Local ST-Saturday, November 10, 2007
By Agnes E. DonatoReporter
The comprehensive labor reform bill became law yesterday, replacing legislation that had governed nonresident hiring for the past 24 years.Gov. Benigno R. Fitial signed the controversial bill after meeting with representatives of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce and Hotel Association of the Northern Mariana Islands, which had previously opposed the proposal.Of particular concern to the private sector have been provisions that require foreign workers to exit the CNMI periodically, maintain the Moratorium Law, raise the minimum percentage of local workers in private firms, and eliminate job transfers.“I am pleased to say that the private sector has agreed to work with us on the new law as passed by the Legislature and is willing to work on as smooth a transition as possible,” Fitial said. “I am ready to work with businesses in trying to make it easy for them to comply with the new labor law.”HANMI chairwoman Lynn A. Knight noted that the meeting was positive, although the business community had wanted more changes-which it did not ultimately get.“Both HANMI and the Chamber representatives acknowledged that we had wanted more time to make additional changes to the bill. But since it did pass, we felt that it was time to move on as best we can. Our economy is very fragile, and this is all the more reason that we must build bridges between the private sector and the government,” said Knight. “We requested an opportunity to work on the regulations as they are introduced in the coming weeks and offered some suggestions for how to tackle this in a practical manner as we go forward,” she added.The Commonwealth Employment Act of 2007 will take effect on Jan. 1, 2008. In the meantime, the administration will be working on rules and regulations to implement the new law. Fitial expects the regulations to be ready for promulgation in one week. The public will be given 30 days to comment on the regulations prior to adoption.Driving forceIn signing the 64-page bill, the governor gave credit to three women who served as a driving force behind the legislation: Rep. Jacinta Kaipat, Sen. Maria Pangelinan, and the governor's legal counsel, Deanne Siemer.Kaipat, who sponsored the bill in the House of Representatives, said the bill's enactment was “historic,” given that the previous alien labor law had been around since 1983.She also noted the long road toward the bill's enactment. The original bill was introduced by Rep. Ray N. Yumul in the 14th Legislature over two years ago.“This bill will fix the broken part of the system. That's all we want to do,” she said.Pangelinan acknowledged the bill's polarizing effect on the community, and expressed hope that the benefits of the measure would reveal themselves in time.“Despite all of the controversy, I believe history will be the arbiter of this. I look to the future with confidence and hope,” she said.Siemer said she was just proud to be associated with Kaipat and Pangelinan.ProvisionsOne of the major provisions of the new labor law increases workforce participation by U.S. citizens and permanent residents. Within five years, the number of locals in each company must be at least 30 percent of all employees. The previous minimum was 20 percent.The new law prohibits foreign national workers from transferring jobs at any time before or after contract expiration. The only time an alien worker may transfer is when a Labor hearing officer allows it by administrative order. This means that, in order to move to a new employer, an alien worker must first file a complaint and prove to the Department of Labor that her rights have been violated by the former employer.Furthermore, the new law provides an exit requirement. Nonresidents must leave the CNMI for six months during every three-and-a-half year period.The exit requirement may be spread across the three years after Jan. 1, 2008 at the convenience of employers and employees.Fitial said the exit requirement is designed “to prevent the aliens from making the CNMI their home and making them eligible for permanent resident status [under future federal immigration law].”
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TAOTAO TANO HAD SPOKEN
- A direct impediment to the human right to self-determination
- 12808 st - Taotao Tano rebuts Pete A. in interview with KSPN 2 News
- TAOTAO TANO CNMI sents letters to the community
- 011608 st - SEND THEM HOME
- 011608 mv - Guest worker faces deportation
- 011608 mv - TAOTAO TANO SLAMS FEDERAL LABOR OMBUDSMAN
- 121407 mv - Trampled by foreigners
- 121407 mv - The despair of the indigenous people
- 121407 st - Familiarity breeds contempt
- 121407 st - 'Be selective on who to bring in'
- 121407 st - This land belongs to the indigenous
- 121407 st - To the people of Precinct 1
- 121407 mv - Think again
UPDATES by links
- 020808 mv - Fitial ready to testify in DC vs federalization, wage hike
- 020108 mv - US Senate panel OKs federalization bill
- HOUSE APPROVED 3079
- 121407 mv -Fitial says feds applying ‘socialism’ to NMI
- 120707 mv - Bingaman answers Fitial
- 120307 mv - US House may vote on NMI federalization
- 110607 mv - Cohen: Fitial administration ‘misinterpreted’ nonimmigrant provision
- 110207 mv -Guest workers brace for final version of federalization bill
- 110207 mv -Gov’t to recalculate numbers of migrants before year ends
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Labor reform bill now law
at 6:49:00 AM Posted by TAOTAO TANO CNMI
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OUR FALLEN HEROES
SAME THING WILL HAPPEN HERE - JUST CHANGE THE NUMBERS
JUST CHANGE THE NUMBERS TO CNMI NUMBERS AND
THE COHEN PLAN WILL HARM THE CNMI IN THE SAME WAY
CURRENT IMMIGRATION POLICIES WILL DAMAGE THE USA.
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