About 100 persons explored employment at St. Croix's HOVENSA oil refinery over the weekend. The applicants participated in a one-day job fair at the Lockhart Gardens Shopping Center presented by Jacobs Engineering, one of the largest subcontractors at HOVENSA.
According to one of the organizers, Paul Arnold Sr., the applicants signed up mainly for construction positions such as pipefitters, millwrights and welders. "These are positions within the HOVENSA fluid catalytic cracking plant construction and what we refer to as the FCC turnaround project," Arnold said Monday.
He said Jacobs Engineering is hoping to hire at least half of those who applied for employment with the expectation that they can be relocated by Christmas.
"We are hoping to get about 40-50 people from this group," Arnold said. "We'll do the testing and interviewing beginning next week."
Arnold noted that if there is continued interest on St. Thomas in employment at HOVENSA, he is prepared to organize another job fair.
"I think Saturday's fair was a huge success—there's a lot of interest in the construction industry," he said.
