An estimated 4,000 people turned up seeking the 2,000 job positions offered by Royal Caribbean last week, according to figures given by Acting Prime Minister Colm Imbert in the House of Representatives on Monday.

Minister Imbert went on to say considering these numbers, he views the Opposition’s argument that the recruitment drive was “massively oversubscribed” as an exaggeration.

He explained it’s not unusual that twice the number of applicants would seek out jobs advertised.

“I also want to congratulate the Ministry of Tourism, Culture and the Arts for making these opportunities available to citizens of Trinidad and Tobago. One of the first industries that was closed down Covid-19 pandemic was the cruise tourism industry. So this is an industry where people have been out of work for quite a while and also, the opportunity for new entrance into the industry was curtailed for some time,” Minister Imbert said.