DOZENS of Pandemic Unemployment Assistance applicants staged a rally at Kilili Beach on Beach Road Thursday.
They said they have yet to hear from the CNMI Department of Labor regarding their applications.
Sen. Edith Deleon Guerrero and Rep. Edwin Propst met with the applicants to hear their concerns.
A former DOL secretary, Deleon Guerrero distributed consent forms that will allow her office to follow up on the applications on the claimants’ behalf.
In the afternoon, the PUA applicants stood on the roadside while displaying their placards and chanting, “Release our PUA! Release our PUA!”
At around 4:30 p.m., the convoy of Gov. Ralph DLG Torres and other government officials passed by on their way to the Oleai Sports Complex for the launching ceremony of the 2022 Pacific Mini Games.
Zenaida Cuerdo, one of the PUA applicants, said it was disappointing that the governor did not spend time to talk to them.
The disgruntled PUA applicants have formed a Facebook online group whose members held their first demonstration last year outside the CNMI Department of Labor office and earlier this year at the multi-purpose center. Since then, some of them have received their first PUA claims.
Those who held a rally Thursday said they are still waiting for their second PUA claims. Many PUA claimants whose applications were denied joined the rally.
They said they are concerned about the “slow” progress of their federal assistance applications and other issues related to PUA.
Ray Austin, a furloughed hotel employee, expressed disappointment with the lack of communication from CNMI Labor that he said is causing uncertainty among those who have lost their livelihood due to government restrictions in response to the Covid-19 pandemic.
Austin said he helped keep the demonstration organized and peaceful.
Maristel Tagle, another furloughed hotel employee, said she applied for the first PUA but was denied because of her CW status. She applied for the second PUA in February and is still waiting to hear from Labor. The last time she called Labor, she said, she was told that an adjudicator would give her a call. No one has called her, she added.
Olan Cruz, who is also a furloughed employee, said he did not apply for the first PUA because he was told that CWs were not eligible. But he applied for the second PUA and has been waiting for word from CNMI DOL for almost five months now. Last month, he was told an adjudicator would call him, but since then, he never got another call from Labor.
Cruz said his wife, who is also a CW, still has work, but she is also applying for PUA because her work hours have been reduced.
Sonia Isip, a hotel employee, was also furloughed at the height of the pandemic. She applied for PUA but was denied due to her CW status. She has returned to work recently, but on reduced hours.
Last year, she applied for CNMI-only long-term permanent residency status. When she applied for the second PUA in March, she was told she was disqualified due to her status as CNMI-only long-term permanent resident.
In a statement, the CNMI PUA Group said PUA applicants “are in desperate need of these relief funds.
“Our Economy is in desperate need of these funds,” the group added. “This program was to help the people in need. Families with children, those who lost their jobs due to the pandemic, those who had their hours reduced. This program was to help our economy through spending these funds here at grocery stores, school supplies store, restaurants, gas stations and generally needed services. Currently many people have had to make decisions regarding power, phone service, car loans, home loans, etc. or put food on the table. Many people will have to pay reconnection fees to services they lost due to nonpayment, additional strain on these relief funds. The compounding effects of this DOL/PUA program are weighing heavy on the recipients.”
Rep. Edwin Propst said the PUA applicants’ situation is “heartbreaking and it’s unfortunate that some people do not see it.”
He told them that his office and his colleagues in the Legislature are doing their best to assist the PUA applicants.
Pandemic unemployment claimant Jacinta Hofschneider chants “Release our PUA!” during a rally at Kilili Beach on Thursday.
Rep. Edwin Propst speaks with members of the CNMI PUA Group at Kilili Beach on Thursday.
PUA applicants say they have not heard from the CNMI Department of Labor since submitting their applications.
A PUA applicant, right, holds a placard during a rally at Kilili Beach on Thursday.
