Bilang ng mga Filipino na Gustong Mag-trabaho bilang Household Service Workers sa UAE, Nasa 100,000!

MANILA, Philippines — KINUMPERMA ng Department of Labor and Employment o DOLE na nasa 100,000 ang bilang ng mga Filipinong naghihintay na maibabalik ang deployment ng mga household service workers o HSWs sa United Arab Emirates.

Kaugnay nito, kinumperma ni Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III na simula Marso 31, muling magpapadala ng mga HSW ang Pilipinas sa nabanggit na bansa.

Ito'y matapos nagkasundo ang Pilipinas at UAE sa tinaguriang “historic” agreement para sa ikabubuti ng mga Filipino domestic helpers sa nabanggit na bansa.

“Marami ‘yan. Isang daang libo,” ang naging sagot ni Bello sa panayam ng ABS-CBN nang tinanong sa bilang ng mga OFWs na naghihintay sa muling pagbabalik ng deployment sa ng mga HSW sa UAE.

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Paliwanag ng opisyal, maraming mga Filipino ang gustong mag-trabaho sa UAE dahil sa malaking sahod at patas na pagtrato sa mga household workers.

“Ganun karami, now that they are offering the deployment to the United Arab Emirates. Kasi alam niyo maganda ang pay scale doon, maganda ang treatment sa household service workers, kaya nga despite the fact na wala tayong deployment doon, marami tayong mga kababayan na pumupunta doon as tourists. And from tourist visa, nagkakaroon ng change to working visa,” dagdag pa ni Bello.

Taong 2014 nang sinuspende ng Pilipinas ang pagpapadala ng domestic helpers sa UAE.

Ayon sa Phippine delegation head na si Undersecretary Claro Arellano, sakop ng bagong deployment ang Unified Employment Contract na may mga probisyon kagaya ng standard employment contract na ginagamit sa Kuwait.

Napapaloob sa kontrata ang mahigpit na hakbang upang maprotektahan ang mga Filipino household workers ayon na rin sa direktiba ni Pangulong Rodrigo Duterte.

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Sa ilalim ng unified contract, pawang may pananagutan ang employer, ang Foreign Recruitment Agencies at ang Philippine Recruitment Agencies sakaling may mangyaring masama sa Filipino workers.

Napapaloob din sa nasabing kontrata ang mga sumusunod:

• The right of the domestic worker to take at least eight (8) continuous hours of sleep every night;
• The right of the domestic worker to take a break that is paid, outside the residence of the employer at least one (1) full day every week;
• The right of the domestic worker to keep his/her passport or identification documents and the employer is not allowed to hold them;
• The employer shall allow the domestic worker to have and use cellular phones and other communication devices and the employer is prohibited from confiscating them;
• Opening of bank account under the name of the domestic worker for payment of salary; 
• Allowing the domestic workers to cook her or his own food.

Maliban dito may napagkasunduan din ukol sa conversion ng tourist o visit visa patungong working visa.

Tulad ng napagkasunduan, aabisuhan ang Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) kapag ang isang visit visa ay 'ikinonvert' sa employment visa para sa isang Filipino domestic worker.

Hindi din umano inirerekomenda ang conversion ng tourist visa patungong working visa dahil maaaring maging dahilan ito ng illegal recruitment at trafficking in persons.

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OFWs In Hong Kong Among The Poorest Working Conditions — Studies

A study which was conducted by a Chinese University reveals the very unfavorable working conditions of foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong which includes thousands of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) who work as household service workers (HSW) and Indonesians.

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The Chinese University’s Research Centre on Migration and Mobility conducted a survey and it turns out that there are already 380,000 foreign domestic helpers in Hong Kong. The study also revealed that the working condition of these foreign domestic helpers was totally pathetic.

According to the survey made with 2,000 respondents, 70.6% are working 13 hours per day and about 34.6% still had to work on their day off.
More so, there are also about 5.9% of foreign domestic helpers who are not given a day off in a single week. About 23.7% also do not have a break even on legal holidays.

One of the researchers Professor Raees Begum Baig finds the live-in set up to be the culprit for this longer work hours.
“It is very hard to define what is formal work and what is not.” Says Baig.

Among other statistics are:

• 6% feel discriminated 
• 9% is not being treated well by their employers 
• 3% have never received their wage on time 
• 8% are earning less than the statutory monthly required salary 
• 3% still have to pay their home agency 
• 46% still have to pay a local agency

These domestic helpers, mostly Filipinos and Indonesians, have poor health because of long working hours and unjust treatment of their employers.

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Duterte Declared Permanent Deployment Ban To Kuwait: Calls Out To OFWs To Come Home

President Rodrigo Duterte said that the deployment ban of overseas Filipino workers to Kuwait, especially domestic helpers, would be permanent.

"There will be no more recruitment... especially domestic helpers," said Duterte.

The president also urged every Filipino skilled workers in Kuwait to come home, as jobs would be available for them in the country.

China is considered among the possible future deployment destinations, workers could look forward to, where some 100,000 English teachers would be needed in the next five years.

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There would also be a need for caregivers in countries with aging populations, with Duterte pointing to Japan as one of these possible destination countries.

Furthermore, the president said that the Philippines would need workers because of the bullish economy, and because of the government's "Build, Build, Build" infrastructure program.

As he made an appeal to Kuwait OFWs' sense of patriotism, the President said, "please come home."

Nevertheless, Duterte conceded that things would initially be difficult for returning workers, but matters would "straighten out" eventually.

According to the Foreign Affairs Department, there were 260,000 Filipinos working in Kuwait, with more than 65 percent of the domestic helpers.

However, The president expressed much gratitude to Kuwait for the help it provided to OFWs. He also reiterated that he had no ill will towards the Kuwaiti government, neither with its people. Nonetheless, he hoped that the Filipino workers who chose to remain in Kuwait would be treated humanely.
Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said that the president's statement was misquoted and reports are sometimes inaccurate. The President reportedly said that the ban is now permanent -- that is not the case, he said. The President had said from the start that the deployment ban will stay for as long as there is no MOU and there is no justice.
Secretary Bello also said that he will still clarify the issue with the president.

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OFW Survival Stories

It is not only a few times we hear and read about overseas Filipino workers (OFW) being maltreated and abused by their employers, some of them even return home mentally disoriented and some even did not make it home alive. Importers trade commodities and products but in the Philippines, we export skilled and household workers alike. The latter has a significant number deployed all over the globe with over two million domestic helpers work in the Gulf countries such as Bahrain, Iraq, Iran, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, where cases of abuse are registered.

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The story of Joanna Demafelis, a household worker who was found inside a freezer in her former employer's abandoned residence in Kuwait, made a significant way to address the rampant issue of HSWs abuse and maltreatment. To avoid further similar incidents, President Rodrigo Duterte through Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III ordered immediate deployment ban of all OFWs bound to Kuwait. Should his demands to the government of Kuwait for better living condition and protection of the OFWs be met, the ban may be finally lifted.

Hundreds of maltreatment happened in several parts of the gulf. It could be referred to as modern-day slavery. Most household workers are not even allowed to take at least a day off in a week. Some of them are also receiving delayed salaries, some none at all. Others are not even adequate food. They are treated as commodities instead being a human as if the employers own them like a piece of tool.
Some of them are even sold to other employers.

There have been varying degrees of abuses perpetrated on domestic helpers, but these abuses have largely been tied to the Kafala system, a visa-sponsorship system implemented by Lebanon, Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE, where workers are essentially beholden to the demands of their employers. The employer or the sponsor is required to “assume full economic and legal responsibility” and has complete control over when the worker can leave and where the worker goes.

It includes keeping the employee's passport, a usual practice in the Gulf countries. they do it to prevent the holder to escape from their custody.

While the Kafala system also applies to other migrant workers such as those working in construction, in hospitals, or in engineering, Dr. Jean Franco, an assistant professor at the University of the Philippines whose research focuses on the politics of gender and labor-out migration, says that the abuses carried by the Kafala are gravely felt by domestic helpers because they are not within the public sphere.

With the deployment ban in Kuwait, the Philippine government has somehow given the chance to show that it can do measures to alleviate and stop the maltreatment and the abuses to the HSWs and it could possibly be extended to other parts of the Middle East where many cases of abuse are happening. 

Just recently, President Duterte has announced that the Kuwait government has already agreed to his terms favoring the OFWs working in their country.

Filipino resilience is always evident in every OFW. They can endure everything just for the sake of giving their beloved family the best future possible. They give a lot to the government by keeping the economy kicking by their remittances. In return, the government should always assure their welfare and safety.

READ MORE:

Recruiters With Delisted, Banned, Suspended, Revoked And Cancelled POEA Licenses 2018

List of Philippine Embassies And Consulates Around The World

Classic Room Mates You Probably Living With

Do Not Be Fooled By Your Recruitment Agencies, Know Your  Correct Fees

Remittance Fees To Be Imposed On Kuwait Expats Expected To Bring $230 Million Income

TESDA Provides Training For Returning OFWs

Cash Aid To Be Given To Displaced OFWs From Kuwait—OWWA

Former OFW In Dubai Now Earning P25K A Week From Her Business

Top Search Engines In The Philippines For Finding Jobs Abroad

5 Signs A Person Is Going To Be Poor And 5 Signs You Are Going To Be Rich

©2018 THOUGHTSKOTO

www.jbsolis.com

Do You Agree With The Proposed Filipino Deployment Ban To Abusive Host Countries?

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Senators are urging President Duterte to make  the ban on the deployment of Filipino housemaids to Kuwait permanent and expand the ban to countries with high number of cases of abuse and maltreatment committed against the Overseas Filipino Workers.

Sen. Cynthia Villar said that the government should strictly impose a permanent ban on countries most particularly in the Middle East, with recorded a high incidence of abuse of OFWs, particularly household service workers.

“The government knows these countries that are abusive to our domestic helpers so let’s not send them there because they’ll be victimized,” Villar said.

She said the “culture” in certain Middle East countries is “really different” so the deployment of Filipino household workers there often pose problems for their families and the government.

The senator said 80 percent of the problematic cases handled by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and other concerned agencies involve overseas Filipino household service workers.

“If they (Filipino domestic workers) are not deployed, then 80 percent of the government’s problem on OFWs (overseas Filipino workers) are gone,” Villar said.

She expressed support for Duterte’s deployment ban on Kuwait.

Detained Sen. Leila de Lima called on the Duterte administration to provide measures for the integration of hundreds of OFWs displaced due to the continued diplomatic row between Qatar and its neighboring countries.

De Lima said the DOLE and the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) should swiftly implement their contingency plans to assist OFWs and their families in the Philippines.  

“The government should ensure that OFWs would be assisted in finding decent jobs back home or other overseas destinations, if not help them set up business and livelihood in the country,” she said.

Sen. Sherwin Gatchalian noted that Kuwait and Saudi Arabia appeared to have the most number of recorded cases of abuse of OFWs.

Gatchalian pushed for bilateral agreements between the government and host countries to protect OFWs. Existing pacts should be reviewed, he said.

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He noted professionals who work in the Middle East are less prone to abuse so the government should only ban sending Filipino women to work as domestic helpers abroad.

Vice President Leni Robredo is pushing for the immediate signing of the bilateral agreement between the Philippines and Kuwait that seeks to increase protection of Filipino workers in the Gulf nation.

Robredo also backed yesterday Duterte’s decision to impose a deployment ban on Kuwait following reports of abuses against Filipino household workers in the country.

Robredo, however, underscored the importance of the pending bilateral agreement, which she hopes would be signed by the two governments when Duterte’s visit to Kuwait pushes through.

The Vice President noted that while repatriation has begun for OFWs there, measures must be in place to protect more than 250,000 Filipinos who may still wish to continue working there.

“I hope his visit will put pressue on the Kuwait government to sign it,” Robredo said in her weekly program BISErbisyong Leni over radio dzXL.

“Because even if there’s deployment ban and repatriation, the reality is there are some Filipinos, who have not experienced abuses, who wouldn’t want to go home because they are thinking of their employment. So we need to ensure that Filipinos who will stay in the country will really be protected,” she said.

Kuwait has invited Duterte for a visit amid issues involving the treatment of Filipino domestic helpers in the country.

Earlier, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said Kuwait Ambassador Saleh Ahmad Althwaikh, who has met recently with the President in Malacañang, has committed to help expedite the signing of the agreement.

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Hans Cacdac, who was Robredo’s guest in her radio program yesterday, said a draft of the bilateral agreement for OFWs’ protection has been sent to the Kuwaiti government, which is now awaiting its signing.

Cacdac also said the Kuwaiti government’s invitation to Duterte is “one of the indicators” of talks over such agreement.

Robredo said the suspension of OFW deployment to Kuwait is a “strong response” to reports of violence against Filipino workers.

A body of a missing Filipino household worker was recently discovered inside a freezer in an abandoned apartment in Kuwait City.

“I think the President did the right thing. It’s really a strong statement amid the violence committed against Filipino domestic helpers there,” Robredo said.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has recently declared a total ban for OFW deployment in Kuwait and repatriated  hundreds of OFWs from the Middle Eastern country where high incidents of abuse and maltreatment is happening.

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Read More:
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