December 21, 2000 Press Release

Volunteer Ombudsman Improves Lives of Chinese Garment Workers

SAIPAN. Helping to improve the lives and protect the rights of her fellow Chinese citizens, Publisher Betty Bai of the Chinese Community News has recently found herself in the role of ombudsman for Saipan's garment workers. The Saipan Garment Manufacturers Association (SGMA) today praised the newspaper and especially Betty Bai for her volunteer work in helping educate workers on employment issues, as well as helping resolve potential conflicts for employees of a factory that was down-sizing.

Published by the Chinese Association of Saipan, TheChinese Community News first began monthly distribution in 1996 in order to help Chinese-speaking people living and working on Saipan keep informed of current local events. Today the publication has grown to distribute 1,500 copies bi-monthly. It is widely read among factory workers who rely on the paper for news about local and federal employment laws, local legislation, and general news of the Saipan community. It frequently carries interviews and public service announcements from the U.S. Labor Department, the CNMI departments of Labor & Immigration, Public Health, and Public Safety - all about issues pertinent to the workers' well being.

In the past year, SGMA also began disseminating information through The Chinese Community News to help educate factory employees about the SGMA "Code of Conduct" and compliance monitoring. As a result, factory workers have come to better understand their rights and responsibilities while being employed on Saipan, and have been able to communicate with SGMA and their employers through Bai, who is an experienced translator.

As publisher of the newspaper, Bai has received dozens of letters from factory workers, some with questions about their employment. "Our newspaper is very important for the Chinese community because it provides a communication channel for Chinese-speaking people," said Bai. "We get a lot of letters from our readers. Some write poems, talk about their impressions of life on Saipan. Sometimes people don't know what to do if they have a question about their jobs, so they come to me for help with translations."

On more than one occasion, Bai has helped deter potential labor problems in the garment industry. Recently Bai helped SGMA and 25 workers from one factory with a complaint on overtime availability. The workers visited SGMA's office and Bai helped SGMA work with the group and factory management for a peaceful resolution of their concerns.

The Chinese Community news and Publisher Betty Bai have also helped to correct deficiencies found during the first round of independent monitoring of Saipan's factories conducted by PricewaterhouseCoopers, according to SGMA Executive Director Richard A. Pierce.

"One area discovered by PwC was that workers were unfamiliar with all aspects of our Code of Conduct. The Chinese newspaper has helped correct this among the foreign workers," said Pierce. "We really appreciate what Betty has done for SGMA and for individual Chinese garment workers on a volunteer basis. She has ended up being the truest definition of an ombudsman by helping workers to communicate with their employers and various government agencies of the CNMI to solve individual problems."