Labor Now Requires All Jobs To Be Advertised

Local
Tuesday, March 04, 2008


Labor now requires all jobs to be advertised


Under a new policy, the CNMI Department of Labor is now requiring all jobs of any kind for which an employer wants to hire a foreign worker to be posted on the department's new jobs website, www.marianaslabor.net.

“In the past, we had waivers of various kinds, but no more,” said Cinta M. Kaipat, deputy secretary of Labor. “Every job, whether it is permanent or temporary, full-time or part-time, TWA or casual labor-absolutely everything will be on the website for citizens and permanent residents who are looking for jobs.”

“The website is free,” Kaipat said, “so there is no expense to an employer in posting the job. And the department acts quickly in referring citizens and permanent residents for jobs on the website postings, so there is no delay.”

The department has had objections to the all-inclusive posting requirement from employers who say their jobs are just temporary or that they are small businesses not required to hire local citizens.

“I have dealt with the objections,” Kaipat said, “and my decision is that all jobs will be posted. I know that at the end of the road, perhaps the department cannot require all categories of employers to hire a local citizen, but we certainly should assume that every employer will want to do the right thing. If a qualified citizen comes along, an employer who is a part of this community should hire that person whether they are forced to do so by the Labor Department or not.”

The website provides a useful informational tool for the community. “The department's policy on posting all jobs means that the community knows about all jobs for which foreign national workers are being considered. Also, the community knows how many jobs are out there at any given time. This is useful to legislators whose constituents may be looking for jobs,” Kaipat reported.

“Some of our citizens need to work part-time or they want to work for only a few months because they have family responsibilities,” Kaipat said. “That is the reason I want all the part-time, temporary, and TWA jobs posted.”

The Labor Department's objective is to find suitable employment opportunities for as many citizens and permanent residents as possible.

“We are also posting jobs so that our on-island foreign workers can know about the jobs available for them,” Kaipat said. The Labor Department enforces a secondary preference for on-island foreign workers. “Finding jobs for our on-island foreign workers is better policy than bringing in new foreign workers to the Commonwealth,” Kaipat said.

The Labor Department is enforcing the emergency regulations published in December 2007 that prevent employers from bringing new unskilled workers to the Commonwealth while the workers displaced by garment factory closures are being absorbed into new jobs.

“We have registered many foreign workers who are looking for unskilled jobs, so we have no problem supplying unskilled labor to any employer who needs it,” reported Alfred Pangelinan, Director of Employment Services.