Eni states
wage hikes inevitable, unless canneries supply more data
by Fili Sagapolutele
Samoa News staff
Congressman
Faleomavaega Eni has criticized the canneries for failing to
provide necessary data about their profitability-information
needed to determine if further increases in minimum wage would
result in lay-offs or closure.
Faleomavaega
made the comment in a statement released last Friday, announcing
his efforts with Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands Gov.
Benigno Fitial, requesting several congressional members to support
an amendment that allocates $30 million for American Samoa and
CNMI in the event the next wage hike set for May 25 is not halted
or delayed. (See Saturday's edition for more details)
Last month, U.S.
Rep. George Miller and U.S. Sen. Edward Kennedy wrote to U.S.
Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao and Faleomavaega's Office that
they were disappointed in the Department of Labor's (DOL) report
undertaken to assess the impact of minimum wage increases in
American Samoa and CNMI.
Miller and Kennedy
chair committees that oversee minimum wage issues. For American
Samoa, Miller and Kennedy stated that the DOL failed to scrutinize
contradictory statements made by the canneries about whether
or not they could afford further increases.
"Regrettably,
our canneries failed to provide, and the DOL failed to request,
appropriate data about our canneries profitability which was
needed to determine if further increases would lead to closures
or layoffs," Faleomavaega said Friday. "As a result...and,
given other considerations and concerns in CNMI, the two chairmen
have determined that they cannot hold off further minimum wage
increases at this time."
"In my heart,"
Faleomavaega said, "I continue to believe our workers deserve
decent wages. For more than 40 years, our tuna canneries have
exported tens of billions of dollars of canned tuna from American
Samoa while at the same time keeping our local wages way below
national minimum wage standards. While their corporate executives
were making millions, our people got one increase of 3 cents
per hour in the past ten years."
"Now Congress
is asking the canneries to do better and be better," he
said.
"The first
increase of fifty-cents per hour is little more than if our canneries
had given our workers a nickel an hour increase for the past
ten years," he observed. "A second increase in minimum
wage would be the same as if our canneries had given our workers
an extra ten cents per hour for the past ten years."
"Had our
canneries made incremental increases, they would not be in the
position they are in today having to pay up what they should
have paid out long ago," he said. "Despite the failure
of our canneries, I am convinced they now need help."
Faleomavaega
said it's his understanding that StarKist Seafood Inc., which
includes StarKist Samoa, is up for sale. "This adds new
complications, since it is difficult to help when we don't know
the new owners or management or whether or not they have a long-term
commitment to American Samoa. If our canneries have no commitment
to us, Congress has little incentive to help," he added.
San Francisco-based
Del Monte Food Inc., current owner of StarKist, has declined
to comment when asked about numerous reports that StarKist was
up for sale.
Faleomavaega
and Fitial have informed certain congressional members that further
escalation of the minimum wage could lead to the loss of tuna
cannery operations in the territory and the canneries will move
to foreign countries where labor costs are lower.
Presently, more
than 80% of the private sector economy is dependent on two canneries,
which employ more than 74% of the workforce. "With the loss
of the canneries, American Samoa has been informed that it will
lose substantial shipping schedules," wrote Faleomavaega
and Fitial. "With no alternative industries to support shipping
service, this will result in higher costs of goods for all residents
in the islands."
While the canneries
have yet to make an official statement as to what they would
do if the next wage hike goes into effect, Gov. Togiola Tulafono
said last month that he has been informed by the canneries that
the next wage hike will result in closure.
Reach the reporter
at
fili@samoanews.com
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