Monday, October 27, 2008

LIIDS transferred to Labor

By Agnes E. Donato
Reporter

The Department of Labor will be responsible for the Commonwealth's labor database beginning Nov. 1, 2008, Gov. Benigno R. Fitial ordered recently.

Fitial, in an Oct. 17 executive order, transferred the CNMI's labor and immigration identification and documentation system from the Division of Immigration to the Labor Department. More commonly known as LIIDS section, the agency in charge of keeping track of guest workers in the CNMI will now be called the Employment Data Section.

Under the governor's order, the EDS will also maintain the border management system for the Division of Immigration for as long as the CNMI government is in control of local immigration functions. The border management system is an automated program that generates a record of all entries to and exits from the Commonwealth.

The governor said the transfer is done in the interest of efficient administration. He noted that the Labor Department recently upgraded its automated processing system and completed its interactive website. The new system is tightly integrated with the data collection and processing currently done by LIIDS.

“This is just internal reorganization effort. The governor believes it is more appropriate to put Labor in charge of the database, given its duties and responsibilities with respect to the foreign workers,” said press secretary Charles P. Reyes Jr.

According to the executive order, all of LIIDS' equipment and data files will be transferred to the Employment Data Section. The supervisor of the LIIDS section will remain in charge of the new agency. All LIIDS personnel who can legally transfer to the Labor Department will also remain employed in their current positions.

The executive order also calls for the transfer of the LIIDS' budget allocation to the new section. However, it says the governor reserves the authority to make personnel-related decisions.

The U.S. federal government is required by law to take over the CNMI's immigration system on June 1, 2009.