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Sen. Reyes: Curtail issuance of TWAs
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Posted on Oct 17 2004
Citing “a spate of insincere labor complaints,” senate minority leader Pete P. Reyes has introduced a bill that aims to “severely curtail” the issuance of temporary work authorizations to nonresident workers.
“The practice of issuing TWAs should be severely curtailed. The curtailment (of TWAs) is a necessary and proper exercise of the Legislative power,” he said.
The measure, Senate Bill 14-74, aims to amend the Commonwealth Code “to permit the issuance of TWAs only under certain circumstances.”
It intends to amend 3 CMC 4447 to add a new subsection, “h”, to read that “TWAs or permits may only be granted by the Director of Labor or his designee upon a showing by the nonresident worker of an unsuccessful good faith attempt to mediate the dispute the worker has with the employer.”
It further requires “a showing that the employer has been declared insolvent by a court, or has filed for bankruptcy relief; business establishment has been destroyed by natural disaster; employer has surrendered business license; employee is a witness or party in a legal action; an imminent danger to the health and safety of the employee and the employer is unable to cure the defect or remove all the health and safety risks immediately or within a reasonable time depending on the seriousness of the risk; or illegal deductions from wages were made and the employer refuses to take immediate corrective action.”
Last year, the Department of Labor had acknowledged that more workers prefer to have their cases referred for further investigation rather than settlement so they could obtain TWAs.
In a report to DOL Secretary Joaquin A. Tenorio last year, the hearing office said that complainants usually refuse to settle their cases because they know or are told that getting their cases referred for investigation is the only way they would be able to get the sought-after TWA.
The TWA allows complainants to find work pending the resolution of their cases. Since it provides only temporary employment, complainants work on probation for every three months.
Despite the lack in job security, TWA offers them a way—if they choose—to leave a job and seek a new one after a three-month period.
