I question the headline and some of the facts in the Saipan Tribune
This whole story is a big mess. The nurses were ordered by the CNMI DOL to report to Labor to find a new employer. The nurses are still reporting in violation of the DOL order to a CNMI Government facility, and working without getting paid. Apparently $16,000 was appropriated to pay the nurses miniumum wage for the past 2 months, but what exactly does that mean? The nurses have a contract with SEAS Employment Agency, so do they get the $16,000, or does the agency receive the money? And what about the additional $184,000 the CNMI Government owes SEAS?
The nurses are quoted in the Saipan Tribune that they would like to work directly with the CNMI Government because they are not paid on time, but the reason they are not paid is because the CNMI Government is not paying SEAS.
Back in 2003 SEAS supplied most of the nurses to CHC as well. The CNMI Government decided to hire the nurses directly because of the high turnover of the manpower nurses.
2 comments:
Inos was quoted in todays paper as saying that the contractual obligations should be looked into, and they should have more manpower nurses, even for CHC. I'm not sure how many companies are willing to provide nurses based on the current track record of payment.
Manpower nurses would be considerably cheaper than hiring nursed directly. The CNMI government pays a considerable amount for insurance, retirement, housing allowances, and even some relocation expenses. Companies would be skeptical, but I would actually think that you would find some willing to provide services.
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