Higher salaries for architects, engineers sought

A lawmaker is pushing for higher salaries for government architects and engineers in a bid to lure qualified residents to apply for these positions.

The proposal by Rep. Justo S. Quitugua comes on the heels of the CNMI government’s decision to stop the Department of Public Works from employing nonresident architects and engineers effective Sept. 30, 2006.

According to Quitugua, the Legislature should act fast to prevent government infrastructure projects from being hampered. A feasible solution, he said, is to get CNMI citizens who have education in architectural and engineering degrees to come and work in the Commonwealth.

“The most common reason cited by students for not returning home are the low wages being offered in the Commonwealth. Students have explained that they need to be compensated accordingly in order to earn a living and to repay debts incurred while attending school,” the lawmaker said.

“In order to attract and retain professional architects and engineers to manage and maintain our power generation facilities, and to design our roads, schools, and other civic projects, the government must offer salaries that are comparable or competitive with Guam and the United States,” he added.

He is proposing a salary scale that starts from $45,000 and goes up to $85,000 a year.

Quitugua further argued that residents deserve bigger salaries than their foreign counterparts because they are covered by stricter licensing requirements.

“Up until Sept. 30, 2006, the DPW has employed nonresident workers in these positions based not on certification by the Board of Professional Licensing, but on the licensing requirements of the nonresident workers’ country of origin and professional qualification and experience standards established by the DPW and the Office of Personnel Management,” he said.

The Board of Professional Licensing requires that, to be licensed in the Commonwealth, an engineer must have a bachelor’s degree from a university accredited by the Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology or the Canadian Engineering Accreditation Board; have passed the Fundamentals of Engineering Examination, and have four years of full-time lawful engineering experience, among other things.

Nonresident workers have the employment advantage because they do not have to meet these requirements, Quitugua said.