October 27, 2009
Response to the newly released transitional guest worker regulations has been predictably mixed. Many have questions about the new rules, and some object to specific provisions. On this site some objected to the change in domestic helpers. Others expressed concern over the exit and re-entry requirement.
The Marianas Variety headline read, "It's not a friendly system" quoting the reaction of one attorney who wishes to remain anonymous. The anonymous attorney added, “Imagine people looking back with nostalgia on the ‘good old days’ under the commonwealth system!”
It is not likely that a thousand or more cheated foreign contract workers will look longingly back in time and wish to be reunited with a former employer who owes them back wages or unpaid judgments.
Personnel from the USCIS Office will answer questions on the new program on Thursday at the Garapan Street Market and on Friday, October 30th at the American Memorial Park outdoor amphitheater from 5pm to 7pm. Technical experts will be available to anwer questions. The presentation will be in English, and informational materials in English, Tagalog, Korean, Chinese, and Japanese will also be distributed.
Some questions guest workers and others have raised are:
1. Will the wages be the CNMI federal minimum wage or will CNMI wage apply?
2. Will employers have to honor a 40-hour work week or can they hire an employee for less than a full-time position? (Concern is that currently employers are cutting workers' hours to maintain a profit and the workers are struggling to survive.)
3. Will employers have to provide any benefits or will we have to shoulder our own health care costs?
4. If there is an emergency and we apply for parole to exit and reenter the CNMI, how long will it take to get the travel papers?
5. If an employer is not paying us fairly, can we get a new employer?
6. How many employers can we work for at the same time?
7. Who pays the fees?
8. How many years do we have to work under the federal system before we can apply for a green card? Can only H-1 or H-2 workers apply or can CW-1 and CW-2 workers apply? If they are eligible to apply do they have to have their employers petition them or can they apply for themselves?
9. What is the household income to apply for a CW-2?
10. CW-2 is this only for married couples or for common-law couples who have children?
I am sure that there are many more questions, and I encourage the guest workers and others who are affected by the rules to attend a session Thursday or Friday to learn more.
Here is the news release from the USCIS:
WASHINGTON—U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) today posted an interim final rule in the Federal Register that creates a Transitional Worker visa classification in the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). The CNMI-Only Transitional Worker Program is one of several initiatives that implements the Consolidated Natural Resources Act of 2008 (CNRA), which expands U.S. immigration law in the CNMI.
Although U.S. immigration law applies to the CNMI beginning on November 28, a transition period will begin on that date during which time temporary measures will be carried out to allow for an orderly transition from the CNMI’s permit system to U.S. immigration law. This will give foreign workers time to identify an appropriate visa classification according to the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA).
A “transitional worker” under CNRA is defined as an alien worker who is currently ineligible for another classification under INA and who performs services or labor for an employer in CNMI. The Transitional Worker Visa category is a new nonimmigrant visa classification under INA using the admission code CW-1 for the principal transitional worker and CW-2 for dependents.
The CNMI-Only Transitional Worker Program will be available to two groups of nonresidents: (1) those who are lawfully present in the CNMI and (2) those who are abroad.
Non-residents living in CNMI may be classified as CW-1 nonimmigrants if, during the transition period, they:
1. Will enter or stay in CNMI to work in an occupational category that needs alien workers to supplement the resident workforce;
2. Are petitioned for by an employer;
3. Live in CNMI;
4. Are lawfully present in CNMI; and
5. Are not otherwise inadmissible to the United States.
CNMI employers may also use the CW-1 program to obtain eligible workers coming to CNMI from abroad.
The transition period begins on November 28, 2009 and ends on December 31, 2014. The CW classification is valid for the duration of the transition period. At the end of the transition period, the CNMI-Only Transitional Worker Program will cease to exist and the transitional workers who held this status must change to another nonimmigrant or immigrant status under INA to stay in CNMI lawfully.
Under the CNMI-Only Transitional Worker program, employers may file a petition for a transitional worker with USCIS using Form I-129CW, Petition for a Nonimmigrant Worker in CNMI. This new form was modeled after the existing Form I-129. The fee for Form I-129CW would be $320, the same amount charged for the I-129 and an $80 biometrics fee. In addition, the CNRA mandates a “CNMI education funding fee” of $150 per beneficiary per year which cannot be waived.
Due to unique circumstances in CNMI, the I-129CW fee may be waived in extraordinary situations where an employer can demonstrate an inability to pay the fee and still pay the employee’s wage. With some restrictions, employers may file for multiple beneficiaries on the same I-129CW. Employers must conduct legitimate business and may not engage directly or indirectly in prostitution, trafficking in minors, or any other activity that is illegal under federal or CNMI law.
Under the interim final rule, the CNMI-Only Transitional Worker program includes all occupational categories being used in CNMI now. Also, for the first year, the numerical limits for CW-1 status are based on the CNMI government’s own estimate of the nonresident worker population, which is 22,417. After the first year, the numerical limit will decrease, as determined by the Secretary of Homeland Security.
The CW visa classification is valid only in the CNMI and provides no basis for travel to any other part of the United States, including Guam. Once status is obtained, the CW-1 or CW-2 nonimmigrant may leave the CNMI and return, but must have the appropriate visa for readmission.
The public is encouraged to submit comments on this rulemaking by Nov. 29, 2009. Comments should be identified by DHS Docket No. USCIS-2008-0038 and submitted one of the following ways:
• Federal eRulemaking Portal: http://www.regulations.gov.
• E-mail: rfs.regs@dhs.gov. Include DHS Docket No. USCIS-2008-0038 in the subject line.
• Mail: Chief, Regulatory Products Division, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, Department of Homeland Security, 111 Massachusetts Avenue, NW., Suite 3008, Washington, DC 20529-2210. To ensure proper handling, please reference DHS Docket No. USCIS-2008-0038 on your correspondence.
7 comments:
Interesting. Employee abuse is rampant in the United States. With over 3,000 sweatshops in New York alone, it is astonishing how you've played the victim card for so long. The DHS is here to ensure the protection of US Citizens FIRST. So, we now know that once a CW leaves they must obtain a Visa to return. Nearly impossible and expensive. They have few choices. On another blog you declined to take any heat for your lobbying these new laws. You stated that DC people routinely visit your blog. Well, you did have a stake in what's going to happen here Wendy. This is typical ultralibdem flip-flopping.
Hey noni above...the question of fedralization was never about credit or blame, it is about improving our community, increasing opportunity for our citizens, and building a better home for our children.
9:34 Your attack is unfocused. Yes she advocated for rights for CWs and no she did not write the rules.
The CNMI is going to get rid of workers the old fashioned way. Just one word. No green cards, no super status. Just one word:
Attrition
It is amazing how ignorant many people are on the reason for this Federalization.
For years the Feds had been warning the NMI that their low wages and lack of training of the "locals" and the abundant use of non resident workers was leading to disaster.
This coupled with the many abuses within the NMI system and the many "connected" employers, lack of paying the wages owed, the many domestic labor abuses etc. promulgated the situation.
This takeover would have happened much sooner but the millions paid to the lobbyists and other illegal activities by many here and in the US delayed it.
Now their is soon to be a different picture in the CNMI.
Since the NMI is smaller it is easier to take control and curb the abuses.
Also across the US their was a large "sting" operation on the underage "sex" trade recently and about 800 people were arrested in about 33 states.(Feds)
So what has that to do with the CNMI and this current situation.
BTW this visa, multiple entry visa and other type Visa at the US Embassy in
Manila are not that hard to get for the legitimate applicant.
It will take a few hours to approve or not,the holder's passport with a visa will be received to their home, any place in the Philippines within three days by a courier service.
And yes, they are costly, most average about $300+(US)
So what has all of this to do with Wendy???
the cost to get visa is $131.00 and more or less $15.00 for courier to deliver your passport.
Captan hit the nail on the head with the comment above. It has always been shocking that so many people ddn't figure this out, didn't care, were afraid to speak, partipated in the charade, or just turned their back on the facts.
The CNMI will be much a better place to live.
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