Best Sunshine exec meets with CHCC, Labor

A Best Sunshine Ltd. executive met with the local Department of Labor and Commonwealth Healthcare Corp. last week and discussed matters and issues on Saipan and what they can do to help the local community.

According to a statement released to Saipan Tribune, Best Sunshine chief operating officer Terence Tay met with CHCC director of Medical Affairs Dr. Sherleen Osman to discuss hospital issues.

According to Tay, he told Osman that his parents built a hospital in Singapore, which remains the only free care facility in the city state.

Osman told Tay that the CNMI’s most pressing health concerns are childhood obesity, oral cancer from betel nut chewing and tobacco use, diabetes, and hypertension.

Osman, who is also the hospital’s medical director for the renal section, told Tay that some of the patients lack transportation to get to the hospital and that CHCC needs diabetic educators and more outreach to the community to prevent blindness and limb loss resulting from diabetes.

Best Sunshine’s meeting with Labor Secretary Edith Deleon Guerrero centered on the availability of manpower.

According to Tay, there is no concrete plan yet but a discussion was made on labor requirements down the road and a way to plan for local workers to be available.

“Our main focus is to look toward the CNMI for meeting the manpower requirements. We will like to have the local people here trained and ready. We have to fill those jobs and make sure the locals are recruited,” Tay said.

Deleon Guerrero told Best Sunshine that it is good to hear they have a “sincere desire” to recruit the CNMI’s local workforce by ensuring compliance with the CNMI’s employment laws. That includes posting job vacancies in the state job bank, allowing the CNMI’s work-seeking population to apply for jobs they are qualified for.

Grace Fu of Best Sunshine also took note of their partnership with the Northern Marianas College to conduct a survey that will enable Best Sunshine to know what people want.

Deleon Guerrero cited the importance of striking a balance. That’s where Labor’s concept called E3 comes into play—education, economic development, and employment. She also mentioned how Labor continues to work on changing the mindset of the local workforce by encouraging them to look for employment opportunities in the private sector.

Tay told Deleon Guerrero that they do believe in the balance between the government, industry, and people that needs to be reached in order for any society to thrive.

Tay promised that Best Sunshine will work with Labor regarding manpower requirements if they are fortunate to win the license to develop an integrated casino resort on Saipan.