Over 2,000 settlement checks undistributable

Over 2,000 checks that are part of the over $5 million being sent to 29,700 garment workers in connection with the class-action settlement are now in the possession of some garment factories.

Garment manufacturers, however, could not distribute these checks because the workers have either been repatriated already or are problematic.

This prompted the federal court to conduct a hearing yesterday to guide the garment manufacturers on how they should handle settlement letters/checks delivered to them and addressed to former workers who have already left the Commonwealth.

U.S. District Court for the NMI Chief Judge Alex R. Munson ordered the garment manufacturers to just send the undistributable checks back to claims administrator Gilardi and Co. Munson said he will issue a written order.

Attorney Richard W. Pierce told the court that his clients—United International Corp. and Rifu Apparel Corp.—have 1,500 checks in their possession. L&T has over $1,000 checks, according to attorney Steven Pixley. Attorney Joseph Horey said an undetermined number of checks are also in possession of his clients—Hansae (Saipan) Inc., Marianas Garment Manufacturing Inc., Michigan Inc., Mirage (Saipan) Inc., Onwel Manufacturing Saipan Inc., and Top Fashion Corp.

Former judge Timothy H. Bellas, chairman of the Garment Oversight Board, earlier disclosed that 337 checks have insufficient addresses and were forwarded by the U.S. Postal Office to his office. He said he already sent the checks back to Gilardi.

Munson conducted yesterday’s hearing after attorney Pierce, on behalf of UIC and Rifu, asked to be guided on how best to handle the 1,500 letters with checks enclosed that they have received from the settlement fund that are addressed to their former employees.

Pierce suggested that friends or relatives remaining in the CNMI be given written authorization to cash the checks locally and the proceeds remitted to the current addresses of the former employees.

Pierce also suggested to simply return the letters to plaintiffs or just deliver the letters to the GOB.

Atty. Horey joined Pierce’s request on behalf of his clients.

Horey said these employees have left their jobs either to go back to their home countries or for another job on Saipan without giving the manufacturer their forwarding addresses.

In at least one incident, two former employees have identical names, and the one who is still residing on Saipan has asked that the check be given to her.

Munson, in his order issued last week that set the hearing date, noted that under the settlement agreement it is the task of the plaintiffs to see that the checks are delivered.

However, Munson said, if UIC and Rifu have current mailing addresses of former employees for whom they have received these checks, then they are duty-bound to apprise plaintiffs of those addresses.

UIC and Rifu should return the checks to plaintiffs so that plaintiffs may again mail them out, the judge pointed out.

In an interview with the Saipan Tribune after the hearing yesterday, Bellas said the factories mentioned that they have some workers whom they know are still on island.

Bellas said that Munson told them that, if they can get identification and verify that these persons are the ones on the list, they can give the checks to them.

“There’s some factories that raised the issue that they have people who work as garment workers who have the same name and there’s still two or three of them, so how do they know which one to give the check to because they haven’t put anything on the check to identify which worker it is,” Bellas said.

Gilardi reportedly said that they will contact the garment firms to get more information about the workers who had repatriated and those who are still on the island.

GOB has been receiving between 50 to 60 people a day, inquiring about their checks and whether they can also avail of the funds.