Labor processed 22,917 foreign labor permits in 2008

Monday, 18 May 2009 00:00 By Gemma Q. Casas - Variety News Staff
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THE Department of Labor says it processed a total of 22,917 labor permits for foreign workers as of the end of calendar year 2008 but couldn’t say exactly how many of them are still present on the islands as of this month.

Deputy Labor Secretary Jacinta M. Kaipat stressed that the total number of actual foreign workers in the CNMI are typically lower than the permits processed because some of them are contract amendments or extensions or some chose to leave the islands for personal or employment reasons.

“As of Dec. 31, 2008, the department had recorded 22,917 permit transactions during 2008 in the 2406K (foreign worker) immigration category. The department counts only its administrative operations; does not conduct any census of foreign workers actually present in the commonwealth,” Kaipat said in her latest report to the Legislature.

Labor reported that there were just more than 16,000 documented foreign workers in the CNMI as of Sept. 2008.

Kaipat said the department does not anticipate its functions to change dramatically unless the federal government wins over the CNMI’s pending lawsuit challenging the labor-related provisions of the federalization law that mandates the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to take control of the islands’ immigration system starting Nov. 28.

“U.S. Public Law 110-229 will have very limited effect on the functions of the Labor Department unless the federal government wins the current lawsuit brought by the commonwealth. A further report on this will be issued by the department after the court rules,” she said.

It is widely anticipated though that fewer foreign workers’ permits will be processed if the immigration changes take place because many of them will not quality under the U.S. visa requirements for employment.

“It is anticipated that very few foreign workers will qualify under U.S. visa requirements, perhaps fewer than 200 per year. Another change will be the transfer to the United States of the processing of applications to enter the commonwealth,” she said.

“However, these applications have fallen off very substantially in 2008 because of the economic conditions in the commonwealth,” she added.

Labor will assess its manpower and financial needs starting June 1, 2009 in anticipation of the changes on the islands’ immigration system.