TTCAI / FEDERALIZATION ISSUE'S: Benedetto: New labor law will have damaging effect

UPDATE FROM TAOTAO TANO

Wednesday, 27 May 2009

Marianas Variety Editorial

A Brief History on the Federalization Threats

A DECADE ago during the Teno administration, the following disaster led to the current predicament we all face today. A true sign of failure, ignorance and self-interest hidden political agendas and was the sole basis and reason why the local control of immigration and labor was recently stripped by the U.S. Congress.

The elected leaders, lawmakers and business community who had been involved with today’s disaster are still sitting in office, some seeking re-election. We say STEP DOWN and retire immediately before you bring further destruction to our homeland.

Feb. 22, 1999: Senate President Paul Manglona and Speaker Diego Benavente flew to Washington D.C. to join Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio to thwart off fresh attempts by the Clinton administration, seeking a federal take-over of the CNMI immigration and labor local control.

According to Senate President Manglona back then, the meeting with key congressional members and staffers was an opportunity for island leaders to provide report on the tight financial situation of the government as well as various reforms implemented by the Teno administration in the past year. Our government came under fire anew two months prior over the alleged failure of our local government to curb number of Asian migrant workers on the island (non-resident guest workers); charges repeatedly refuted by CNMI officials with reports of accomplishments of labor and immigration reforms.

A quote to a reporter by Speaker Benavente: “We always felt that we do not have a serious situation here and it’s always easier, I feel, for anyone to understand that when they come here and see for themselves,” (meaning the U.S. Congress).

TAOTAO TANO states the following; does the current predicaments we face today a result of not having a serious problem? Our indigenous local U.S. citizens who were host to thousands of non-resident guest workers had remained unemployed and untrained to take on those positions that required special skills. Why? Our people had been disrespected and insulted by foreign non-resident guest workers demanding citizenship in our homeland, why? Mayhem and uncertainties now taking place. Did our leaders then do anything to prevent such predicaments? Keep reading and you shall find out.

May 3, 1999: After meeting with key members of U.S. Congress in Washington, D.C. the CNMI Legislature hoped to continue reform measures to deal with concerns on local labor and immigration in an attempt to block a federal takeover proposal.

Sept. 15, 1999: Senate President Manglona, and Speaker of Benavente along with Governor Teno Testified on S. 1052 in Washington, opposition the application of federal immigration law to the Northern Marianas. Our leaders warned that such a legislation would have adverse impact on the CNMI economy, further stating that S. 1052 was not the vehicle that would further the interest of the commonwealth. Governor Teno led the CNMI delegation comprised of administration officials, members of the Legislature and representatives from the business sector — the Saipan Chamber of Commerce and HANMI.

TAOTAO TANO states that our leaders are still using the same excuse, the ECONOMY! The real question is did they do anything to correct the labor and immigration problems? Did any of our leaders do anything to better prepare the CNMI with alternate industries in case of a federal takeover?

Keep reading — the truth is getting closer and interesting.

Remember, today the same leaders who were opposed to such federal take-over of our immigration and labor are now in full support, to include the Speaker Benavente, now the chair of the House Foreign and Federal Relations Committee.

Full support, for they failed the CNMI tremendously.

Feb. 8, 2000: Our elected leaders stepped up campaigns opposing automatic federal takeover of our labor and immigration control. U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee chaired by then Frank H. Murkowski, R-Alaska, and two other ranking Democrat members, a bipartisan bill that sought automatic implementation of the U.S. Immigration and Nationality Act in the commonwealth for serious concerns on the alleged failure of our government to curb the INFLUX of migrant workers from Asian countries as well as impact of such policy on employment opportunities for LOCAL U.S. residents. An opportunity which led to prioritizing foreign guest workers in our homeland instead of U.S local residents.

Lobbying then was Speaker Benigno Fitial and the Teno administration in opposition to federal takeover. Also in full support of opposing a takeover was then Senate Floor Leader Pete P. Reyes.

Feb. 9 2000: Passage of takeover bill in U.S. Senate “A Wake Up Call,” says Saipan Chamber of Commerce president Lynn Knight.

Feb. 15, 2000: TAOTAO TANO states, that while an impending federal takeover bill was headed to the U.S. House our elected leaders along with the business community came up with their version of how to fix our labor and immigration.

They repealed Public Law 11-69, the three-year stay limit for all nonresident workers in the CNMI — 30,000 nonresidents back then to be exact, holding more than 90 percent of the jobs in the private sector. Rep. Diego T. Benavente was confident then that the legislative branch would move swiftly to amend Public Law 11-69.

Feb. 2001-April 2001: A campaign both elected leaders and the business community ensued to repeal Public Law 11-69 the three-year stay limit for all guest workers.

Those heavily involved in such a disastrous move were Speaker Fitial, Sens. Pete Reyes, Paul Manglona, Ricardo Atalig, Edward Maratita, David Cing, Rep. Diego Benavente and then-Saipan Chamber of Commerce president Anthony Pellegrino, who now operates the TRADES School educating and training our local U.S. residents.

TAOTAO TANO states could it be that he felt GUILTY for leading our people to their own detriment by aggressively fully supporting repealing Public Law 11-69 to appease 30,000 nonresident workers?

Also supporting the repeal of the stay limit we’re Lynn Knight, Tan Holdings executive representing the CNMI in D.C. as authorized by Governor Fitial and not by the will of the people of the commonwealth, and then HANMI president Ronald Sablan, now in charge of medical referrals.

END RESULT:

July 4, 2001: Governor Teno gave a significant pre-Liberation Day present to 30,000 non-resident guest workers plus continued recruitments ultimately flooding our gates with foreign workers in the commonwealth by suspending Public Law 11-69 in its entirety.

TAOTAO TANO states that instead of correcting the alleged INFLUX of nonresident workers in our homeland, a serious concern with U.S. congressional members, the individuals involved had sought making our own U.S. local residents JOBLESS and a MINORITY in their own homeland, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands.

Since then our immigration and labor control has gotten worst. Major problems with human smuggling, human exploitation, labor abuse, sham marriages, illegal document processing and so forth were rampant. But again, TAOTAO TANO still maintains that it is beyond comparison to that of third world tortures and atrocities. Still, this is a huge failure on the part of our leaders for not rectifying a long problematic immigration and labor local control and prioritizing the need for foreign labor.

To all of you my fellow voters, I ask that you seek deep in your heart and think hard this upcoming election and let us not make the same mistakes over and over again. We must change these veteran elected officials who have led us to such uncertainties and mayhem and make that change this coming November once and for all in order to fix what is broken. Vote those that are willing to take on the challenge for Change, for the betterment of our people, our community and our homeland as a whole in the pursuit of a higher standard of living as intended in the spirit of our Covenant with the United States.

GREGORIO CRUZ JR.
Taotao Tano

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Benedetto: New labor law will have damaging effect

Local ST-Sunday, November 11, 2007 By Ferdie de la TorreReporter

Federal Ombudsman Jim Benedetto yesterday expressed concern over some sections in the new labor reform law that, according to him, will have damaging effects on alien workers.In an interview with Saipan Tribune, Benedetto said he is disappointed that the Legislature disagreed with him on some of his concerns relating to the bill but he emphasized that he respects the legislators' decision to do what they think is best.“And now the process from here will be.I intend to work with the Department of Labor and the government lawyers on minimizing the damage that I see some portions of the bill will inflict on alien workers,” he said.Gov. Benigno Fitial signed the controversial bill on Friday after meeting with representatives of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands.Of the particular concern to Chamber and HANMI are the provisions in the bill that require foreign workers to exit the CNMI periodically, maintain the Moratorium Law, raise the minimum percentage of local workers in private forms, and eliminate job transfers.On the transfer issue, Benedetto said it was the Legislature that created the right to transfer at the end of a worker's contract and the right to consensually transfer, so the lawmakers can take that right away. “There is nothing unconstitutional about it, about the Legislature taking those type of transfers away. And that is something that I don't believe you are allowed to do in the U.S. system either,” he said.However, Benedetto said the administrative hearing transfer should have had more legal support. “If you don't allow somebody to transfer to an honest employer after they've identified proof of the violation with the employer that they have, it might be a violation of the Constitution or your right to contract,” he said.“We want people to be able to get the benefit of their contract. .If you've proven that your employers are not paying you or they are violating your rights in some way, there has to be some mechanisms for that worker to be able to go to another job where they will get paid and whether their rights would be respected,” he added.The Labor ombudsman said he feels that the types of violations identified under the new law are “maybe a bit too restrictive.”Benedetto said he would like to see more types of violations where the hearing office has the freedom to grant transfers because a worker's rights were violated and the worker should get the benefit of the contract and his or her stay in the CNMI.Benedetto said it is good to keep talking about the issue because there are still differences in the interpretation of some of the law's provisions, as shown by Rep. Cinta Kaipat when she wrote her open letter to him.For instance, Kaipat had cited that she did not intend for people whose contract has expired or has not yet been approved to be excluded from the law.“If the person who wrote the bill says that but the bill says something else or even if the bill is kind of ambiguous and we're not clear about what it is saying, maybe that's a good reason to take another look at it and clarify the intent,” Benedetto said.He underscored the need for everybody to understand what's in the law so it can be enforced clearly and efficiently.“Because if the legislators and the lawyers don't understand what's in the law, how can you expect the people at Labor that enforce the law to know what's in the law or the employers to know what's in the law?” he asked.