Local
Tuesday, April 07, 2009
Kaipat notes large increase in denial of applications to hire alien workers
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat has noted a large increase in the number of applications filed by employers to hire alien workers that were eventually denied by Labor.
Kaipat said appeals of these denials have been filed in 627 cases from June 2008 through March 2009.
“All of these appeals have been processed efficiently by the [Labor] Hearing Office, in addition to its normal caseload of labor complaints,” said Kaipat in her interim progress report submitted Wednesday last week to the Legislature on the implementation of the Public Law 15-108. She was the author of the controversial labor reform law when she was a representative.
The deputy secretary, however, did not cite figures in her report to support her claim of a “large” increase in Labor denials.
Kaipat said Labor director Barry Hirshbein has subjected applications to employ alien workers to tighter scrutiny, using Labor's new automated process.
She said the careful scrutiny has been done to weed out employers who are insolvent, who lack the necessary resources to pay their foreign workers, who may not be providing a real job, or who are otherwise unqualified.
The deputy secretary claimed that Hirshbein's disqualification has been upheld in many cases, and the employers have been denied permission to employ foreign workers.
Kaipat listed three “beneficial effects” of such scrutiny.
First, she said, the number of unfit employers has been reduced very substantially, resulting in fewer labor complaints from foreign workers about not being paid.
Second, Kaipat said, the number of employment scams set up solely for the purpose of allowing foreign workers to remain in the CNMI while unemployed has been reduced, resulting in fewer law enforcement problems.
Finally, she pointed out, the number of U.S citizens hired has increased because a business can hire a U.S. citizen without any scrutiny of its finances by Labor.
In the same report, Kaipat disclosed that in the last three years, Labor processed and completed the repatriation of over 16,000 alien workers.
Monday, April 6, 2009
Sunday, April 5, 2009
Local
Monday, April 06, 2009
16,000-plus alien workers sent home in past 3 years
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
In the last three years, the CNMI Department of Labor processed and completed the repatriation of over 16,000 alien workers, according to Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat.
Labor is also making good progress in placing U.S. citizens in jobs, she added in her interim progress report submitted Wednesday last week to the Legislature on the implementation of the Public Law 15-108. Kaipat was the author of the controversial labor reform law when she was a congresswoman.
She said the repatriation of 16,000-plus foreign workers in 2006, 2007, and 2008 was an enormous administrative task that involved completing labor cases, securing repatriation tickets, and making voluntary arrangements for departures.
“The department has done this work quietly and efficiently, working cooperatively with foreign workers and their representatives to accommodate hardship concerns and to honor requests for the timing of repatriation,” Kaipat said.
Labor is not involved in any non-voluntary departures as the Immigration Division handles deportations.
The deputy secretary said Labor has assisted Immigration by using its new automation system to generate quarterly overstayers lists.
The lists, when published, she said, assist in obtaining voluntary departures or correction of the records for those whose status entitles them to remain in the CNMI.
On hiring local residents or U.S. citizens, Kaipat said they initially reported only those U.S. citizens who came to Labor in person for assistance in finding a job.
However, she said, they have improved their website so that they can report on all U.S. citizens who find jobs with the assistance of Labor either through the website or through in-person assistance.
“Our new capabilities will allow us to review resumes posted online by persons who have not come to the office,” Kaipat said.
Labor also added the capability for employers to more easily create lists of potential U.S. citizen candidates who have the qualifications for the job to be filled.
Kapat said that since October 2008, they have processed transfer requests for 615 foreign workers who have been displaced from their jobs by U.S. citizen hires.
“That is only one informal measure of our success because not every foreign worker who is displaced elects to request permission to transfer; some elect to be repatriated,” she added.
Monday, April 06, 2009
16,000-plus alien workers sent home in past 3 years
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
In the last three years, the CNMI Department of Labor processed and completed the repatriation of over 16,000 alien workers, according to Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat.
Labor is also making good progress in placing U.S. citizens in jobs, she added in her interim progress report submitted Wednesday last week to the Legislature on the implementation of the Public Law 15-108. Kaipat was the author of the controversial labor reform law when she was a congresswoman.
She said the repatriation of 16,000-plus foreign workers in 2006, 2007, and 2008 was an enormous administrative task that involved completing labor cases, securing repatriation tickets, and making voluntary arrangements for departures.
“The department has done this work quietly and efficiently, working cooperatively with foreign workers and their representatives to accommodate hardship concerns and to honor requests for the timing of repatriation,” Kaipat said.
Labor is not involved in any non-voluntary departures as the Immigration Division handles deportations.
The deputy secretary said Labor has assisted Immigration by using its new automation system to generate quarterly overstayers lists.
The lists, when published, she said, assist in obtaining voluntary departures or correction of the records for those whose status entitles them to remain in the CNMI.
On hiring local residents or U.S. citizens, Kaipat said they initially reported only those U.S. citizens who came to Labor in person for assistance in finding a job.
However, she said, they have improved their website so that they can report on all U.S. citizens who find jobs with the assistance of Labor either through the website or through in-person assistance.
“Our new capabilities will allow us to review resumes posted online by persons who have not come to the office,” Kaipat said.
Labor also added the capability for employers to more easily create lists of potential U.S. citizen candidates who have the qualifications for the job to be filled.
Kapat said that since October 2008, they have processed transfer requests for 615 foreign workers who have been displaced from their jobs by U.S. citizen hires.
“That is only one informal measure of our success because not every foreign worker who is displaced elects to request permission to transfer; some elect to be repatriated,” she added.
Wednesday, April 1, 2009
Feds OK 180-Day Delay
Feds OK 180-day delay
Thursday, 02 April 2009 00:00 By Gemma Q. Casas - Variety News Staff
E-mail Print PDF
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered to delay until Nov. 28 the mandated June 1st U.S. takeover on the islands’ border security and immigration system giving relief to local officials, employers and some foreign workers who are worried about uncertainties on the transition phase.
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Marie Thérèse Sebrechts, regional media manager of the department, said Napolitano reached the decision upon consultation with the secretaries of the departments of Labor, Interior and State, the U.S. attorney general and Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.
“As a result of the secretary’s decision the existing CNMI immigration laws will continue to apply until November 28, 2009. Additionally, the implementation of Customs and Border Protection’s interim final rule establishing a joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, that was scheduled to begin on June 1, 2009, also will be delayed until Nov. 28, 2009 and the existing Guam VWP will continue to operate until that date,” she said in a statement.
The delay also means the estimated more than 16,000 foreign workers here can still exit and enter the islands using their valid Northern Marianas labor permits within the next six months.
Under the federalization law, once the U.S. administers the islands immigration system international airlines will not board anymore foreign workers bound here unless they have a U.S. visa.
They will also not be allowed to work here unless they have the appropriate U.S. employment visa.
Relieved and thankful
The governor and CNMI Delegate to the U.S. Congress Gregorio Sablan separately asked Napolitano for the delay citing grave economic concerns over the possible negative impact of a hastily administered federal immigration system.
The tourism-based economy of the CNMI is driven by foreign workers whose employment contracts are based on locally-issued labor permits.
Once the DHS takes over the administration of the immigration system here, all foreign workers will be treated as transitional guest workers and must eventually be employed under the soon to be introduced federal guest worker program.
Fitial thanked Napolitano and others who strongly lobbied Washington for the delay.
“Today, I join many people in our community in expressing thanks and gratitude to Janet Napolitano, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for agreeing to delay the implementation of federal immigration rules for the CNMI,” said the governor in a special press conference held yesterday.
He added that he’s grateful for the federal government and other individuals who strongly lobbied for the delay taking into account the negative impact of the move on the islands’ fragile tourism-based economy.
He also expressed hope the six-month delay will give the CNMI more time to bargain for more rights under the federalization law.
He expressed hope the delay would enable local and federal authorities to ensure the smooth transition phase of handing down the control of the islands’ immigration system to the DHS.
He also stressed the time at hand would enable the CNMI to host more tourists from Russia and China.
“My hope is that this six-month delay will give Homeland Security additional time to put in place the necessary equipment, personnel and systems in the CNMI so that we can continue to welcome Chinese and Russian tourists without a single day of lapse. We have been hosting these tourists for more than a decade without any problems and they are a vital part of our tourism industry,” the governor said.
Sablan, for his part, said he’s glad Napolitano granted their delay request.
“I am glad to finally have the secretary’s decision,” said Sablan in a statement. “We now know with certainty that the transition to federal immigration will begin on Nov. 28, 2009. As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay. The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough reason to do it right.”
Assistant Secretary for Policy Richard Barth delivered Napolitano’s decision to Sablan and Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo.
Time for more talks
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, said they expect the six-month period to be marked by continued dialogues between the CNMI and federal officials.
He said local businesses want assurance they will continue to have the labor force they need.
“There are other concerns that were not clear. It appeared that they [federal authorities time] have a final rule already. We have a little concern with that because nobody in the commonwealth made comments on that and so the only way to do this is to delay and make sure that unified requests will be taken into consideration,” the speaker told the Variety.
Rep. Ray N. Yumul, R-Saipan and the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said the delay should give local and federal authorities time to further study possible loopholes on the yet to be drafted regulations to ensure the smooth transition phase.
House Floor Leader Joseph N. Camacho, R-Saipan, added, the delay would let stakeholders in the federalization law “iron-out unintended consequences in a mutually agreeable positions.”
He said many people would be affected in the proposed changes like foreign workers, their employers, foreign investors, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, foreign students and the islands economic future.
Phillip Mendiola-Long, president and chairman of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, said the DHS made the right decision.
“The chamber frankly did not see it possible to implement P.L. 110-229 in the time frame available because DHS had not completed regulations for the CNMI Transitional Worker Program, they had not completed regulations for existing CNMI foreign investor transitions or created the new foreign investor policy, they had not established regulations for Immediate Relatives and they had not established regulations regarding prevailing wage rates,” he said in an email to the Variety.
“With all of these pending and uncompleted regulatory issues, it would not have been prudent for the federal agency to create policy and regulations in haste just to meet a time deadline,” he added.
Tinian is being developed as a major casino hub in the Pacific. The industry is expected to generate both local and international employment.
Taotao Tano leader Greg Cruz, on the other hand, said the delay will not change things at all as the islands’ immigration system would still be handed down to DHS before the year is over.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” he said.
He added: “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it’s just aggravating the situation.”
Comments
Search
SaipanFox - Who is he? |2009-04-01 19:41:30
What does Kalili know about the federal government. If John Oliver was elected, 110-229 would
already have been repealed. Kalili, on the other hand, is trying to take credit for the hard work
of our Great and Benevolent Leader in Governor Ben Fitial.
Our Great Governor will bring in daily
Asiana flights from Japan, Russia, China and Korea once he is reelected to another term. He will
bring in economic development like we saw when the garment industry was here. The casino industry
in Tinian will prosper and bring in more money than the stimulus.
In Our Great Leader Governor
Ben Fitial we TRUST.
Thursday, 02 April 2009 00:00 By Gemma Q. Casas - Variety News Staff
E-mail Print PDF
U.S. Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano ordered to delay until Nov. 28 the mandated June 1st U.S. takeover on the islands’ border security and immigration system giving relief to local officials, employers and some foreign workers who are worried about uncertainties on the transition phase.
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Congressman Gregorio C. Sablan, Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Richard Barth, and Congresswoman Madeleine Z. Bordallo at her office on Capitol Hill. It was Barth who delivered the notification from Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano that she had granted a 180-day delay in the commencement of federal immigration control in the Northern Marianas. Contributed photo
Marie Thérèse Sebrechts, regional media manager of the department, said Napolitano reached the decision upon consultation with the secretaries of the departments of Labor, Interior and State, the U.S. attorney general and Gov. Benigno R. Fitial.
“As a result of the secretary’s decision the existing CNMI immigration laws will continue to apply until November 28, 2009. Additionally, the implementation of Customs and Border Protection’s interim final rule establishing a joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, that was scheduled to begin on June 1, 2009, also will be delayed until Nov. 28, 2009 and the existing Guam VWP will continue to operate until that date,” she said in a statement.
The delay also means the estimated more than 16,000 foreign workers here can still exit and enter the islands using their valid Northern Marianas labor permits within the next six months.
Under the federalization law, once the U.S. administers the islands immigration system international airlines will not board anymore foreign workers bound here unless they have a U.S. visa.
They will also not be allowed to work here unless they have the appropriate U.S. employment visa.
Relieved and thankful
The governor and CNMI Delegate to the U.S. Congress Gregorio Sablan separately asked Napolitano for the delay citing grave economic concerns over the possible negative impact of a hastily administered federal immigration system.
The tourism-based economy of the CNMI is driven by foreign workers whose employment contracts are based on locally-issued labor permits.
Once the DHS takes over the administration of the immigration system here, all foreign workers will be treated as transitional guest workers and must eventually be employed under the soon to be introduced federal guest worker program.
Fitial thanked Napolitano and others who strongly lobbied Washington for the delay.
“Today, I join many people in our community in expressing thanks and gratitude to Janet Napolitano, the secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, for agreeing to delay the implementation of federal immigration rules for the CNMI,” said the governor in a special press conference held yesterday.
He added that he’s grateful for the federal government and other individuals who strongly lobbied for the delay taking into account the negative impact of the move on the islands’ fragile tourism-based economy.
He also expressed hope the six-month delay will give the CNMI more time to bargain for more rights under the federalization law.
He expressed hope the delay would enable local and federal authorities to ensure the smooth transition phase of handing down the control of the islands’ immigration system to the DHS.
He also stressed the time at hand would enable the CNMI to host more tourists from Russia and China.
“My hope is that this six-month delay will give Homeland Security additional time to put in place the necessary equipment, personnel and systems in the CNMI so that we can continue to welcome Chinese and Russian tourists without a single day of lapse. We have been hosting these tourists for more than a decade without any problems and they are a vital part of our tourism industry,” the governor said.
Sablan, for his part, said he’s glad Napolitano granted their delay request.
“I am glad to finally have the secretary’s decision,” said Sablan in a statement. “We now know with certainty that the transition to federal immigration will begin on Nov. 28, 2009. As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay. The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough reason to do it right.”
Assistant Secretary for Policy Richard Barth delivered Napolitano’s decision to Sablan and Guam Congresswoman Madeleine Bordallo.
Time for more talks
Speaker Arnold I. Palacios, R-Saipan, said they expect the six-month period to be marked by continued dialogues between the CNMI and federal officials.
He said local businesses want assurance they will continue to have the labor force they need.
“There are other concerns that were not clear. It appeared that they [federal authorities time] have a final rule already. We have a little concern with that because nobody in the commonwealth made comments on that and so the only way to do this is to delay and make sure that unified requests will be taken into consideration,” the speaker told the Variety.
Rep. Ray N. Yumul, R-Saipan and the chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, said the delay should give local and federal authorities time to further study possible loopholes on the yet to be drafted regulations to ensure the smooth transition phase.
House Floor Leader Joseph N. Camacho, R-Saipan, added, the delay would let stakeholders in the federalization law “iron-out unintended consequences in a mutually agreeable positions.”
He said many people would be affected in the proposed changes like foreign workers, their employers, foreign investors, immediate relatives of U.S. citizens, foreign students and the islands economic future.
Phillip Mendiola-Long, president and chairman of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, said the DHS made the right decision.
“The chamber frankly did not see it possible to implement P.L. 110-229 in the time frame available because DHS had not completed regulations for the CNMI Transitional Worker Program, they had not completed regulations for existing CNMI foreign investor transitions or created the new foreign investor policy, they had not established regulations for Immediate Relatives and they had not established regulations regarding prevailing wage rates,” he said in an email to the Variety.
“With all of these pending and uncompleted regulatory issues, it would not have been prudent for the federal agency to create policy and regulations in haste just to meet a time deadline,” he added.
Tinian is being developed as a major casino hub in the Pacific. The industry is expected to generate both local and international employment.
Taotao Tano leader Greg Cruz, on the other hand, said the delay will not change things at all as the islands’ immigration system would still be handed down to DHS before the year is over.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” he said.
He added: “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it’s just aggravating the situation.”
Comments
Search
SaipanFox - Who is he? |2009-04-01 19:41:30
What does Kalili know about the federal government. If John Oliver was elected, 110-229 would
already have been repealed. Kalili, on the other hand, is trying to take credit for the hard work
of our Great and Benevolent Leader in Governor Ben Fitial.
Our Great Governor will bring in daily
Asiana flights from Japan, Russia, China and Korea once he is reelected to another term. He will
bring in economic development like we saw when the garment industry was here. The casino industry
in Tinian will prosper and bring in more money than the stimulus.
In Our Great Leader Governor
Ben Fitial we TRUST.
Local
Thursday, April 02, 2009
'Permanent residency via employment applicable to NMI'
By Moneth Deposa
Reporter
Once federalization kicks in, adjustments to lawful permanent resident status will be applicable to the CNMI in the same manner it is being enforced anywhere else in the United States.
This was the assurance of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in an e-mail to Saipan Tribune yesterday, saying that everyone who is eligible may apply for these changes to obtain permanent resident status on island.
“Anyone in the CNMI who is eligible under the Immigration and Nationality Act to apply for adjustment to lawful permanent resident status-either based on family or employment-will have the ability to do so in the same manner as people anywhere in the U.S.,” said Marie Therese Sebrechts, USCIS regional media manager.
According to the USCIS Web site, if a person wants to become an immigrant based on the fact that he or she has a permanent job, or if an employer wants to sponsor someone for lawful permanent residency based on permanent employment in the United States, they need to go through some important steps. These include making sure that the individual to be petitioned by the employer is eligible for lawful permanent residency and the employer completes a labor certification request for the applicant-employee.
The USCIS must approve an immigrant visa petition for the person wishing to immigrate, which the employer will file himself since the employer will act as the sponsor or petitioner for the applicant who wants to live and work on a permanent basis in the United States. An immigrant visa number is issued after completing the process that the applicant must go through to adjust to permanent resident status.
There are four categories for granting permanent residence to foreign nationals based upon employment:
- EB-1 is for priority workers who are foreign nationals of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics; professors and researchers; managers and executives subject to international transfer to the U.S.
- EB-2 is for professionals with advanced degrees or persons with exceptional ability including foreign nationals of exceptional ability in science, arts and business; and advanced degree professionals.
- EB-3 is applicable for skilled or professional workers with bachelor's degrees, skilled workers with minimum two years training and experience, and unskilled workers.
- EB-4 is for religious workers.
Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security announced the delayed transition of federalization in the CNMI after consultations with various entities and concerned parties.
As a result of the decision, the existing CNMI immigration laws will continue to apply until Nov. 28, 2009. Additionally, the implementation of Customs and Border Protection's interim final rule establishing a joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, that was scheduled to begin on June 1, 2009, will also be delayed until Nov. 28, 2009, and the existing Guam visa waiver program will continue to operate until that date. To effectuate this change, CBP plans to issue a technical amendment to the Guam-CNMI interim final rule published on Jan. 16, 2009.
This decision also delays the implementation of the exemption from the current statutory caps on the number of nonimmigrant H-1B and H-2B petitions granted yearly for employers filing H worker petitions in Guam.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
'Permanent residency via employment applicable to NMI'
By Moneth Deposa
Reporter
Once federalization kicks in, adjustments to lawful permanent resident status will be applicable to the CNMI in the same manner it is being enforced anywhere else in the United States.
This was the assurance of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in an e-mail to Saipan Tribune yesterday, saying that everyone who is eligible may apply for these changes to obtain permanent resident status on island.
“Anyone in the CNMI who is eligible under the Immigration and Nationality Act to apply for adjustment to lawful permanent resident status-either based on family or employment-will have the ability to do so in the same manner as people anywhere in the U.S.,” said Marie Therese Sebrechts, USCIS regional media manager.
According to the USCIS Web site, if a person wants to become an immigrant based on the fact that he or she has a permanent job, or if an employer wants to sponsor someone for lawful permanent residency based on permanent employment in the United States, they need to go through some important steps. These include making sure that the individual to be petitioned by the employer is eligible for lawful permanent residency and the employer completes a labor certification request for the applicant-employee.
The USCIS must approve an immigrant visa petition for the person wishing to immigrate, which the employer will file himself since the employer will act as the sponsor or petitioner for the applicant who wants to live and work on a permanent basis in the United States. An immigrant visa number is issued after completing the process that the applicant must go through to adjust to permanent resident status.
There are four categories for granting permanent residence to foreign nationals based upon employment:
- EB-1 is for priority workers who are foreign nationals of extraordinary ability in the sciences, arts, education, business or athletics; professors and researchers; managers and executives subject to international transfer to the U.S.
- EB-2 is for professionals with advanced degrees or persons with exceptional ability including foreign nationals of exceptional ability in science, arts and business; and advanced degree professionals.
- EB-3 is applicable for skilled or professional workers with bachelor's degrees, skilled workers with minimum two years training and experience, and unskilled workers.
- EB-4 is for religious workers.
Yesterday, the Department of Homeland Security announced the delayed transition of federalization in the CNMI after consultations with various entities and concerned parties.
As a result of the decision, the existing CNMI immigration laws will continue to apply until Nov. 28, 2009. Additionally, the implementation of Customs and Border Protection's interim final rule establishing a joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, that was scheduled to begin on June 1, 2009, will also be delayed until Nov. 28, 2009, and the existing Guam visa waiver program will continue to operate until that date. To effectuate this change, CBP plans to issue a technical amendment to the Guam-CNMI interim final rule published on Jan. 16, 2009.
This decision also delays the implementation of the exemption from the current statutory caps on the number of nonimmigrant H-1B and H-2B petitions granted yearly for employers filing H worker petitions in Guam.
Local
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Schorr: Investor, worker rules out in 1 to 2 months
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Major business and workers groups are relieved that the start of transition to federal immigration is delayed by 180 days, but they want the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to soon publish the CNMI-only transitional worker and investor regulations.
Jeff Schorr, field representative of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs, yesterday told Saipan Chamber of Commerce members and guests that these two sets of regulations will be out in “another month or two.”
Homeland Security's decision to delay federalization by 180 days-from June 1, 2009 to Nov. 28, 2009-was welcome news for members of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, the Rota Casino Gaming Commission and the United Workers Movement NMI.
Doug Brennan, vice president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, said the delay gives businesses a breathing room to develop a business plan once these regulations are published.
“Our position paper stated that we are in favor of a delay simply because we want all the rules and regulations in front of us before this takes place. It's very difficult to develop a business plan for any of our member businesses when we don't know what the rules are going to be. What we were told was it will be U.S. immigration but there was talk about various exemptions and waivers. We'd like to see these,” Brennan told Saipan Tribune after the Chamber's general membership meeting at the Pacific Islands Club in San Antonio.
The Saipan Chamber of Commerce is the largest business organization in the CNMI with approximately 150 members.
To date, DHS has released only the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program regulations.
Phillip Mendiola-Long, president of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, said the 180-day delay was the correct decision considering the lack of time available to make “extremely difficult policy decisions.”
“I frankly did not see it possible to implement Public Law 110-229 in the time frame available because DHS had not completed regulations for the CNMI Transitional Worker Program. They had not completed regulations for existing CNMI foreign investor transitions, or created the new foreign investor policy. They had not established regulations for immediate relatives, and they had not established regulations regarding prevailing wage rates,” Mendiola-Long said.
He said it would not have been prudent for DHS to create regulations in haste just to meet a deadline.
Mendiola-Long said the Tinian Chamber of Commerce appreciates the extension and intends to work closely, as equal stakeholders, with DHS/U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the next 180 days “to ensure that policy and regulations promulgated will not bring extreme hardship on the people of the CNMI.”
“One of the main objectives of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce is to ensure that future policy and regulations drafted will address issues affecting all the islands, not just Saipan,” he added.
Mendiola-Long is also executive vice president of Bridge Investment Group-CNMI, which is building a $40 million to $50 million casino and condominiums project on Tinian. The company halted construction at the site because of federalization.
Impact study on Rota
Diego M. Songao, chairman of the Rota Casino Gaming Commission, said the delay will provide an opportunity for the federal government to conduct an impact study, at least on the island of Rota as it tries to develop its casino industry.
Just like Tinian, Rota's casino industry targets mostly Chinese tourists who, along with Russians, will not be exempt from the U.S. visa requirement.
“It will also give them time to put security measures in place to see if the CNMI-Guam visa waiver.may continue to include Chinese and Russians,” Songao told Saipan Tribune.
Rabby Syed, president of the United Workers Movement NMI, is thankful for the federalization delay, and to Delegate Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan for raising with DHS the issue of immediate relatives of Freely Associated States.
“We also like Mr. Sablan to raise other issues like those parents of U.S. citizen children with disabilities, long-term guest workers with U.S.-born children, and to give immigration status to guest workers with unpaid wages so they can stay here until they get their wages,” he said.
Businessman Juan T. Guerrero, a former president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, said businesses are thankful for the delay which he said will give them more time to make more appropriate planning.
“The delay will allow us more appropriate time to review them and come up with a solid decision to operate businesses,” he said, adding that the regulations will restrict hiring of non-professional foreign workers.
But Guerrero, president of Herman's Modern Bakery, said professional categories do not include bakers, unless employers pay them the federal wage rates.
“They can qualify but it means you have to be paying U.S. standard rates and you're looking at maybe $30,000 a year. How many employees earning $30,000 can we hire at Herman's Bakery?” he added.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
Schorr: Investor, worker rules out in 1 to 2 months
By Haidee V. Eugenio
Reporter
Major business and workers groups are relieved that the start of transition to federal immigration is delayed by 180 days, but they want the U.S. Department of Homeland Security to soon publish the CNMI-only transitional worker and investor regulations.
Jeff Schorr, field representative of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs, yesterday told Saipan Chamber of Commerce members and guests that these two sets of regulations will be out in “another month or two.”
Homeland Security's decision to delay federalization by 180 days-from June 1, 2009 to Nov. 28, 2009-was welcome news for members of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, the Rota Casino Gaming Commission and the United Workers Movement NMI.
Doug Brennan, vice president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, said the delay gives businesses a breathing room to develop a business plan once these regulations are published.
“Our position paper stated that we are in favor of a delay simply because we want all the rules and regulations in front of us before this takes place. It's very difficult to develop a business plan for any of our member businesses when we don't know what the rules are going to be. What we were told was it will be U.S. immigration but there was talk about various exemptions and waivers. We'd like to see these,” Brennan told Saipan Tribune after the Chamber's general membership meeting at the Pacific Islands Club in San Antonio.
The Saipan Chamber of Commerce is the largest business organization in the CNMI with approximately 150 members.
To date, DHS has released only the Guam-CNMI visa waiver program regulations.
Phillip Mendiola-Long, president of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce, said the 180-day delay was the correct decision considering the lack of time available to make “extremely difficult policy decisions.”
“I frankly did not see it possible to implement Public Law 110-229 in the time frame available because DHS had not completed regulations for the CNMI Transitional Worker Program. They had not completed regulations for existing CNMI foreign investor transitions, or created the new foreign investor policy. They had not established regulations for immediate relatives, and they had not established regulations regarding prevailing wage rates,” Mendiola-Long said.
He said it would not have been prudent for DHS to create regulations in haste just to meet a deadline.
Mendiola-Long said the Tinian Chamber of Commerce appreciates the extension and intends to work closely, as equal stakeholders, with DHS/U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services in the next 180 days “to ensure that policy and regulations promulgated will not bring extreme hardship on the people of the CNMI.”
“One of the main objectives of the Tinian Chamber of Commerce is to ensure that future policy and regulations drafted will address issues affecting all the islands, not just Saipan,” he added.
Mendiola-Long is also executive vice president of Bridge Investment Group-CNMI, which is building a $40 million to $50 million casino and condominiums project on Tinian. The company halted construction at the site because of federalization.
Impact study on Rota
Diego M. Songao, chairman of the Rota Casino Gaming Commission, said the delay will provide an opportunity for the federal government to conduct an impact study, at least on the island of Rota as it tries to develop its casino industry.
Just like Tinian, Rota's casino industry targets mostly Chinese tourists who, along with Russians, will not be exempt from the U.S. visa requirement.
“It will also give them time to put security measures in place to see if the CNMI-Guam visa waiver.may continue to include Chinese and Russians,” Songao told Saipan Tribune.
Rabby Syed, president of the United Workers Movement NMI, is thankful for the federalization delay, and to Delegate Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan for raising with DHS the issue of immediate relatives of Freely Associated States.
“We also like Mr. Sablan to raise other issues like those parents of U.S. citizen children with disabilities, long-term guest workers with U.S.-born children, and to give immigration status to guest workers with unpaid wages so they can stay here until they get their wages,” he said.
Businessman Juan T. Guerrero, a former president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, said businesses are thankful for the delay which he said will give them more time to make more appropriate planning.
“The delay will allow us more appropriate time to review them and come up with a solid decision to operate businesses,” he said, adding that the regulations will restrict hiring of non-professional foreign workers.
But Guerrero, president of Herman's Modern Bakery, said professional categories do not include bakers, unless employers pay them the federal wage rates.
“They can qualify but it means you have to be paying U.S. standard rates and you're looking at maybe $30,000 a year. How many employees earning $30,000 can we hire at Herman's Bakery?” he added.
Thursday, April 02, 2009
DHS grants 180-day delay
By Kristi Eaton
Reporter
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano They asked for it and they got it.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday announced the June 1 start date to the federalization law will be delayed by 180 days-the maximum amount allowed by law-until Nov. 28, 2009.
The extension means the CNMI will continue to administer its own immigration system until Nov. 28. The proposed joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, which excludes the emerging Chinese and Russian markets, will also not go into effect until Nov. 28. Guam's own visa program will operate until Nov. 28.
The move comes after Gov. Benigno Fitial, CNMI Rep. Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan, CNMI government officials and agencies, lawmakers, and businesses asked for a delay. Guam Gov. Felix Camacho, Guam Rep. Madeleine Bordallo, and the Guam Legislature also voiced their desire to push back six months the implementation of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act, which extends the U.S. immigration system to the CNMI. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus supported a delay as well.
According to a DHS statement issued yesterday, “Under the CNRA, the Secretary of DHS has the sole authority to delay the June 1, 2009, transition date to U.S. immigration law up to 180 days, after consultation with the secretaries of Labor, Interior and State, the attorney general, and the governor of the CNMI. The Secretary has determined based upon those consultations that it is advisable to exercise that authority fully.”
At a news briefing yesterday, Fitial thanked Napolitano for delaying the enactment of Public Law 110-229.
“I am very grateful to the federal government for acknowledging the serious economic concerns we have raised regarding the implementation of this sweeping new federal immigration law,” the governor said.
DHS Assistant Secretary Richard Barth delivered Napolitano's decision to Bordallo and Sablan yesterday on Capitol Hill.
“As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay,” Sablan said in a statement. “The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough time to do it right.”
Regulations
As the June 1 date neared, many questions over the implementation remained unanswered.
The delay will allow DHS to draft and release the remaining regulations relating to the law, and allow for enough time for the public to comment. The proposed Visa Waiver Program is the only regulation that has been released for public comment, and it has received opposition from many in the CNMI community. The final rule has not been released.
Regulations relating to foreign workers, investors, students and retirees have not yet been released for comment, something that Rep. Diego Benavente, the chairman of the House's Committee on U.S. and Foreign Relations, said has led to a climate of uncertainty in the Commonwealth.
“While everyone realized it will happen at some point, I think people need a little bit more time to understand and prepare for that,” the representative said.
Rep. Sablan said he hopes the delay will allow Homeland Security more time to consider specific populations in the CNMI that will be greatly impacted if the regulations are not carefully written. As it is right now, some legal residents of the Commonwealth who do not have a valid U.S. visa will not be able to re-enter the CNMI if they must leave for a medical emergency or other reason. He asked DHS to create regulations allowing any legal resident to leave and re-enter without the need for a new U.S. visa. Moreover, Sablan is asking DHS to make the visa process more affordable for families with both U.S. citizen and non-U.S. citizen members.
“Visas applications are expensive and they require that families earn at least 125 percent of the federal poverty level,” he noted in the statement, adding that he hopes Napolitano will use her authority to make the process more affordable.
“I am hopeful that now that the new Obama Administration is settling in, we will be able to get down to the nitty-gritty of writing these regulations,” the congressman said. “It's been almost a year since the law was enacted. It's time that we start clearing away all the uncertainty that exists without clear regulations.”
Another reason Sablan asked for a delay is because there has been no money appropriated for border controls. One of the reasons that China and Russia were recently left out of the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver program, Sablan noted, is that DHS believed border security was not adequate at this time.
“But this costs money. And no money has been appropriated by Congress to set up the NMI borders,” he said in February. “So it makes sense for me to work in Congress to get the needed funds for fiscal year 2010 and have DHS complete the buildup of the entry points after Oct. 1, when the fiscal year begins and new money could be available.”
Lawsuit still on
When asked if the extension would have any effect on the lawsuit the CNMI has filed against DHS and U.S. Department of Labor, Fitial said: “I don't think so. I think that this lawsuit has its own place and this extension will provide all the necessary work that needs to be done to improve the implementation and enforcement of the new immigration law.”
The CNMI sued the federal agencies in September to halt the implementation of PL 110-229. A preliminary injunction seeking to stop DHS and DOL from taking over the local labor system was also filed in November. The case currently pending in U.S. District Court
Benavente said he hopes the lawsuit will be cleared so the CNMI can work with the federal agencies over the next several months.
Fitial has not been in communication with DHS about regulations, but Howard Willens, special legal counsel to the governor who is representing the CNMI in the lawsuit, said Commonwealth representatives have taken part in discussions at all levels with Homeland Security.
“There has been open and full discussions between representatives of the Commonwealth and representatives of DHS, in respect to all outstanding issues,” Willens said.
One such representative is Lynn Knight, chairperson for the Commonwealth Economic Development Commission. Knight is currently stationed in Washington D.C. to work on the federalization law and other economic development issues.
“We have had numerous meetings with the Department of Homeland Security over the past two months and they are listening to the CNMI's concerns. They're also reading all of the comments that individuals have taken the time to submit on the DHS website, so it's definitely worth the time and effort to comment,” Knight said in a statement.
Willens said the CNMI anticipated an extension might be granted but it was made clear in the lawsuit's briefs that that does not effect the Commonwealth's entitlement to a preliminary injunction. Each party-the CNMI and the federal government-will probably submit a short statement about the extension, Willens said.
CNMI Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat said the 180-day extension would not impact the department. The department is pleased about the delay, but she said she is optimistic the judge will find in favor of the CNMI's preliminary injunction.
Judge Paul L. Friedman has taken the lawsuit and preliminary injunction under advisement.
Fitial said the CNMI will begin to prepare for the implementation of the federalization law once a decision on the lawsuit and preliminary injunction is announced.
“We will do what we need to do after the result of the lawsuit comes out, because we don't want to be doing something that we may not have to do after all,” he said, adding that the judge is aware of the deadline and should make a decision soon.
No benefit
Some people said they believe the delay is simply postponing the inevitable, with no noticeable benefit to be gained.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” said Taotao Tano president Gregorio Cruz Jr. “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it's just aggravating the situation.”
A delay wasn't expected, Wendy Doromal said in an e-mail, but unfortunately, the federal government was not ready.
Doromal, a human rights advocate who has been outspoken about her support for the law, said she was hoping the extension would not be granted.
“My concern is that a delay will allow more time for the anti-federalization administration to scheme and manipulate at the expense of the foreign contract workers who will continue to be under the dysfunctional local labor system,” she said. “Perhaps a delay will give us more time to convince Congress to grant the foreign contract workers and foreign parents of U.S. citizen children a pathway to citizenship. That's what I will continue to work on.”
Money and jobs
The extension means more money coming in and more money going out for the CNMI government, which will affect both the Fiscal Year 2009 and Fiscal Year 2010 budgets.
Six more months of the Russia and China markets could mean more than $100 million coming into the CNMI, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority. Nonresident worker fees will also becoming in for six more months, an additional $2.5 to $3 million in revenue to the CNMI.
But both fiscal year budgets did not include appropriations for the local immigration division. The FY 2009 budget stops appropriating money to the agency on May 31, the day before the law was to go into effect and federal employees were to take over. The FY 2010 budget proposal, which the administration was preparing to turn into the Legislature yesterday, did not include funding for the local immigration division or include the revenue that could be seen from six more months of visa-free travel.
Fitial said the administration is making provisions to the budget.
CNMI Immigration director Melvin Grey yesterday said it is business as usual in the division. Sixty-one employees will be able to keep their jobs for another six months, but “we'll have to face it again in six months.”
DHS grants 180-day delay
By Kristi Eaton
Reporter
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano They asked for it and they got it.
Department of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano yesterday announced the June 1 start date to the federalization law will be delayed by 180 days-the maximum amount allowed by law-until Nov. 28, 2009.
The extension means the CNMI will continue to administer its own immigration system until Nov. 28. The proposed joint Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver Program, which excludes the emerging Chinese and Russian markets, will also not go into effect until Nov. 28. Guam's own visa program will operate until Nov. 28.
The move comes after Gov. Benigno Fitial, CNMI Rep. Gregorio “Kilili” Sablan, CNMI government officials and agencies, lawmakers, and businesses asked for a delay. Guam Gov. Felix Camacho, Guam Rep. Madeleine Bordallo, and the Guam Legislature also voiced their desire to push back six months the implementation of the Consolidated Natural Resources Act, which extends the U.S. immigration system to the CNMI. The Congressional Hispanic Caucus supported a delay as well.
According to a DHS statement issued yesterday, “Under the CNRA, the Secretary of DHS has the sole authority to delay the June 1, 2009, transition date to U.S. immigration law up to 180 days, after consultation with the secretaries of Labor, Interior and State, the attorney general, and the governor of the CNMI. The Secretary has determined based upon those consultations that it is advisable to exercise that authority fully.”
At a news briefing yesterday, Fitial thanked Napolitano for delaying the enactment of Public Law 110-229.
“I am very grateful to the federal government for acknowledging the serious economic concerns we have raised regarding the implementation of this sweeping new federal immigration law,” the governor said.
DHS Assistant Secretary Richard Barth delivered Napolitano's decision to Bordallo and Sablan yesterday on Capitol Hill.
“As I have said before, this is not delay for the sake of delay,” Sablan said in a statement. “The reason to push back the date is so that the Department of Homeland Security has enough time to do it right.”
Regulations
As the June 1 date neared, many questions over the implementation remained unanswered.
The delay will allow DHS to draft and release the remaining regulations relating to the law, and allow for enough time for the public to comment. The proposed Visa Waiver Program is the only regulation that has been released for public comment, and it has received opposition from many in the CNMI community. The final rule has not been released.
Regulations relating to foreign workers, investors, students and retirees have not yet been released for comment, something that Rep. Diego Benavente, the chairman of the House's Committee on U.S. and Foreign Relations, said has led to a climate of uncertainty in the Commonwealth.
“While everyone realized it will happen at some point, I think people need a little bit more time to understand and prepare for that,” the representative said.
Rep. Sablan said he hopes the delay will allow Homeland Security more time to consider specific populations in the CNMI that will be greatly impacted if the regulations are not carefully written. As it is right now, some legal residents of the Commonwealth who do not have a valid U.S. visa will not be able to re-enter the CNMI if they must leave for a medical emergency or other reason. He asked DHS to create regulations allowing any legal resident to leave and re-enter without the need for a new U.S. visa. Moreover, Sablan is asking DHS to make the visa process more affordable for families with both U.S. citizen and non-U.S. citizen members.
“Visas applications are expensive and they require that families earn at least 125 percent of the federal poverty level,” he noted in the statement, adding that he hopes Napolitano will use her authority to make the process more affordable.
“I am hopeful that now that the new Obama Administration is settling in, we will be able to get down to the nitty-gritty of writing these regulations,” the congressman said. “It's been almost a year since the law was enacted. It's time that we start clearing away all the uncertainty that exists without clear regulations.”
Another reason Sablan asked for a delay is because there has been no money appropriated for border controls. One of the reasons that China and Russia were recently left out of the Guam-CNMI Visa Waiver program, Sablan noted, is that DHS believed border security was not adequate at this time.
“But this costs money. And no money has been appropriated by Congress to set up the NMI borders,” he said in February. “So it makes sense for me to work in Congress to get the needed funds for fiscal year 2010 and have DHS complete the buildup of the entry points after Oct. 1, when the fiscal year begins and new money could be available.”
Lawsuit still on
When asked if the extension would have any effect on the lawsuit the CNMI has filed against DHS and U.S. Department of Labor, Fitial said: “I don't think so. I think that this lawsuit has its own place and this extension will provide all the necessary work that needs to be done to improve the implementation and enforcement of the new immigration law.”
The CNMI sued the federal agencies in September to halt the implementation of PL 110-229. A preliminary injunction seeking to stop DHS and DOL from taking over the local labor system was also filed in November. The case currently pending in U.S. District Court
Benavente said he hopes the lawsuit will be cleared so the CNMI can work with the federal agencies over the next several months.
Fitial has not been in communication with DHS about regulations, but Howard Willens, special legal counsel to the governor who is representing the CNMI in the lawsuit, said Commonwealth representatives have taken part in discussions at all levels with Homeland Security.
“There has been open and full discussions between representatives of the Commonwealth and representatives of DHS, in respect to all outstanding issues,” Willens said.
One such representative is Lynn Knight, chairperson for the Commonwealth Economic Development Commission. Knight is currently stationed in Washington D.C. to work on the federalization law and other economic development issues.
“We have had numerous meetings with the Department of Homeland Security over the past two months and they are listening to the CNMI's concerns. They're also reading all of the comments that individuals have taken the time to submit on the DHS website, so it's definitely worth the time and effort to comment,” Knight said in a statement.
Willens said the CNMI anticipated an extension might be granted but it was made clear in the lawsuit's briefs that that does not effect the Commonwealth's entitlement to a preliminary injunction. Each party-the CNMI and the federal government-will probably submit a short statement about the extension, Willens said.
CNMI Labor deputy secretary Cinta Kaipat said the 180-day extension would not impact the department. The department is pleased about the delay, but she said she is optimistic the judge will find in favor of the CNMI's preliminary injunction.
Judge Paul L. Friedman has taken the lawsuit and preliminary injunction under advisement.
Fitial said the CNMI will begin to prepare for the implementation of the federalization law once a decision on the lawsuit and preliminary injunction is announced.
“We will do what we need to do after the result of the lawsuit comes out, because we don't want to be doing something that we may not have to do after all,” he said, adding that the judge is aware of the deadline and should make a decision soon.
No benefit
Some people said they believe the delay is simply postponing the inevitable, with no noticeable benefit to be gained.
“In our view it makes no difference come November, everyone will be right back on the same situation,” said Taotao Tano president Gregorio Cruz Jr. “We continue to address that the entire federal immigration takeover is of national defense but everyone seems to ignore this issue. We are interested in seeing what will happen after the six months. In our view it's just aggravating the situation.”
A delay wasn't expected, Wendy Doromal said in an e-mail, but unfortunately, the federal government was not ready.
Doromal, a human rights advocate who has been outspoken about her support for the law, said she was hoping the extension would not be granted.
“My concern is that a delay will allow more time for the anti-federalization administration to scheme and manipulate at the expense of the foreign contract workers who will continue to be under the dysfunctional local labor system,” she said. “Perhaps a delay will give us more time to convince Congress to grant the foreign contract workers and foreign parents of U.S. citizen children a pathway to citizenship. That's what I will continue to work on.”
Money and jobs
The extension means more money coming in and more money going out for the CNMI government, which will affect both the Fiscal Year 2009 and Fiscal Year 2010 budgets.
Six more months of the Russia and China markets could mean more than $100 million coming into the CNMI, according to the Marianas Visitors Authority. Nonresident worker fees will also becoming in for six more months, an additional $2.5 to $3 million in revenue to the CNMI.
But both fiscal year budgets did not include appropriations for the local immigration division. The FY 2009 budget stops appropriating money to the agency on May 31, the day before the law was to go into effect and federal employees were to take over. The FY 2010 budget proposal, which the administration was preparing to turn into the Legislature yesterday, did not include funding for the local immigration division or include the revenue that could be seen from six more months of visa-free travel.
Fitial said the administration is making provisions to the budget.
CNMI Immigration director Melvin Grey yesterday said it is business as usual in the division. Sixty-one employees will be able to keep their jobs for another six months, but “we'll have to face it again in six months.”
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Local
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
FOR FAILING TO KEEP RECORDS
Labor bars corp. from hiring foreign workers
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
The Department of Labor has ordered the permanent disqualification of a corporation from hiring alien workers for not keeping records of hours and wages and unlawfully charging fees from its masseuse.
Labor hearing officer Herbert D. Soll said that Yan Li Corp. and its general manager, Luan Lifen, are permanently barred from employing nonresident workers in the CNMI.
“No reconsideration of this sanction should be entertained until a substantial satisfaction of the award is made,” Soll said.
Yan Li Corp. and Lifen were found jointly liable to pay masseuse Li Min $4,094.40 in unpaid wages and unlawfully charged fees.
The hearing officer authorized Min to seek recovery from the bonding company if Yan Li Corp. and Lifen do not pay the award.
Soll did not issue a transfer order since Min already has an immediate relative status after marrying James Macklin, a U.S. citizen.
“In weighing the evidence presented, I conclude that [Min] was truthful and convincing in her testimony,” Soll said.
According to Labor records, Min was a nonresident worker when she filed a Labor complaint against Yan Li Corp. and Lifen.
Min worked in the garment industry for a period of years. She then transferred to the employment of Yan Li Corp. in April 2007. She was to work as a masseuse in Yan Li Corp.'s beauty parlor.
The corporation's business was entirely operated and controlled by Luan Lifen. The corporation exists as an entity in the Commonwealth, but it does not appear that any of the designated officers participate in the decision-making or in the operation or its activities.
Neither the corporation or its general manager, Lifen, kept required records of hours and wages for the work performed by Min.
In contrast, Min kept a reasonable account of the time that she worked and the money that she received.
Soll said that Min's account of the dates and hours worked supports a finding of wages owed in the net amount of $2,894.40.
Min testified that she was asked to pay $1,200 in order to have her application processed in 2007.
Soll said he finds the complainant's testimony with respect to the application fee correct and that the respondents must reimburse her for that amount in addition to wages owed
Wednesday, March 18, 2009
FOR FAILING TO KEEP RECORDS
Labor bars corp. from hiring foreign workers
By Ferdie de la Torre
Reporter
The Department of Labor has ordered the permanent disqualification of a corporation from hiring alien workers for not keeping records of hours and wages and unlawfully charging fees from its masseuse.
Labor hearing officer Herbert D. Soll said that Yan Li Corp. and its general manager, Luan Lifen, are permanently barred from employing nonresident workers in the CNMI.
“No reconsideration of this sanction should be entertained until a substantial satisfaction of the award is made,” Soll said.
Yan Li Corp. and Lifen were found jointly liable to pay masseuse Li Min $4,094.40 in unpaid wages and unlawfully charged fees.
The hearing officer authorized Min to seek recovery from the bonding company if Yan Li Corp. and Lifen do not pay the award.
Soll did not issue a transfer order since Min already has an immediate relative status after marrying James Macklin, a U.S. citizen.
“In weighing the evidence presented, I conclude that [Min] was truthful and convincing in her testimony,” Soll said.
According to Labor records, Min was a nonresident worker when she filed a Labor complaint against Yan Li Corp. and Lifen.
Min worked in the garment industry for a period of years. She then transferred to the employment of Yan Li Corp. in April 2007. She was to work as a masseuse in Yan Li Corp.'s beauty parlor.
The corporation's business was entirely operated and controlled by Luan Lifen. The corporation exists as an entity in the Commonwealth, but it does not appear that any of the designated officers participate in the decision-making or in the operation or its activities.
Neither the corporation or its general manager, Lifen, kept required records of hours and wages for the work performed by Min.
In contrast, Min kept a reasonable account of the time that she worked and the money that she received.
Soll said that Min's account of the dates and hours worked supports a finding of wages owed in the net amount of $2,894.40.
Min testified that she was asked to pay $1,200 in order to have her application processed in 2007.
Soll said he finds the complainant's testimony with respect to the application fee correct and that the respondents must reimburse her for that amount in addition to wages owed
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