What was supposed to be a rewarding job experience for at least three Jamaicans turned out to be a nightmare for them in Laventille, Trinidad, last month.

The three men who contacted The Star recently relayed the story of how they got a 'link' with someone who said she could get them to legally work and provide proper housing in the republic for them.

However, this was never the case. "The living condition was hell, not even yuh pig dem yuh woulda mek go through dat," Khris Breezy* said in his short description of the house. "Before I run come home last month is bout 23 Jamaicans did live inna de shabby house wha de lady put wi inna.

All eight men affi sleep inna one room. Yuh waan see de bed dem, my yute, like a dem nail up some bunk bed like de one wha u see a de prison dem. Man all sleep pon floor more while. De 23 a wi affi use one bathroom, so yuh know how dat go. And de bathroom not even did ave no door, so more while people jus walk in pon yuh."

Another man, Drank Rowe, shared a similar experience. "That must be the worst part of Trinidad the lady took us to live. It was in East Dry River, Port-of-Spain," he recalled. "All in broad daylight yuh see man a walk wid kerchief over face, brandishing guns."


Rude awakening

Breezy told The Star that it cost him well over $90,000 to make the trip. He said he was given the job without even doing an interview and was taken to a man who told him to report the next day for the night shift. He was in for a rude awakening. He heard about "1,000 gunshots" while on duty and did not even have a knife to protect himself or the property.

The job was also paying far less than what he was promised, so he and others packed up and came back to Jamaica, counting it as a loss.

When The Star contacted the 'agent' in Jamaica who reportedly collected the money from the men and sent it to the 'superior' in Trinidad, she said that she was only helping out. She said she was collecting the money and sending it to the 'superior' because a friend in Trinidad asked the favour of her. "I didn't know what was going on. Is the man dem come back and a tell mi what happened," she said.

Attempts to get in contact with the lady in Trinidad who allegedly runs the programme were unsuccessful as the calls went to voicemail. A voice message was left but no response has been revceived.

The Jamaican High Commission in Trinidad and Tobago said while they have received a similar complaint from some Jamaicans who were in the island on a work programme, they needed to investigate further to determine if it was the same group. The commission said the East Dry River, Port-of-Spain, address of the house, as was mentioned to The Star, was not in keeping with the reports they had previously received.

The commission said it would look into the matter and provide a later update.