‘Permanent foreign worker program, 16K CW cap pushed’

Even with the CW program’s extension up to 2019, coupled with hiring all unemployed U.S. citizens on the islands and hiring from other Micronesian islands and the U.S. mainland, the CNMI economy will still need some 5,000 additional workers by 2021, said the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, which is now seeking a permanent foreign worker program and an amendment to the immigration federalization law to raise—rather than lower—the CW cap from the current 14,000 to 16,000, among other things.

Alex Sablan, president of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, announced at the general membership meeting yesterday that the business organization is now seeking Gov. Eloy S. Inos and Delegate Gregorio Kilili C. Sablan’s (Ind-MP) help in convincing U.S. Congress and the U.S. Department of Labor not to reduce the current CW cap of 14,000 and instead increase it to 16,000.

“If the CNMI government policy is to grow the economy, it needs to grow labor,” Sablan told Chamber members and guests at the Kanoa Resort in Chalan Kanoa.

At the same time, the Chamber of Commerce is requesting the governor to commission a study that would determine the CNMI’s workforce needs.

The governor, in turn, would like the Chamber of Commerce to prepare a proposal for a technical assistance grant from the U.S. Department of Labor and the Department of Homeland Security to be able to get the workforce numbers. Sablan and other Chamber officials met with the governor and other stakeholders last week.

Sablan said the Chamber, for example, does not believe that the 2010 Census data stating that there are 2,800 jobless U.S. workers is still accurate. He said increased economic activity has since decreased the 2010 unemployment data.

He said a study would justify the need for additional rather than decreased workers in the CNMI, particularly foreign workers, to supplement the U.S. workforce.

In a later interview, Sablan said whether the CNMI needs 14,000 or 16,000, “whatever the number is, we are going to need a CW program in the Commonwealth or something like it.”

“We cannot work under an H visa program because we are not a seasonal tourist market,” he told Saipan Tribune.

He said the CNMI already has a CW program that is CNRA-based and is specific to the Commonwealth so extending it in “perpetuity” rather than only until 2019 will meet the CNMI’s needs if it wants to continue to grow its economy.

“Is it going to be 14,000 or 16,000? I don’t think so but I believe there needs to be something,” he added.

Sablan, in his presentation before the Chamber membership, said there are over 17,000 foreign and U.S. workers in the private sector and some 4,200 in government. He said there won’t be enough U.S. workers to replace over 11,000 foreign workers and given the growing economy, more workers will be needed.

“Based on the numbers we project, based on hotel rooms coming online, airlines coming in, ancillary businesses, we are going to need an additional 5,000 employees,” he later said.

Sablan said the CNMI can bring in as much Micronesian workers as possible, which was what Guam did in the mid-’90s to fulfill its workforce needs.

“But once we exhausted that, and bring those from the U.S. mainland, we still have to look for foreign workers. What the exact number is, I don’t know [but] that’s why we’re asking the governor to commission a report. Look at the dynamics, look at the projections,” he added.

The governor, in his State of the Commonwealth Address on Monday, said that CNMI tourism is seeing a significant rebound with more tourist arrivals peaking at figures the CNMI has not seen for several years.

Inos said if the CNMI were to capitalize on the increased demand, the CNMI must increase room capacity and proactively encourage investment in the Commonwealth. All these will require more workers.