Uniform wages eyed for municipal workers
A House panel is seeking public comments on two separate wage bills that would affect private sector and municipal government employees.
The House Committee on Ways and Means conducted a public hearing on House Bills 15-45 and 15-166 on Rota last Thursday, Oct. 12, 2006.
Similar public hearings are scheduled to be held at 5:30pm today at the Tinian Superior Court, and at 5:30pm at the CNMI House of Representatives on Capitol Hill, Saipan this Thursday, Oct. 19, 2006.
H.B. 15-45 seeks to mandate a uniform wage and salary schedule for the personnel of municipal governments. According to the bill, the current lack of a standard wage structure in the municipalities has led to a practice of inconsistent salaries being paid for similar job categories.
H.B. 15-166 proposes to raise the minimum wage and to eliminate certain statutory requirements imposed on private employers.
Minimum wage in the Commonwealth is currently at $3.05 per hour, much lower than the federal wage rate of $5.15 per hour.
