According to its president Douglas Brennan, “The Saipan Chamber of Commerce is pleased our effort to provide CNMI employees and employers with a CNMI-based survey for determining prevailing wage rates for H-1B visa processing has met with approval by the U.S. DOL Office of Foreign Labor Certification.”
He said the chamber acknowledged “the enormous effort put into this by our contractor, the Guam Employers Council, and most especially to Assistant Interior Secretary of Insular Affairs Tony Babauta in Washington, D.C. who granted us funding to perform this survey in the CNMI.”
Many employers previously interviewed by Variety had raised issue with the lack of prevailing wage, forcing them to refer to Guam’s or Hawaii’s wages which local businesses cannot afford to pay.
Many employers were previously advised to base LCA’s on Guam or Hawaii wages.
Among those eligible for H1-B petitions are nurses and other health care practitioners who are paid from $5.05 to $100 in the Northern Mariana Islands. But in the U.S., registered nurses have a mean annual wage of $67,720: $82,130, Hawaii; $87,480, California; $75,320, Nevada; $63,010, Florida.
Prior to the release of the prevailing wage survey results, employers were earlier considering filing for CW-1 petitions but would run the risk of a denial.
Variety tried to inquire with clinics on how they deal with these petitions.
Seventh Day Adventist Clinic chief financial officer Ernie V. Lacorte told Variety that their clinic had already filed for an H-1B petition for one of their employees.
He said they have one employee eligible for H-1B while eight others are qualified for CW-1 petitions.
“As a healthcare institution, we would like to provide quality care to our patients by hiring qualified workers, those with degrees and experience in dental field,” he said.
Asked on SDA Clinic’s other concerns with regard to this transition period in immigration, he said, “Most of our workers at the clinic have been with us for a long time, from 2 to 21 years. We would like to keep all of them. However, the whole process will be a ‘wait and see’ for the result of applications.”
In a previous interview, David Khorram of Marianas Eye Institute said the fees and the visa filing process are a bit of work and there is some additional expense. “But we view it as just part of the cost of doing business.”
He also said there are no available U.S. workers at this time for positions now held by nonresidents.
Khorram said the CNMI needs to develop and train homegrown talents.
“Ultimately, the CNMI needs to home-grow its workers, and this will come about as a result of emphasis on education, the recognition that one’s economic well-being comes from hard work and effort, and viewing one’s work as a means of contributing to the progress of civilization. For personal or societal economic success to come about, we need shifts in priorities and attitudes. 2015 is just around the corner, and we are working now to plan for the challenges we’ll face at that time.”
In general, other employers have expressed concerns with the filing of petitions, whether its CW-1 or H-1B.
Hyatt Regency Saipan general manager Nick Nishikawa said, “We will do what is required by the regulation, and that we are concerned about the time lines that we are required to meet.”
He said the Hyatt management, like everyone else, is doing what it needs to do to meet the November 27 deadline.
While dealing with immigration concerns, Nishikawa also said they continue to provide services that meet standards and guests’ satisfaction.
“We are doing the best we can for our employees who are being affected by the changes of immigration,” he added.
According to regulations, in filing petitions for H-1B, the employer shall submit a completed labor condition application on Form ETA 9035E or Form ETA 9035 in the manner prescribed in §655.720.
Regulations dictate that by completing and submitting the LCA, and by signing the LCA, the employer makes certain representations and agrees to several attestations regarding its responsibilities, including the wages, working conditions, and benefits to be provided to the H-1B nonimmigrants [8 U.S.C. 1182(n)(1)].
Apart from the attestations as spelled out in the LCA, the petitioners are obligated to recruit U.S. workers, to offer the job to U.S. applicants who are equally or better qualified than the H-1B nonresident applicants, and avoid the displacement of U.S. workers.
HR practitioner Frank Gibson said employers must have properly posted job vacancy announcements and exhausted means to look for U.S. workers to fill the positions.
He also said the employers must file for H-1B petitions for positions eligible for such petitions.
In filing for H-1B petitions, an employer submits to and obtains from the DOL an LCA.
The requirements for LCA are available at www.lca.doleta.gov.
Once the employer received an approval of the LCA from DOL, then employer files petition with USCIS using Form I-129.
If USCIS approves the H-1B petition, the beneficiaries may apply for an H-1B visa abroad at a consular office of the Department of State.
If the beneficiary, the regulations state, is already in the United States in a status other than H-1B, “he/she may apply to the DHS for a change of status.”
