allows farm workers in Canada to send money to their loved ones immediately.
“It was a blessed day when we find JN. The only thing better than this programme right now is life. Many times mi deh here and mi yout’ tek sick and dem need a urgent piece a money, and mi haffi guh call the boss and ask him to get somebody fi carry mi guh (to another money transfer company); and maybe it’s a yes-or-no thing that. Now, with this programme, as dem call me, money deh a yaad, so nothing is better than this,” he explained.
He noted that in another instance, the mother of his child called him and said that his mother was ill and needed medication, and he was able to send the money right away through JN Money.
“I got a call that my mom was not doing too well, and they brought her to the doctor and get a prescription for medication, but the funds kinda weak. Right away, before them even come out of the doctor office, money deh a dem foot,” he shared. “I am not just talking on my behalf alone. I am talking on behalf of the whole farm that I am on right now. Because there is no Jamaican on this farm right now that doesn’t use this programme. This is a very good programme. Best thing I come across. I never see another business place where the service is as good as this one,” he declared.
He further stated that he is building in Jamaica and when the workmen need more construction materials, he is able to send the money to purchase them, and they receive it immediately.
Paula Fennell, business development manager at JN Money Services Limited Canada, said that upon visiting the farms, the organisation saw it necessary to make it much more convenient for the farmers to send money to their families, and so the JN Money Seasonal Remittance Programme was initiated.
“Because the workers must be taken by bus to do business transactions and that is done mainly on a Thursday or Friday, it makes it difficult for them to send cash to their family members who may be in a crisis and need assistance immediately. We saw their plight and decided that we wanted to alleviate the issues that they were having with sending funds back to Jamaica in a timely fashion,” the manager of the programme explained.
Horace Hines, general manager, JN Money Services, said the company is staying true to its mandate of keeping families connected through money transfers, and they are happy to offer this service to farm workers.
“Many of our farm workers are the sole breadwinners for their families in Jamaica, and it is important for them to be able to send money any time they need to. We have put this measure in place, and it’s good to know that our customers are satisfied and can provide for their families,” he said.