But the Department of Labor denied the request for transfer relief filed by Fengxia Huang, a worker of Hong Fa Store at As Lito.
Huang will be repatriated after she report to the enforcement section of Labor to arrange for her departure.
Her employer, Chen Gang Corp., is permanently disqualified from employing foreign workers in the CNMI. Labor also ordered Chen Gang to pay $1,000.
Hearing Officer Jerry Cody said Huang will receive $6,405.60 for the work performed and for work not performed from Sept. 22, 2007 until Feb. 6, 2008; and from Feb. 6, 2008 to Dec. 17, 2008.
Cody, however, said Huang is not entitled to liquidated damages for her claim since these are only awarded if actual damages are uncertain or cannot be ascertained, or if the employer’s conduct is willful or retaliatory.
“In this case, contact damages are readily ascertainable and there was no showing that the employer’s conduct was willful or retaliatory,” he said.
Labor learned that Huang was employed by Chen Gang to work as a cashier under a foreign worker permit issued on Dec. 17, 2007 with a $3.05 per hour contractual rate.
Her contract expired on Dec. 17, 2008.
The employment contract was signed in Dec. 2006 and Huang began working in Jan. 2007 even though no conditional grant was approved for her employment.
On Feb. 6, 2008, Huang was told by her boss that she should stop working because the store would close shop.
Huang waited for seven months before informing Labor about her abandonment by her employer.
Huang said two days after she stopped working, she sought legal help from the law office of Alexis Fallon.
Cody said “even assuming that complainant is testifying truthfully about her submitting a claim letter to attorney Alexis Fallon, complainant should be faulted for waiting so many months after that meeting to determine the status of her case.”
“It is apparent that complainant made no attempt to seek lawful work during that seven-month period,” Cody added.
Cody said the one-year statute of limitations for violations of the Nonresident Workers Act will be applied to the employment conducted in 2007.
He said the law sets a 12-month limitation for willful violations, but Huang filed her labor case on Sept. 22, 2008.
The coverage period of the claim should begin no earlier than one year from the date of filing, he added.
