By Haidee V. Eugenio
Variety Assistant Editor

THE Department of Labor issued 27,194 work permits to foreigners in calendar year 2006 and although it was an 18 percent drop from 2005, it was not the lowest annual figure in the last five years, the latest government data shows.
There were only 27,148 alien work permits issued in 2003, lower than the 27,194 permits last year which saw the closures of major garment factories, including Hyunjin Saipan Inc. in Gualo Rai, Handsome (Saipan) Inc. in Tanapag, and Concorde Garment Manufacturing Corp. in Lower Base.
Labor issued 27,733 work permits to nonresidents in 2002; 27,148 in 2003; 36,405 in 2004; 33,294 in 2005; and 27,194 in 2006, according to the latest Quarterly Economic Indicators Report of the Department of Commerce.
Commerce got these data on work permits from the Department of Labor.
Lt. Gov. Timothy P. Villagomez earlier told the U.S. Senate Energy and Natural Resources Committee that the number of nonresident workers in the CNMI may fall to 15,000 or about half of the current alien workforce.
“If the trends in the apparel industry continue and the local economy cannot produce jobs for U.S. citizens and nonresident workers currently unemployed, it is very possible that by the year 2010, the number of nonresident workers will fall to 15,000 and the total population will be in the 60,000-65,000 range,” he said.
Except for security service, manpower, banking and fishing businesses, the 10 other industries — including garments, hotels, construction, services, and night clubs — posted declines last year.
Despite factory closures since January 2005 when the World Trade Organization lifted world apparel quotas, the garment industry remains the largest single employer of foreign workers in the CNMI.
Saipan’s garment industry, which used to have some 17,000 workers mostly from China in its peak years, was issued 9,690 alien work permits in 2006 — a 30 percent drop from 2005’s 13,922 and a 33 percent decline from the 14,512 issued in 2004.
The services industry ranked as the second biggest employer of foreign workers with 8,544 work permits in 2006, also a decrease of 10 percent from 2005.
Hotels were the third largest employers of foreign workers with 2,173 work permits in 2006, also an 11 percent drop from the previous year.
There were 1,845 work permits issued to the CNMI’s construction industry in 2006, a 4 percent decrease from the previous year’s 1,938.
Work permits issued to foreign private household workers went down by 4 percent — from 1,802 in 2005 to 1,735 in 2006.
The restaurant industry was issued 1,230 alien work permits in 2006, a 13 percent decrease from the previous year’s 1,420.
There were 621 nonresident work permits issued to farmers last year, compared to 658 the previous year.
Labor issued 488 alien work permits to night clubs and bars in 2006, marking a 21 percent drop from 2005.
Tourism posted a 12 percent drop in alien work permits, from 491 in 2005 to 431 in 2006.
The number of work permits issued to nonresidents who worked in the CNMI government, including nurses at the Commonwealth Health Center, totaled only 215 in 2006, a 23 percent decline from the previous year.
Four types of industries, however, posted increases in the number of alien work permits issued.
In 2006, there were 139 alien work permits issued to security service businesses, higher by 21 percent from the previous year.
From only 15 work permits issued to manpower businesses in 2005, the number went up to 22 in 2006.
The banking sector got 15 alien work permits in 2006, compared to only 13 the previous year.
There were 17 alien work permits issued to the fishing business last year, higher by one than the previous year.