By Haidee V. Eugenio
Variety Assistant Editor

ANOTHER business establishment has closed, this time an accounting and income tax service business due to financial difficulties and a serious downturn in business on Saipan.
Skey’s Accounting & Income Tax Services closed on or about Nov. 30, 2006, and the Department of Labor allowed one of the company’s nonresident workers to transfer to another employer.
Ngirarois Skey dba Skey’s Accounting & Income Tax Services employed nonresident Romeo V. Sison as an accountant from 1989 until 2006. The latest permit expired on Sept. 20, 2006.
The employer filed a timely application to renew Sison’s employment on Sept. 19, 2006.
However, on Oct. 27, the employer issued a so-called written notice of termination for cause, informing Sison that “with great sadness,” the employer had decided to close his business due to financial difficulties and a serious downturn in his business.
Labor Hearing Officer Jerry Cody, in a Jan. 25 administrative order, said several weeks after issuing the termination letter, the employer informed the director of the Division of Labor about the closure of the business.
The department denied the application to renew Sison based on the business closure, and an appeal followed only to request that Sison be granted transfer relief.
“Generally, the department has allowed permit applications to be cancelled where the employer closes his business for legitimate business reasons and promptly notifies the department of the closure,” said Cody. “In this case, the employer closed his business, gave his employee and the department advance notice of the closure; and agreed to compensate the employee for the 30-day notice period provided in the contract.”
The hearing officer thus granted Sison’s transfer request, but denied the contract renewal because of the closure of the business.
During the Jan. 23 hearing, Sison testified that his employer never paid him full compensation for the notice period, which the employer had promised to do in his termination letter dated Oct. 27, 2006.
Sison said his employer still owes him more than $900 in wages for the period Nov. 3 to 30, 2006.
Cody declined to decide the issue on this proceeding, saying the issue of back wages is not before him on this denial appeal.
“Mr. Sison may file a labor complaint against his former employer for the unpaid wages he alleges to be owed. However, I note that only one grant of transfer relief shall be issued in connection with this employment,” Cody said.