NMI Labor claims jurisdiction over case filed by US citizen
Monday, 27 September 2010 00:00 By Junhan B. Todeno - Reporter
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THE administrative hearing office of the Department of Labor can adjudicate cases involving U.S. citizen workers.
Hearing Officer Jerry Cody said the jurisdiction of his office is determined by the Commonwealth Employment Act of 2007, or Public Law 15-108, as amended by Public Law 17-1.
He said P.L. 17-1 specifically addresses permanent residents and citizens in its “employment preference” section that deals with an employer’s obligation to hire local residents or U.S. citizens.
Section 4528(a) of P.L. 15-108 states that a citizen, CNMI permanent resident, or U.S. permanent resident who is qualified for a job, may make a claim for damages if an employer has not met the law’s requirements; the employer rejects an application for the job without just cause; or the employer hires a person who is not a citizen, CNMI, permanent resident, or U.S. permanent resident for the job.
Under the law’s Section 4528(b), Cody said the hearing office has original jurisdiction to resolve all claims filed under that section.
“Thus, it is clear that the hearing office has jurisdiction to adjudicate a U.S. citizen’s claim that an employer has violated CNMI ‘preference’ laws,” he said.
Attorney Joey P. San Nicolas, who represented Saipan Triple Star Recycling Inc., asked Labor to dismiss the complaint filed by its employee Antonio A. Reyes, citing the hearing office’s lack of jurisdiction.
In a brief filed with Labor, the employer argued that a “plain reading of the public law reveals that the administrative hearing office does not have jurisdiction to adjudicate questions related to employee’s termination.”
But Cody, in his administrative order dated Sept. 22, denied the motion to dismiss filed by Saipan Triple Star Recycling Inc.
A review of Public Law 17-1, he said, reveals that it contains a specific section that confers broad jurisdiction to the hearing office.
Section 4942(a) states that “[t]he Administrative Hearing Office shall have original jurisdiction to resolve all actions involving alleged violations of the labor and wage laws of the commonwealth,” he said.
He said this broad jurisdictional language, which first appeared in P.L. 15-108, “represents a significant change from the limited jurisdiction” of the Nonresident Workers Act that had been in effect for 10 years prior to the enactment of P.L. 15-108.
Cody admitted that P.L. 17-1 is not a model of clarity with respect to the jurisdictional issue, saying that claims of citizens or permanent residents are not specifically mentioned except in sections dealing with “employment preference issue.”
But, he added, the fact that the broad jurisdictional language was added by the Legislature when it replaced the Nonresident Workers Act with P.L. 15-108, suggested that the Legislature intended to expand the hearing office’s jurisdiction from the former limited jurisdiction of the NWA to complaints filed by U.S. citizens or residents.
According to Cody, “It makes sense to allow local residents or citizens to utilize the services of the hearing office that operates on an expedited simplified format with relaxed rules of evidence and an absence of legal formalities.”
He added, “This administrative court is designed to enable a worker to bring a complaint regarding wages or working conditions without having to hire legal counsel.”
He said given that many local U.S. citizens or residents make the same wages as foreign national workers, they should be allowed to utilize the department’s administrative system to adjudicate their labor complaints.
Cody said the labor case of Reyes has been referred to the department’s enforcement section for investigation.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Thursday, September 16, 2010
'Extend transition period to 2019'
Local
Friday, September 17, 2010
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has asked a congressional panel to consider extending the transition period related to the federalization of CNMI immigration from the end of 2014 to the end of 2019, and to reinstate a “cover over” tax provision in the Covenant that the federalization law deleted.
The governor cited the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's failure to issue final regulations on foreign workers and foreign investors/foreign students, as well as DHS' failure to develop and enforce “an effective program to identify and remove illegal aliens” in the CNMI as reasons for the need to extend the transition.
These are part of Fitial's 11-page written testimony to the U.S. House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, which held a Sept. 16 oversight hearing in Washington, D.C. on H.R. 6015.
“Consideration of this amendment seems particularly appropriate because of (a) the delay by DHS in issuing the necessary regulations; and (b) the uncertainty engendered by DHS' legal position as to whether in fact the Secretary of Labor has the authority to extend the transition period,” Fitial said.
HR 6015, introduced by subcommittee chair Delegate Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam), has two major sections, including two proposed technical corrections to the immigration provisions contained in the Consolidated Natural Resources Act that are applicable to the CNMI and Guam.
The CNRA, signed in May 2008, is the law that placed CNMI immigration under federal control on Nov. 28, 2009.
HR 6015 also requires the director of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis to publish certain economic data on territories and Freely Associated States.
The governor believes that the U.S. Congress intended that an extension of the transition period by the U.S. Labor Secretary would also mean extending the two other programs that CNRA authorizes: numerical limitations on H visas, and CNMI-only nonimmigrant investor visa program.
He said despite frequent requests by the CNMI, DHS has never provided any written opinion in support of its interpretation of the CNRA.
“This Subcommittee may wish to make a similar request of DHS so that the Subcommittee can evaluate the conflicting opinions before it acts on H.R. 6015,” Fitial said.
The governor reiterated the CNMI's frustration with the interim final rule regarding the joint Guam-CNMI visa waiver, and the exclusion of China and Russia from the list of approved countries.
In his written testimony, Fitial also said that DHS has not developed and enforced an effective program to identify and remove illegal aliens in the CNMI.
“The number of illegal aliens in the Commonwealth is expanding rapidly, now that federal controls are in place, for three reasons,” Fitial said.
These reasons include “a perceived lack of enforcement by federal officials leads to illegal aliens to conclude that there is no risk to staying” in the CNMI; “some federal officials have repeatedly suggested that green cards will be available to any alien who is in the Commonwealth when Congress addresses this questions;” and “new federal policies with respect to food stamp assistance and free medical care allow these benefits to be claimed by illegal aliens.”
“Under these circumstances, voluntary repatriation by aliens in the Commonwealth has almost entirely disappeared,” Fitial added.
The governor also asked the Subcommittee to reinstate the “cover over language” in the Covenant that the CNRA eliminated.
“Cover over” refers to the return to local governments of taxes paid to federal agencies by residents of insular areas.
“The effect of this amendment will be to deny the Commonwealth tens of millions of dollars over time-and places the full financial burden of applying the immigration laws on the Commonwealth and its residents rather than assumed by the nation as a whole whose national security was believed to require this congressional action,” he added.
Oversight hearing
The oversight hearing in Washington, D.C. was during the wee hours of this morning Saipan time.
Besides HR 6015, Bordallo's Subcommittee also held an oversight hearing on CNMI Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan's HR 4339, which creates the Dr. Rita Hocog Inos Fellowship Act.
Among those scheduled to testify on the two measures were Assistant Interior Secretary for Insular Affairs Tony Babauta, Fitial's legal counsel Howard P. Willens, Guam Visitors Bureau vice chair Lamonte J. “Jim” Beighley, and former CNMI Board of Education member Anthony Pellegrino.
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Friday, September 17, 2010
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Gov. Benigno R. Fitial has asked a congressional panel to consider extending the transition period related to the federalization of CNMI immigration from the end of 2014 to the end of 2019, and to reinstate a “cover over” tax provision in the Covenant that the federalization law deleted.
The governor cited the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's failure to issue final regulations on foreign workers and foreign investors/foreign students, as well as DHS' failure to develop and enforce “an effective program to identify and remove illegal aliens” in the CNMI as reasons for the need to extend the transition.
These are part of Fitial's 11-page written testimony to the U.S. House Subcommittee on Insular Affairs, Oceans and Wildlife, which held a Sept. 16 oversight hearing in Washington, D.C. on H.R. 6015.
“Consideration of this amendment seems particularly appropriate because of (a) the delay by DHS in issuing the necessary regulations; and (b) the uncertainty engendered by DHS' legal position as to whether in fact the Secretary of Labor has the authority to extend the transition period,” Fitial said.
HR 6015, introduced by subcommittee chair Delegate Madeleine Bordallo (D-Guam), has two major sections, including two proposed technical corrections to the immigration provisions contained in the Consolidated Natural Resources Act that are applicable to the CNMI and Guam.
The CNRA, signed in May 2008, is the law that placed CNMI immigration under federal control on Nov. 28, 2009.
HR 6015 also requires the director of the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis to publish certain economic data on territories and Freely Associated States.
The governor believes that the U.S. Congress intended that an extension of the transition period by the U.S. Labor Secretary would also mean extending the two other programs that CNRA authorizes: numerical limitations on H visas, and CNMI-only nonimmigrant investor visa program.
He said despite frequent requests by the CNMI, DHS has never provided any written opinion in support of its interpretation of the CNRA.
“This Subcommittee may wish to make a similar request of DHS so that the Subcommittee can evaluate the conflicting opinions before it acts on H.R. 6015,” Fitial said.
The governor reiterated the CNMI's frustration with the interim final rule regarding the joint Guam-CNMI visa waiver, and the exclusion of China and Russia from the list of approved countries.
In his written testimony, Fitial also said that DHS has not developed and enforced an effective program to identify and remove illegal aliens in the CNMI.
“The number of illegal aliens in the Commonwealth is expanding rapidly, now that federal controls are in place, for three reasons,” Fitial said.
These reasons include “a perceived lack of enforcement by federal officials leads to illegal aliens to conclude that there is no risk to staying” in the CNMI; “some federal officials have repeatedly suggested that green cards will be available to any alien who is in the Commonwealth when Congress addresses this questions;” and “new federal policies with respect to food stamp assistance and free medical care allow these benefits to be claimed by illegal aliens.”
“Under these circumstances, voluntary repatriation by aliens in the Commonwealth has almost entirely disappeared,” Fitial added.
The governor also asked the Subcommittee to reinstate the “cover over language” in the Covenant that the CNRA eliminated.
“Cover over” refers to the return to local governments of taxes paid to federal agencies by residents of insular areas.
“The effect of this amendment will be to deny the Commonwealth tens of millions of dollars over time-and places the full financial burden of applying the immigration laws on the Commonwealth and its residents rather than assumed by the nation as a whole whose national security was believed to require this congressional action,” he added.
Oversight hearing
The oversight hearing in Washington, D.C. was during the wee hours of this morning Saipan time.
Besides HR 6015, Bordallo's Subcommittee also held an oversight hearing on CNMI Delegate Gregorio Kilili Sablan's HR 4339, which creates the Dr. Rita Hocog Inos Fellowship Act.
Among those scheduled to testify on the two measures were Assistant Interior Secretary for Insular Affairs Tony Babauta, Fitial's legal counsel Howard P. Willens, Guam Visitors Bureau vice chair Lamonte J. “Jim” Beighley, and former CNMI Board of Education member Anthony Pellegrino.
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Wednesday, September 15, 2010
DOL Receives $73K for Federal Labor Certification
Local
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Labor bags $73K to support federal labor certification programs for farm workers
By Press Release
The CNMI Department of Labor has received approval from the Office of Foreign Labor Certification of the U.S. Department of Labor of its “FY 2010 Annual Plan for Foreign Labor Certification.”
The approval from the Washington D.C.-based Employment and Training Administration was accompanied by a grant award in the amount of $73,355.32. The funds are intended to support activities by the Office of Foreign Labor Certification in the H-2A program for the local agriculture industry.
While the CNMI Department of Labor has participated in an online training session, this is the first time it will officially participate, like other states, in Office of Foreign Labor Certification activities.
“I'd like to congratulate the CNMI Department of Labor for applying for and receiving this grant from the federal government which is recognition of the ongoing role that our CNMI Labor Department will play in foreign labor certification. It is important to have federal and Commonwealth laws operate in tandem regarding labor matters, as in other states and territories,” said Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.
The grant awarded to the Labor will be used for the startup of Foreign Labor Certification under U.S. Department of Labor Planning Guidance for the local agriculture industry. Specifically, the program will provide funding to cover the work of CNMI Department of Labor employees in providing housing inspections and wage surveys. CNMI Labor will supplement the standard U.S. wage survey for the agriculture industry with a complete review of all alien CNMI farm labor contracts.
The CNMI also recently added farm workers to the central job order system created by the CNMI Department of Labor in recent years. The online job order system is designed to promote a statutory job preference for U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, and CNMI permanent residents. Job orders are posted for 14 days on the Web at www.marianaslabor.net in order to give qualified citizens an opportunity to apply.
At the present time, there were 114 job orders forecasted CNMI-wide for foreign agriculture workers that will fall under the H-2A program.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Labor bags $73K to support federal labor certification programs for farm workers
By Press Release
The CNMI Department of Labor has received approval from the Office of Foreign Labor Certification of the U.S. Department of Labor of its “FY 2010 Annual Plan for Foreign Labor Certification.”
The approval from the Washington D.C.-based Employment and Training Administration was accompanied by a grant award in the amount of $73,355.32. The funds are intended to support activities by the Office of Foreign Labor Certification in the H-2A program for the local agriculture industry.
While the CNMI Department of Labor has participated in an online training session, this is the first time it will officially participate, like other states, in Office of Foreign Labor Certification activities.
“I'd like to congratulate the CNMI Department of Labor for applying for and receiving this grant from the federal government which is recognition of the ongoing role that our CNMI Labor Department will play in foreign labor certification. It is important to have federal and Commonwealth laws operate in tandem regarding labor matters, as in other states and territories,” said Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.
The grant awarded to the Labor will be used for the startup of Foreign Labor Certification under U.S. Department of Labor Planning Guidance for the local agriculture industry. Specifically, the program will provide funding to cover the work of CNMI Department of Labor employees in providing housing inspections and wage surveys. CNMI Labor will supplement the standard U.S. wage survey for the agriculture industry with a complete review of all alien CNMI farm labor contracts.
The CNMI also recently added farm workers to the central job order system created by the CNMI Department of Labor in recent years. The online job order system is designed to promote a statutory job preference for U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, and CNMI permanent residents. Job orders are posted for 14 days on the Web at www.marianaslabor.net in order to give qualified citizens an opportunity to apply.
At the present time, there were 114 job orders forecasted CNMI-wide for foreign agriculture workers that will fall under the H-2A program.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
Nonresidents registering with Labor
Wednesday, 15 September 2010 00:00 By Junhan B. Todeno - Reporter
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LABOR Deputy Secretary Cinta M. Kaipat says nonresidents have begun registering with her department as required by Public Law 17-1.
“People are registering steadily,” she said in an-email.
“Remember that we already registered many people because we did that together with other transactions, and we continue to do that so there is not necessarily any line for registration on any particular day. I expect we will have nearly everyone registered by the deadline, which is some time off.”
The registration window at Labor is open from 8:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
The schedule for registration is as follows:
• Sept. 7-24: Aliens in the 240K classification who are not already registered (current or former workers)
• Sept. 27-Oct. 14: Aliens in the 240G, 240H, and 240N classifications who are not already registered (current or former investors, students, and business owners)
• Oct. 18-Nov. 3: IRs in all classifications who are not already registered (current IRs of U.S. citizens, foreign workers, foreign students, foreign investors, and foreign business owners)
• Nov. 8-30: All other aliens regardless of status
Workers whose contracts are renewed during 2010 are automatically registered in the contract process and their new updated ID cards have been issued. The same is true for all foreign investors, foreign business owners, foreign students, and immediate relatives who already have CNMI-issued ID cards for 2010. Those persons are already registered and need not do anything further about registration this year.
“We are now working on registering all other aliens in the commonwealth, including immediate relatives, common law spouses, minors, victims of crime and aliens eligible under the Violence Against Women Act and all others,” Kaipat said in an earlier press release.
Registration is required of all aliens other than lawful permanent residents (green card holders), regardless of status. There is no fee for these registrations.
For aliens who do not have a prior-year registration or permit card, the documentation required for registration includes a passport-sized photo, a completed registration form, and personal identification showing birth date.
The registration form is on the department’s website, www.marianaslabor.net.
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LABOR Deputy Secretary Cinta M. Kaipat says nonresidents have begun registering with her department as required by Public Law 17-1.
“People are registering steadily,” she said in an-email.
“Remember that we already registered many people because we did that together with other transactions, and we continue to do that so there is not necessarily any line for registration on any particular day. I expect we will have nearly everyone registered by the deadline, which is some time off.”
The registration window at Labor is open from 8:15 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Monday through Thursday.
The schedule for registration is as follows:
• Sept. 7-24: Aliens in the 240K classification who are not already registered (current or former workers)
• Sept. 27-Oct. 14: Aliens in the 240G, 240H, and 240N classifications who are not already registered (current or former investors, students, and business owners)
• Oct. 18-Nov. 3: IRs in all classifications who are not already registered (current IRs of U.S. citizens, foreign workers, foreign students, foreign investors, and foreign business owners)
• Nov. 8-30: All other aliens regardless of status
Workers whose contracts are renewed during 2010 are automatically registered in the contract process and their new updated ID cards have been issued. The same is true for all foreign investors, foreign business owners, foreign students, and immediate relatives who already have CNMI-issued ID cards for 2010. Those persons are already registered and need not do anything further about registration this year.
“We are now working on registering all other aliens in the commonwealth, including immediate relatives, common law spouses, minors, victims of crime and aliens eligible under the Violence Against Women Act and all others,” Kaipat said in an earlier press release.
Registration is required of all aliens other than lawful permanent residents (green card holders), regardless of status. There is no fee for these registrations.
For aliens who do not have a prior-year registration or permit card, the documentation required for registration includes a passport-sized photo, a completed registration form, and personal identification showing birth date.
The registration form is on the department’s website, www.marianaslabor.net.
Labor hails Wiseman decision
Wednesday, 15 September 2010 00:00 By Junhan B. Todeno - Reporter
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THE recent court ruling on a labor case is something that the Department of Labor has been seeking for several years, Deputy Secretary Cinta M. Kaipat said yesterday.
Labor believes that bond claims enforcement should be done in court, she added.
“Only a court has the power to force a bonding company to pay,” she said in an e-mail.
Labor, she added, “does not control the licensing of bonding companies, and we cannot attach their bank accounts. So we could issue opinions on their liability with respect to bonds, and nothing would happen. We had cleaned up the entire backlog of labor cases and we wanted our orders enforced.”
In 2007, she said, after the enactment of Public Law 15-108, Labor pushed for the enforcement of bond claims in court.
In the same year, she added, “we started handing out Small Claims packets to claimants telling them how to take their cases to court. Many of them did that, and two of the insurance companies — Royal Crown and Oceania — objected. They said that the workers’ claims on the bonds could not be considered in the first instance in court. They argued that they were entitled to a hearing at the Labor Department first. Judge [Perry] Inos issued an opinion in 2009 accepting the insurance company arguments and sending all these cases back to the Department of Labor. So we did two things: first, we set up hearings for all the bond claims and advertised extensively so workers would come in and present their claims. Second, we petitioned the Legislature to change the law to make it clear to the courts that workers could go to court to enforce the Department of Labor’s orders.”
According to Kaipat, “We processed all the claims and issued orders in all the cases where there was a bond by January of this year. Many of those cases were appealed to the [Labor] secretary, and all those appeals were completed months ago. Now, Royal Crown is back in Superior Court appealing the secretary’s decision in eight of these cases claiming — you guessed it — that they did not get a fair deal at the Labor Department (where they were ordered to pay) and now they want their day in court. They even took one case to federal court, where Judge [Alex] Munson held that the Department of Labor had proceeded properly. He dismissed their claim.
Judge Wiseman has not yet ruled on the appeals the insurance companies have filed in Superior Court, but we expect the same result as we got from Judge Munson.”
Kaipat said Labor “succeeded in getting a new section put into P.L. 17-1 providing specifically that workers could take the enforcement of their claims to court. We drafted that statutory section in consultation with lawyers for the workers. That became effective in March 2010.”
So, she added, “we have cleaned up all the past bond claims that were presented to the department, and we have changed the law so that, going forward, workers can take their cases directly to court. This is an example of the good progress the Department of Labor is making on all fronts.”
On Friday, Judge David A. Wiseman ruled that based on Public Law 17-1, which took effect last March, alien workers can now file court actions to collect administrative awards even without exhausting collection remedies at the Department of Labor.
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THE recent court ruling on a labor case is something that the Department of Labor has been seeking for several years, Deputy Secretary Cinta M. Kaipat said yesterday.
Labor believes that bond claims enforcement should be done in court, she added.
“Only a court has the power to force a bonding company to pay,” she said in an e-mail.
Labor, she added, “does not control the licensing of bonding companies, and we cannot attach their bank accounts. So we could issue opinions on their liability with respect to bonds, and nothing would happen. We had cleaned up the entire backlog of labor cases and we wanted our orders enforced.”
In 2007, she said, after the enactment of Public Law 15-108, Labor pushed for the enforcement of bond claims in court.
In the same year, she added, “we started handing out Small Claims packets to claimants telling them how to take their cases to court. Many of them did that, and two of the insurance companies — Royal Crown and Oceania — objected. They said that the workers’ claims on the bonds could not be considered in the first instance in court. They argued that they were entitled to a hearing at the Labor Department first. Judge [Perry] Inos issued an opinion in 2009 accepting the insurance company arguments and sending all these cases back to the Department of Labor. So we did two things: first, we set up hearings for all the bond claims and advertised extensively so workers would come in and present their claims. Second, we petitioned the Legislature to change the law to make it clear to the courts that workers could go to court to enforce the Department of Labor’s orders.”
According to Kaipat, “We processed all the claims and issued orders in all the cases where there was a bond by January of this year. Many of those cases were appealed to the [Labor] secretary, and all those appeals were completed months ago. Now, Royal Crown is back in Superior Court appealing the secretary’s decision in eight of these cases claiming — you guessed it — that they did not get a fair deal at the Labor Department (where they were ordered to pay) and now they want their day in court. They even took one case to federal court, where Judge [Alex] Munson held that the Department of Labor had proceeded properly. He dismissed their claim.
Judge Wiseman has not yet ruled on the appeals the insurance companies have filed in Superior Court, but we expect the same result as we got from Judge Munson.”
Kaipat said Labor “succeeded in getting a new section put into P.L. 17-1 providing specifically that workers could take the enforcement of their claims to court. We drafted that statutory section in consultation with lawyers for the workers. That became effective in March 2010.”
So, she added, “we have cleaned up all the past bond claims that were presented to the department, and we have changed the law so that, going forward, workers can take their cases directly to court. This is an example of the good progress the Department of Labor is making on all fronts.”
On Friday, Judge David A. Wiseman ruled that based on Public Law 17-1, which took effect last March, alien workers can now file court actions to collect administrative awards even without exhausting collection remedies at the Department of Labor.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Local
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Labor announces mandatory alien registration
The Commonwealth has been registering aliens annually since 1985. After the Immigration Division was disbanded, its former task of registering aliens was assigned to the Department of Labor.
“Every alien who has an ID card issued by the CNMI after Jan. 1, 2010 is already registered,” said Labor deputy secretary Jacinta Kaipat. “Those aliens need do nothing further until next year.”
Workers whose contracts are renewed during 2010 are automatically registered in the contract process and their new updated ID cards have been issued. The same is true for all foreign investors, foreign business owners, foreign students, and immediate relatives who already have CNMI-issued ID cards for 2010. Those persons are already registered and need not do anything further about registration this year.
“We are now working on registering all other aliens in the Commonwealth, including immediate relatives, common law spouses, minors, victims of crime and aliens eligible under VAWA (Violence Against Women Act), and all others,” Kaipat said.
Registration is required of all aliens other than lawful permanent residents (green card holders), regardless of status. There is no fee for these registrations.
For aliens who do not have a prior-year registration or permit card, the documentation required for registration includes a passport-sized photo, a completed registration form, and personal identification showing birth date. The registration form is on the department's website, www.marianaslabor.net.
The registration window will be open from 8:15am to 4:15pm, Monday through Thursday.
The schedule for registration is as follows:
* Sept. 7-24: Aliens in the 240K classification who are not already registered (current or former workers)
* Sept. 27-Oct. 14: Aliens in the 240G, 240H, and 240N classifications who are not already registered (current or former investors, students, and business owners)
* Oct. 18-Nov. 3: IRs in all classifications who are not already registered (current IRs of U.S. citizens, foreign workers, foreign students, foreign investors, and foreign business owners)
* Nov. 8-30: All other aliens regardless of status
Alien registration cards will be available for pickup either at the time of the registration or within a few days after the registration form is filed.
“Aliens who register may also have their umbrella permit status problems addressed at the same time,” Kaipat said. “Those who did not make their report-back date for some reason or who have other umbrella permit issues may request to have their umbrella permits or existing permits updated when they register.
Registration is required under Commonwealth PL 17-1. (PR)
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Labor announces mandatory alien registration
The Commonwealth has been registering aliens annually since 1985. After the Immigration Division was disbanded, its former task of registering aliens was assigned to the Department of Labor.
“Every alien who has an ID card issued by the CNMI after Jan. 1, 2010 is already registered,” said Labor deputy secretary Jacinta Kaipat. “Those aliens need do nothing further until next year.”
Workers whose contracts are renewed during 2010 are automatically registered in the contract process and their new updated ID cards have been issued. The same is true for all foreign investors, foreign business owners, foreign students, and immediate relatives who already have CNMI-issued ID cards for 2010. Those persons are already registered and need not do anything further about registration this year.
“We are now working on registering all other aliens in the Commonwealth, including immediate relatives, common law spouses, minors, victims of crime and aliens eligible under VAWA (Violence Against Women Act), and all others,” Kaipat said.
Registration is required of all aliens other than lawful permanent residents (green card holders), regardless of status. There is no fee for these registrations.
For aliens who do not have a prior-year registration or permit card, the documentation required for registration includes a passport-sized photo, a completed registration form, and personal identification showing birth date. The registration form is on the department's website, www.marianaslabor.net.
The registration window will be open from 8:15am to 4:15pm, Monday through Thursday.
The schedule for registration is as follows:
* Sept. 7-24: Aliens in the 240K classification who are not already registered (current or former workers)
* Sept. 27-Oct. 14: Aliens in the 240G, 240H, and 240N classifications who are not already registered (current or former investors, students, and business owners)
* Oct. 18-Nov. 3: IRs in all classifications who are not already registered (current IRs of U.S. citizens, foreign workers, foreign students, foreign investors, and foreign business owners)
* Nov. 8-30: All other aliens regardless of status
Alien registration cards will be available for pickup either at the time of the registration or within a few days after the registration form is filed.
“Aliens who register may also have their umbrella permit status problems addressed at the same time,” Kaipat said. “Those who did not make their report-back date for some reason or who have other umbrella permit issues may request to have their umbrella permits or existing permits updated when they register.
Registration is required under Commonwealth PL 17-1. (PR)
Local
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Employers surveyed for jobs inventory
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Hundreds of employers in the CNMI are now being surveyed online for their jobs inventory, data from which is expected to help provide employment for U.S. citizens and to help determine the extension of the transition period for foreign workers to remain in the Commonwealth, among other things.
The “2010 CNMI Jobs Inventory Survey” is being conducted by the CNMI Department of Labor.
Douglas Brennan, president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, encouraged businesses to take the time to fill out the survey form, which is also done in line with Public Law 17-1 or the CNMI omnibus immigration law.
PL 17-1 makes the Commonwealth Code conform with the requirements of the federalization law, Title VII of U.S. Public Law 110-229, with respect to federal control of immigration and deportation. It converts the mandatory 20- to 30-percent local hiring preference into a floating benchmark.
“If employers don't fill up the form, then they could expect a call or visit from Labor to make sure they participate in the survey,” Brennan told Saipan Tribune.
The Chamber, the largest business organization in the CNMI with some 150 members, held its monthly meeting yesterday afternoon at The Palms Resort in San Roque.
Employers are asked to complete the survey within two weeks of receiving the request or as soon as possible.
They are asked to report on each job for which a worker was paid at any time during the month of August 2010.
Labor Secretary Gil M. San Nicolas, in his cover letter for the survey, said the Commonwealth needs the survey in order to qualify for certain federal grants, and to “assist with respect to the U.S. Secretary of Labor's determination on the extension of the transition period for foreign workers to remain in the Commonwealth.
San Nicolas said the survey will also help plan for and provide better employment training of U.S. citizens.
“(The survey also seeks) to provide the Commonwealth government and the public with information we do not now have because the U.S. agencies do not collect this information in the CNMI on a current basis,” San Nicolas said.
The Labor secretary said the information that employers provide is kept strictly confidential and will be used only to prepare statistical compilations that do not identify individuals or employers.
Some of the information requested by the survey form include the employer's name and employer number or TIN/SSN, as well as their business expectations - fewer aliens, same number of aliens, more aliens.
Employers are also asked about the O-NET job code, their employees' job title, job status, worker's name, Form I-9 status, and Form I-9 ID number.
The federal government took over CNMI immigration on Nov. 28, 2009.
Thursday, September 02, 2010
Employers surveyed for jobs inventory
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Hundreds of employers in the CNMI are now being surveyed online for their jobs inventory, data from which is expected to help provide employment for U.S. citizens and to help determine the extension of the transition period for foreign workers to remain in the Commonwealth, among other things.
The “2010 CNMI Jobs Inventory Survey” is being conducted by the CNMI Department of Labor.
Douglas Brennan, president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, encouraged businesses to take the time to fill out the survey form, which is also done in line with Public Law 17-1 or the CNMI omnibus immigration law.
PL 17-1 makes the Commonwealth Code conform with the requirements of the federalization law, Title VII of U.S. Public Law 110-229, with respect to federal control of immigration and deportation. It converts the mandatory 20- to 30-percent local hiring preference into a floating benchmark.
“If employers don't fill up the form, then they could expect a call or visit from Labor to make sure they participate in the survey,” Brennan told Saipan Tribune.
The Chamber, the largest business organization in the CNMI with some 150 members, held its monthly meeting yesterday afternoon at The Palms Resort in San Roque.
Employers are asked to complete the survey within two weeks of receiving the request or as soon as possible.
They are asked to report on each job for which a worker was paid at any time during the month of August 2010.
Labor Secretary Gil M. San Nicolas, in his cover letter for the survey, said the Commonwealth needs the survey in order to qualify for certain federal grants, and to “assist with respect to the U.S. Secretary of Labor's determination on the extension of the transition period for foreign workers to remain in the Commonwealth.
San Nicolas said the survey will also help plan for and provide better employment training of U.S. citizens.
“(The survey also seeks) to provide the Commonwealth government and the public with information we do not now have because the U.S. agencies do not collect this information in the CNMI on a current basis,” San Nicolas said.
The Labor secretary said the information that employers provide is kept strictly confidential and will be used only to prepare statistical compilations that do not identify individuals or employers.
Some of the information requested by the survey form include the employer's name and employer number or TIN/SSN, as well as their business expectations - fewer aliens, same number of aliens, more aliens.
Employers are also asked about the O-NET job code, their employees' job title, job status, worker's name, Form I-9 status, and Form I-9 ID number.
The federal government took over CNMI immigration on Nov. 28, 2009.
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