Sewing programme promotes self employment

There’s an old saying among economists about the difference between a recession and a depression. A recession, they say, is when your neighbour loses his job. A depression, on the other hand, is when you lose yours. With that adage in mind News Five’s Jose Sanchez looked into one project that hopes to keep women actively involved in the economy.

A small business venture undertaken by Dickie Bradley’s Urban Renewal Office has employed twenty women, teaching them sewing skills that can help them become independent women. Wendy Luis, Administrator for the Urban Renewal Office, says that this course has great potential for Southside residents.

Wendy Luis, Administrator, Urban Renewal Office

“Several months ago, I did a statistic within Queen Square to see the unemployment rate. And I found out that the majority of people that are unemployed in Queen Square are single mothers. Whenever there is a job opportunity in Queen’s Square, women are the ones that turn up and offer their service. We came up with the sewing project, it’s a six months, self income generating project. And at the same time they are learning a skill training, a skill training programme for these women. And after the six months period they will be able to go on their own and create their own sewing industry.”

Though many of these women are putting a needle and thread together for the first time, they are enthusiastic about the results.

Delsie Smith

“I like the programme because I work at Williamson for about ten years I never knew how to sew because it was piece work but here you learn to cut your own work and sew your own work and this is mine.”

Maureen Cooper

“I came here to learn a little bit more but so far I ended up learning the ladies how to sew. I have a little instinct in sewing so I just came to show them what and what with it and so far the programme is going nice and smooth, so far I can’t complain about it. Right now we’re sewing shirts and we’ll move on next week to do pants and these are uniforms for the prison department. So in the future we’ll have more work from other government institutions to do.”

The shirts that they make for the prison department will not be their only paying job. Luis says that more contracts are on the way.

Wendy Luis

“We’re hoping that the end of this programme these women will be seamstress, qualified seamstress. Right now we are targeting twenty women. After the six months period a next twenty will move into the sewing project and the process should go on. It’s a cycle that will keep going on. I have lobbied for contracts to the private sector to sew uniforms, school uniforms, work uniforms for these women so that the industry can continue on within a long term period.”