Hurricane harms banana workers.

Thousands of banana workers across the Caribbean were left jobless by Hurricane Dean as governments prepared emergency funds and urged farmers to grow other crops temporarily, reports AP (Aug. 24, 2007):

"There is massive employment fallout," said Jeffrey Hall, managing director

About 15,000 banana workers were left jobless in Dominica after Dean devastated 2,400 acres of crops, said Raymond Austrie, gen. mgr. Dominica Banana Producers Ltd. Nearly a third of Dominica's population works in agriculture;

In St. Lucia, 2,000 workers were affected when the hurricane destroyed 700 acres of banana crops, said Rufus Leandre, the chief agricultural extension officer. Some have found work clearing banana tree stumps--the debris from the hurricane--and likely will be rehired for the next harvest, expected next spring, Leandre said. For now, banana farmers are scrambling to find new ways to make a living.

The hurricane wrecked 3,500 acres and left 2,500 jobless in Jamaica, said Hall. Dean was but the latest blow to the Caribbean's banana industry, which has struggled in recent years in the face of heavy competition and the loss of preferential treatment in the European market. Still, the industry remains a crucial source of jobs in the region.

Dominica exported 11,264 tons of bananas last year, earning US$8.3 million, according to the Windward Islands Banana Development and Exporting Co. St. Lucia exported 34,243 tons, earning US$25.3 million. Jamaica Producers Group exports an average of 40,000 tons a year.