Wage survey talks draw questions on excluded foreign workers

A presentation yesterday about the Saipan Chamber of Commerce’s prevailing wage survey drew questions on foreign workers in the CNMI who will be excluded from the actual survey that is set to start middle of this month.

The survey targets some 300 businesses or employers, representing thousands of workers.

The private sector employs mostly foreign workers, many of them won’t qualify for U.S. employment visas.

Others at yesterday’s presentation raised concerns on the possibility that some employers will not fill out or improperly fill out the survey forms so as not to reveal their workers’ low salaries.

But others said the low salaries give more reasons to fill out the survey forms, to give a true picture of the current base rates of pay and benefits in effect in the CNMI rather than those in effect in Guam or other U.S. states to support visa applications for foreign workers in the Commonwealth.

Andrew P. Andrus, executive director for the Guam Employers Council, which the Chamber contracted for the survey, made a presentation about the prevailing wage survey before over 90 employer representatives at the Pedro P. Tenorio Multi-Purpose Center in Susupe.

Andrus explained the instructions, data entry forms and procedures for submitting data.

In his presentation, Andrus said employers should expect emails in the next few days about the survey.

He encouraged employers to immediately fill out the survey forms and not wait for the Sept. 9, 2011, deadline to do so.

“If you have difficulty completing the forms by the deadline, give us a call,” he said.

Andrus and the Guam Employers Council have been conducting comprehensive surveys of wages, salaries, and benefits in the Western Pacific for some 25 years.

“The big question is whether we need to include in the survey those that do no have a ready, or are not qualified, for an H-1 or H-2, whatever U.S. visa, which means they’ll be likely the ones who qualify for the contract worker [status]. We need to clarify that,” said Eric Plinske, a board member of the Society for Human Resource Management CNMI Chapter.

Plinske said SHRM will be waiting for guidance from the Chamber on the issue.

The Chamber, in a earlier statement, said that standards prescribed by the U.S. Department of Labor for such procedures are being addressed.

“Accordingly, the rates of pay and benefits data for persons holding H-1, H-1B, and H-2B visas are to be excluded,” the group said.

But many of those present at yesterday’s presentation would like to be sure which foreign workers need not be covered by the survey.

Ernie Lacorte, chief finance officer for the Saipan Seventh-Day Adventist Clinic, said he came to the presentation to know more about the survey and the covered nonresident workers.

“Since we’re nearing November, we want to know the process for nonresident workers. …If the processing will depend on the prevailing wage, then we’d like to know more about the survey, who it will cover, and the whole process,” he said.

Marlyne Kaneshi of Japan Water Systems and Annamae Daza of Luen Fung Enterprises also attended the presentation hoping to know more about the survey and its impact on businesses in the CNMI.

Richard Pierce, executive director of the Saipan Chamber of Commerce, noted the presence of government agency representatives at the presentation, including the departments of Commerce and Labor, the Commonwealth Health Center, Northern Marianas College, and the Commonwealth Utilities Corp.

Pierce said the Chamber survey will get more than enough participation.

The Chamber’s prevailing wage survey is separate from the one that the CNMI government will conduct. The CNMI government applied for over $40,000 in federal grant for its own survey.

Prior to the presentation at the Multi-Purpose Center, Andrus was also guest speaker at the Saipan Chamber of Commerce’s general membership meeting at Saipan Grand Hotel yesterday.

The survey seeks to measure current base rates of pay and benefits currently in effect among private and public employers in the CNMI for a broad range of jobs.

The Standard Occupation Classification published by the U.S. Department of Labor is being used as the standard for the job codes, titles, and descriptions, as recommended by the U.S. Department of Labor.

All organizations and companies that participate in the survey will receive copies of the results. There is no charge for participation and the data gathered is 100 percent confidential. The survey will be copyrighted.

For more information about the survey, contact the Chamber at 233-7150/7152 and at coordinator@saipanchamber.com.