Garment makers to leave if takeover succeeds

Major garment manufacturers yesterday sought to disprove allegations leveled by federal government against the sector in a meeting with Edward B. Cohen, President Clinton’s special representative to bilateral talks aimed to mend differences between Washington and CNMI.

Members of Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association, which groups the island’s largest factories, presented their position on a White House proposal that will strip local authority over its immigration and minimum wage laws.

The closed-door meeting was the first in a series of discussion with representatives of the local private sector on the sideline of the four-day consultation talks provided under Section 902 of the Covenant that only resumed yesterday following the last talks in 1992.

SGMA held the informal discussion on wide range of topics, including a newly completed code of conduct for its members, a provision in the Covenant allowing a duty-free and quota-free privilege extended to CNMI exports to the U.S. mainland as well as the minimum wage issue.

A source privy to the discussion said garment leaders also raised the possibility of garment manufacturing firms to move out of Saipan if Washington pushes its federal takeover plan which will limit entry of foreign manpower and increase minimum wage at par with the mainland level.

“They explained how the garment industry has played a crucial role in maintaining a self-sustaining economy in the CNMI,” he said in an interview after the two-hour meeting at the Hyatt.

SGMA chair James Lin also warned of potential relocation to other attractive investment sites such as in Asia and Latin American countries, a move that may cripple the island economy that has already been battered due to slowdown of the tourism industry, NMI’s main source of income.

Lin or any SGMA representative could not be reached for comment about the meeting.

But an official said representatives from the U.S. Department of Labor appeared warm on the code of conduct which SGMA is scheduled to implement within the next few weeks as part of the in-house efforts to clean up the industry.

“The officials admitted that the code of conduct will help address those issues and concerns regarding protection of foreign workers employed in the sector,” he pointed out.

Cohen, however, did not raise any point during the meeting, added the official who described the meeting as “very cordial and an open exchange of views” on various issues.

After the meeting, Cohen and his delegation toured some garment factories on Saipan accompanied by some SGMA officials.

The special representative, who arrived late Monday, is holding talks with the CNMI 902 team headed by Lt. Gov. Jesus R. Sablan that aims to iron out differences straining bilateral relations in recent years.