Illegal workers claim ‘attempted coercion’

Ten illegal Chinese workers protest in front of the Imperial Pacific Resort casino in Garapan last Sunday at 3pm. (Contributed Photo)

Having spent roughly six months on Saipan, the remaining 22 Chinese construction workers illegally hired to construct a casino resort in Garapan claims that there is “attempted coercion” into accepting compensation offers and going back home to China by the very casino they were previously working on.

With 16 Chinese workers reportedly accepting the offer of Imperial Pacific International (CNMI) LLC, the remaining 22 workers were reportedly not happy with the offers made to them, which they claim were between $1,000 and $9,000 per person.

Last Sunday, 10 of 22 workers protested in front of the casino at around 3pm in the afternoon.

According to a statement released from the workers that was translated, Oct. 1 is national day in China, a holiday that is celebrated annually.

“This will be one more holiday that we will spend in Saipan without our families as we wait to be paid,” said the statement.

The statement also claimed that casino representatives, along with the CNMI Department of Labor, reportedly visited the worker’s dormitory last week to discuss their wages.

“A number of threats were also made to pressure us to accept the offer and return to China,” said the workers.

“The casino representatives stated that we would be evicted from the dormitory imminently and forced to wander the streets; the immigration authorities will arrest us; and that MCC International was no longer operating on Saipan and its personnel could not be found.”

The workers claimed the “attempted coercion” only disgruntled the workers further, especially those that “were offered just a few thousand dollars.”

The statement cited but did not specify federal laws that suggests employees that are not paid the minimum wage nor overtime are entitled to back wages plus an additional 100 percent of that amount as liquidated damages.

“… The casino is unwilling to pay even these basic, legally required amounts,” the statement claimed. “Further, no compensation has been offered for the fact that we have been stranded here on Saipan for five months, unable to work nor earn money for our families.”

The remaining Chinese workers were hired through MCC International, the prime contractor of IPI to construct their casino resort, the Imperial Pacific Resort. The workers entered through the CNMI-only visa waiver program, a program that enables passport holders of China and Russia to enter without obtaining visas from the U.S. embassies in each respective country. Chinese and Russian passport holders that enter the CNMI through the visa waiver program are considered to be tourists and are only allowed a 30-day stay in the CNMI.