By Haidee V. Eugenio
Variety Assistant Editor

EMPLOYEES of the Nagoya Star Night Club have sought the help of the Federal Labor Ombudsman’s Office in filing a labor complaint against their employer for non-payment of wages and ladies’ drink commissions promised to them.
They are also hoping that the federal agency can help ensure that the CNMI Department of Labor will conduct a fair and clean investigation.
The employees said ranking Department of Labor officials frequent the night club and are “close” to the club management.
Federal Labor Ombudsman Jim Benedetto yesterday said four employees have sought assistance in filing a labor complaint.
“There’s no complaint filed yet but our office has been assisting them,” he said in a phone interview.
ASC Inc., doing business as the Nagoya Star Night Club has only six employees left — five dancers and one waitress.
Nagoya Star will be closing on April 29, according to a March 29 memo from club manager Angelina Cabrera, but employees have yet to be paid for up to two months of their salaries and lady’s drink commissions.
According to former and current employees, Nagoya, which opened in 1994, also withheld from its dancers and other employees copies of their employment contracts for months or years, as well as copies of a recent promissory note to pay workers’ delayed wages.
“(Cabrera) made a promissory note and showed it to Labor, stating that our delayed salaries will be paid in partial amounts. But they didn’t give us a copy of the promissory note. How can we be sure we will be paid before the closure of the club? We want to transfer to another employer,” one of the workers said.
It was only recently that they got a copy of their employment contracts from the management.
The workers said management informed them that they will no longer be given their lady’s drink commissions, which they used to receive and which were reflected on their pay stubs.
The lady’s drink commissions are not included in their contracts but were promised to them when they were hired and they received these up until a few months ago.
Nagoya has other pending labor complaints and cases filed by former employees, many of them now working for another employer.
Labor officials could not be reached for comment.