all sectors must be provided.

This was the prevailing theme of the Apprenticeship and Training Forum held at the Bermuda College yesterday.

The Apprenticeship and Training Council, with the Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs and the Bermuda College, is sponsoring half-day sessions on retraining through to Thursday in the College's South Hall.

The objectives of the forum are to provide an opportunity for private and public organisations currently developing training initiatives to come together and identify common views and objectives; to look at current training and re-training provisions in Bermuda; to examine methods of combining resources to develop a national training strategy.

Yesterday's session examined initiatives already in progress, and Thursday will see presentations by Swindon College in the UK and the Bermuda College on their various training programmes.

Swindon College has set up apprenticeship programmes in Bermuda, and college representative Mr. John Jarvis will be speaking on their programmes' efforts.

July 7 will be spent in round-table discussions with the aim of developing a national training strategy.

Several high-ranking officers in Government department yesterday explained the role they have in ensuring Bermudians are adequately trained and re-trained to ensure quality performance in their jobs.

Assistant Chief Immigration Officer Mr. John Payne explained the Immigration Department's current policy is to issue work permits to non-Bermudians only if the applicant agrees to train a Bermudian to fill that position.

Mr. Payne said Minister for Labour and Home Affairs, the Hon. John Irving Pearman is strongly committed to training and re-training, and is required by the Bermuda Immigration Protection Act to ensure there is an availability of jobs for Bermudians; an availability of local goods and services; and the needs of the community are met.

He also said one strategy developed by the department was the ability to link work permits to training. In doing this, the Immigration department looks at the number of Bermudians needing training, and the number of non-Bermudians working in those positions. Mr. Payne said the annual Manpower Survey is also looked at to determine the number of positions Bermudians are likely to fulfil.

Currently, Mr. Payne said, the department has closed two categories to non-Bermudian applicants: landscape gardening and construction. Government is currently reviewing policy affecting waiter/waitresses, commercial cleaning and secretarial/clerical positions.

Mrs. Naz Farrow of Job Opportunities Bermuda (JOB) told the gathering training and re-training is available for those with physical, intellectual and mental handicaps. JOB also helps employers to cope with having handicapped people on staff. Mrs. Farrow stressed her clients are trained in job-seeking skills, and are assessed from the outset for their particular work/social aptitude.

Dr. Joseph Christopher of the Bermuda Department of Education highlighted the aims of the new restructured education curriculum. Dr. Christopher said that all middle school students will be required to experience a range of technical and vocational courses before passing into senior school. By doing this the department aims to teach problem-solving methods, and prepare high school students for further education in the career of their choice.

It is the aim of the department to have every student work for two weeks in the area of their choice before they graduate from Bermuda's education system.

Mrs. Judith Hall-Bean of Government's Personnel Services department told of Government's commitment to train any worker in public service free of charge -- as long as that particular course is related to the position they may have.

She outlined three programmes currently in place: the one-year certificate in Government Administration, the two-year diploma in Administration, and the on-going executive training programme.

Mrs. Hall-Bean also mentioned Government had a bursary system in place to encourage students to seek further education and apply it in the Government system.

The forum continues on Thursday.