Guest workers pitch in $7 million to gov’t coffers every year

Annual fees collected from companies for each nonresident worker they employ inject at least $7 million in direct additional revenue to the CNMI government every year, according to Gov. Pedro P. Tenorio.

Mr. Tenorio said the additional revenue from the schedule of fees charged among businesses for each foreign worker helps strengthen the local economy which has grown to be private-sector fortified and less dependent from federal funding.

At present, employers pay a total of $270 each year for every nonresident worker they hire. Of the amount, $225 is for nonresident worker application fee, $20 for health certificate, and another $25 for the nonresident worker or alien card.

Government records disclosed that there are now 16,739 Filipino workers in the CNMI holding a wide range of jobs and about 12,797 Chinese workers who are mostly employed as operators, fabricators and laborers.

Although non-U.S. citizens comprise at least 52 percent of the total population in the CNMI, the impact of their presence here remains lower than that of the local resident population.

An analysis released by the U.S. General Accounting Office bared that Asian and other non-local people accounted for less than 13 percent of the students enrolled in CNMI schools in the school year 1995-1996.

Chamorros, the largest indigenous group of people in the CNMI who comprise 24 percent of the total population, accounted for 58 percent of school enrollment during the same school year.

The GAO report also pointed out that Filipino households, which corner over 16 percent of the total CNMI households, received less than eight percent of Nutritional Assistance benefits.

Considering the fact that 79 percent of all non-U.S. citizens in the Northern Marianas in 1999 were in the 20-45 age group, they are likely to use fewer medical services and on other services associated with elderly than the local resident population.

In addition, employers are required by CNMI laws to pay for their nonresident workers’ health insurance, transportation and housing.

Individual businesses have varying wage levels and associated expenses, like insurance premiums are higher for construction workers than hotel employees.

For administrative workers, or those employed for offices, employers normally pay some $565 in annual premium; farmers, $199; house worker, $119; print shop/all other workers, some $1,105.

With the new health regulation, employers have to shell out an additional $90-$100 for HIV and RPR tests, and chest x-ray. The procedure in securing health certificate before the alien card is issued also require the payment of $20 to the health liaison office in DOLI.

These costs result in employers actually having an hourly employees expense of $4.72 per hour or $9,818 per year.

The Resident Workers Fair Compensation Act of 1995 says all benefits mandated by law given to foreign workers must also be provided to resident workers, equivalent in jobs where the standard hourly wage is less than $4.25 per hour.