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‘NMC training program needs US Labor accreditation’
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Posted on Aug 23 2005
To ensure an effective apprenticeship program at the Northern Marianas College, it has to be registered with the U.S. Department of Labor, said Rep. Justo S. Quitugua.
In House Bill 14-367, Quitugua proposes that NMC must follow U.S. Labor regulations and ensure that its graduates are U.S.-certified skilled workers.
He said that, while the college has an apprenticeship program, the current program “is not in the technical trade areas and is not registered with the U.S. Department of Labor’s Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training.”
He said that employers in the Commonwealth have expressed their need for certified skilled workers.
“The government will be able to increase the confidence of the private sector in its ability to produce certified, skilled workers upon the implementation of the U.S. Labor’s program,” said Quitugua.
The bill mandates NMC to develop such a program in cooperation with the Hawaii/Pacific office of the Bureau of Apprenticeship and Training.
Quitugua’s bill aims to amend the Nonresident Workers Act to ensure that a $1.5 million annual collection from this act shall be reserved for NMC’s apprenticeship program for five years.
The congressman noted that the intent of the Nonresident Workers Fee Fund, as embodied in Public Law 3-66, has not been accomplished because some funds were appropriated for other uses.
He cited that the original intent was to use the Fund to train local residents to replace nonresident workers in technical and professional fields.
He also acknowledged that the low minimum wage of $3.05 per hour in the CNMI discourages local residents from working in the private sector.
