Incentives offered for new agents at remote border crossings

NORTON, VT. » It can be slow at the U.S.-Canadian border crossing between Norton, Vermont, and Stanhope, Quebec, where agents have watched moose amble through while waiting for people and cargo.

But the port is still open 24/7 and needs to be staffed around the clock. However, the U.S. Government is having a hard time finding employees.

As part of a nationwide effort to increase staff at some of its most remote border crossings, Customs and Border Protection is now offering hiring bonuses and job security for people willing to make the move to remote spots in Vermont, Maine, North Dakota, Texas and other locations on both the northern and southern borders.

While the hours of operation of some remote crossings are being reduced, in the post 9/11 era, security procedures require that crossings be staffed by at least two officers at all times.

“There are midnight shifts in many locations where the volume is minimal, yet the community still expects to have that level of service,” said Customs and Border Protection Assistant Commissioner Todd Owen.

Mario Marquis, a Norton agent for 15 years, said he’d like to have more co-workers.

“The pool of people that you would pick from have probably left the area to look for work somewhere else,” said Marquis, who greets border-crossers in both English and French.

New officers do come to work in Norton, but it’s hard for many who feel isolated in the rural region where even a trip to Walmart is an allday event.

“They come here and they soon realize it was a mistake,” Marquis said of some outsiders who come to work the port. “They are like a fish out of water, like I am when I go to Boston.”

There are 328 ports of entry to the United States across the country, including land, sea and airports. Customs and Border Protection is currently working to hire 1,300 officers nationwide — 1,150 at about 30 officially recognized hard-tofill locations. Of those, new hires at 21 locations, including Norton, are eligible for a three-year 25 percent bonus on top of a base pay of about $32,000.