Certification requirement of host countries for OFW deployment suspended

Vice President Jejomar Binay has suspended for 60 days the implementation of the required certification of host countries for the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFW).

A statement posted on the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) website quoted Binay, who is also the presidential adviser on OFW concerns, as saying that the suspension was to allow for ample time to assess compliance of host countries with the new Philippine law on migrant workers.

The newly amended Republic Act 10022 or the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos’ Act of 1995 seeks to intensify protection for OFWs by deploying them in migrant-friendly countries.

The statement said that in a meeting of the POEA Governing Board that was attended by Binay last week, both the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) agreed to extend the 90-day and 120-day certification periods to give more time to assess if host countries are able to comply with the requirements of the amended RA 10022.

Under the amended law, Philippine embassies will make a survey to certify if the rights of migrant workers are protected in countries under their jurisdiction. The DFA then issues a certification that the host country meets the criteria set by the law for the deployment of OFWs.

The criteria for the survey are:

– if the receiving country has existing labor and social laws protecting the rights of migrant workers;

– if the receiving country is a signatory to and/or has ratified multilateral conventions, declarations or resolutions relating to the protection of migrant workers;

– if the country has concluded a bilateral agreement or arrangement on the protection of the rights of overseas Filipino workers; and

– if the receiving country is taking positive and concrete measures to implement the first three criteria.

Under the Implementing Rules and Regulations of RA 10022, embassies were given until November 11 to submit the certification for countries under their jurisdiction. For territories where there are no Philippine embassies, the government set a deadline of December 11 to identify the safety of migrant workers there.

“The DFA believes that the certification of countries will allow prospective OFWs to make informed decisions whether they want to work in a given country. It will also allow them to take advantage of working in a country where their rights are more protected,” the DFA said in an earlier statement.

The DFA also said earlier that based on initial survey, the countries were the rights of migrant workers are protected include Kuwait, Cambodia, Timor-Leste, Laos, Myanmar, Ireland, Saipan, Norway, Syria and Vietnam.

Last year, the government deployed some 1.4 OFWs, majority of whom are domestic helpers, nurses, caregivers and waiters, generating over US$17 billion in remittances, according to data from the POEA. – Jerrie M. Abella/KBK, GMANews.TV