Ottawa says it is worried about an American policy that has forced Bell Helicopter of Montreal to ban 24 employees from working on a U.S. military contract because of their nationalities.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper told reporters Thursday that Canada has raised the issue with the U.S government over the past several months.

'…People are eliminated simply because they were born in a given country. This is total nonsense.'-Montreal labour relations lawyer Gaston Nadeau

"We are very concerned about this policy," he said in French while in Toronto.

The contract calls for the assembly of up to 480 helicopters for the U.S. military, starting in the spring.

The workers were taken off the lucrative U.S. military project because they were born in countries that the Americans consider a security risk. Security measures outlined in the U.S. International Traffic in Arms Regulations do not allow citizens from 25 countries to work on strategic military weapons.

"There are certain number of persons if they are born in one of 25 possible countries, then we are not to have these employees in contact [because of the] International Traffic in Arms Regulations," said Michel Legault, the director of business development for Bell Helicopter.

Many of the workers at the Mirabel plant hold dual citizenship. One technician has been with Bell Helicopter for almost two decades and some of the employees have lived in Canada for most of their lives. The countries they come from include China, North Korea, Haiti, Venezuela, Lebanon and Vietnam.

Bell Helicopter asked the U.S. government to waive the policy but the request was denied this week.

U.S. policy is discrimination, lawyer says

Although the employees have been told that Bell Helicopter would try to assign them to other projects, many are worried they will be laid off.

Montreal labour relations lawyer Gaston Nadeau said the exclusion of these workers is a clear case of discrimination.

"Nobody is against protecting yourself against terrorism," Nadeau said. "The problem here is that there is no factual basis whatsoever for the kind of action taken. And people are eliminated simply because they were born in a given country. This is total nonsense."

Nadeau said the workers can appeal to the human rights commission. But he pointed out the problem: Bell Helicopter won't get the contract without applying the U.S. rules.

The Canadian company is a division of Bell Helicopter Textron Inc., based in Fort Worth, Texas, the world's largest helicopter maker.

With files from the Canadian Press