Press Secretary Angel A. Demapan said this should not be a concern because once the applications are in, eligible guest workers can stay in the CNMI beyond Nov. 28.
Fitial, who arrived on Tuesday from Noumea, New Caledonia, said he was pleased with the changes that the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service made in the final rule.
Its announcement was delayed by two years because of the unsuccessful lawsuit he filed to prevent the implementation of the federalization law.
“I believe the changes that USCIS made will make this an easier process for both employers and employees,” Fitial said in a statement.
He reiterated that the federalization law “is punitive and poorly thought-out.” He said during his meeting with USCIS Director Ali Mayorkas last Feb. 23, he emphasized the need to provide “relief” to workers who had to transit through Guam on their way to the Philippines.
The new rule, he noted, provides this relief as he requested.
“Citizens of the Philippines who work in the CNMI will benefit from an exception to the travel restrictions. Workers going to and from the Philippines may transit through Guam, which is U.S. territory, without a visa. This will be a substantial help in easing the cost of travel for individual workers and their families,” he said.
Fitial said he also shared Mayorkas his concern about the 10 days given to guest workers to transfer to another employer. He recalled that the initial rule released three years ago provided only 10 days to transfer to a new employer.
The regulation released yesterday gives workers 30 days to find a new employer.
“Thus, I am pleased that the new rule now provides for a 30-day period as I requested and as commonwealth law previously provided,” the governor said.
Caregivers’ plight
Because the regulation still does not allow individual residents to hire caregivers, Fitial said he would have to issue an executive order permitting those who are in dire need of such service to apply for a CNMI business license as sole proprietor so they can hire an alien for that purpose.
He said the new regulation still allow only these businesses to hire aliens as caregivers.
“My special legal counsel met with USCIS in Washington on Tuesday on this issue and other details of how the regulations will work. I have decided that I will soon issue an executive order permitting individuals to apply for a CNMI business license as a sole proprietor,” he said adding that this is permitted under CNMI law.
“I think it is the best way to accommodate our need for caregivers,” the governor said.
“We have a particular need for caregivers in the commonwealth because we do not have nursing homes and assisted living facilities like they do in the U.S. mainland. Also, many of our frail elders have very limited incomes, so they cannot afford to hire caregivers through domestic service agencies,” he added.
It is fortunate, he said. that USCIS has provided for a waiver of the permit fees in case the employer cannot afford to pay. This, he said, will help sick and elderly residents here who may not have the means to pay the fees for the petition to hire an alien.
Too short
Sens. Frank Q. Cruz and Juan M. Ayuyu said the time given to employers and their workers is too short.
Cruz, R-Tinian, said it is a relief that the worker regulation is finally out. But can USCIS process the CW visa applications expeditiously? he asked.
Ayuyu, Ind.-Rota, said since the regulation should have been out last March, the umbrella permits should be extended for another six month to make sure employers and USCIS have ample time to process the applications.
But Demapan said the regulation itself already addresses this concern.
The new rule, he added, allows employers to hire alien workers on a temporary basis while their petitions are pending.
He said even if the employer submits the CW petition on Nov. 28, as long as the application is received by USCIS, the alien worker being petitioned can stay beyond that day.
Fitial said in his statement that USCIS will allow employers to file their petitions for their current alien workers any time up until Nov. 28. These petitions will then go to the USCIS California Service Center which will issue either a grant or a denial.
Fitial said the comment process prior to the release of the regulation was “very instructive.”
“It should not have taken them as long as it did to get the rule out, but that didn’t have much to do with the comment process. That was due to USCIS’ internal processes that also delayed the initial rule back in Oct. 2009,” he added.
His administration, Fitial said, reiterates that CNMI employment law still applies to all jobs held by aliens, and employers will be required to provide a sworn statement that they will remain in compliance during the one-year period after the petition is approved.
“They don’t really have any ‘permits’ in their new system. They have ‘approved petitions’ instead,” Fitial said, referring to the federal government, adding that this is an “entirely employer-based system.”
The employers file the petitions and will interaction with USCIS, he said.
Employees are not involved, but they may petition to have their alien spouses and alien minor children stay with them in the CNMI for the period they are employed. Spouses and children, Fitial said, may not work unless they have a separate work authorization.
