By Haidee V. Eugenio
Variety Assistant Editor

A lack of record keeping and a failure to pay complete wages and overtime between 2001 and 2004 will cost co-employers almost $18,000 in payments and liquidated damages to a commercial cleaner who later became a farmer.
Department of Labor Hearing Officer Herbert D. Soll ordered co-employers Rosalia Skey and Emalyn Santiago to pay Roger S. Castillo a total of $17,916 within 30 days from the release of his administrative order dated March 28.
Soll, in his three-page order, said the testimony of Skey defended the lack of record keeping and the history of incomplete wage payments.
“She said no one went hungry and any of them could take what they needed from the business. The utopian atmosphere that she described is not being morally judged, but it is not the kind of relationship contemplated by the Nonresident Workers Act,” said Soll.
The hearing officer said there are clear responsibilities that must be discharged by an employer under the Nonresident Workers Act.
“Wages were not paid, the employee was allowed to ‘take what he needed’ and no records of either were kept. In failing to meet the responsibilities of an employer under the Act, she (Skey) lulled the complainant into a false sense of security in which he would likely not press for the enforcement of his rights,” said Soll.
He said the record is unclear on the legal status of one of the respondents, Santiago, whose liability is joint and several with Skey.
Soll said Skey and Santiago owe the complainant $4,758 in overtime wages from 2001 to 2003, and $4,200 in unpaid wages from 2003 to 2004 for a total of $8,958.
The hearing officer said the worker is also entitled to liquidated damages in an amount equal to the award, or a total of $17,916.
The hearing officer also permanently disqualified Skey and Santiago from using non-resident workers in the CNMI.
“This ban may be reconsidered only after this order is satisfied,” said Soll, who also granted 45-day transfer relief to the worker.
Castillo arrived on Saipan from the Philippines in 1998 to work for a security firm. In April 2001, he transferred to the Jeralyn Store, run by the respondents, as a commercial cleaner.
While it was clear that the respondents failed to keep the pay records that are required by law, the complainant’s testimony was uncertain as to details but he clearly established that he worked at least two hours of overtime each day for the two years he was employed as a commercial cleaner.
In 2003, Castillo’s job classification was changed to that of a farmer with the respondents remaining his employers. His salary was to be $300 per month but he only received his monthly pay for four of the months of his employment.
In October 2004, he was arrested and remained in custody for 14 months; therefore, he was not able to work for the balance of his contract.
Soll said under the unique circumstances of this case, the statute of limitations will not be applied and the claims will be considered as ordinary civil claims.
Soll said if the respondents do not meet their obligations to the worker within 30 days, then any bond filed in this case shall compensate the complainant.