Sunday, February 04, 2007
Labor denies plea to defer pay hike for domestic workers
THE Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) has retained the US$400 salary for domestic helpers, which had been opposed by recruitment agencies.
Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said the no placement policy in hiring of domestic workers should also be observed strictly. He said the Dole, likewise, decided to lower the 25 minimum age requirement for domestic helpers to 23 years old.
"We just considered the positions of various stakeholders in this issue," Brion said referring to migrant workers' groups, recruitment agencies, as well as their labor attaches and welfare officers.
Recruitment companies belonging to the Federated Association of Manpower Exporters (Fame) demanded for the deferment of the implementation of the US$400 salary increase and the minimum age requirement from 21 to 25 years old.
Fame president Eduardo Mahiya said the new policy "will affect the deployment of overseas household workers."
He said while they welcome the decision of the labor department to adopt some proposals of the recruitment firms, they believed that revisions were not that important since what they had been demanding is the scrapping of the new minimum wage.
"We welcome the concessions of the labor department. However since the measures only intended to relieve the stranded workers, we want the sticking points like the no placement fee and the US$400 wage to be deferred together with all the restrictive policies," Mahiya said in a text message.
There are about 20,000 domestic helpers bound for Hong Kong and Taiwan who have been stranded in the country after the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) refused to process their visas until they have taken the training being given by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda).
POEA Chief Rosalinda Baldoz, meanwhile, said Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) returning from vacation, emergency leave, or have not finished their contracts are not affected by whatever reform as well as those hired under job orders processed by the agency before Dec. 16, 2006 under the old rules.
On the other hand, OFWs, who have finished their contracts and leaving for another country before March 1, are covered by the US$400 salary but not the language and cultural orientation being conducted by the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) and the assessment done by Tesda while those who finished their contracts after 2006 but are returning to work are also covered by the US$400 salary, but not by Owwa and Tesda requirements.
But Brion, in an earlier interview, said the reforms in the deployment of household workers specifically the assessment is only applicable if they fail the assessment process. "As we have always been saying, the reforms that we have been implementing are for the long-term as the new standards would place the domestic helpers on a better footing against abuse and exploitation abroad," he said.
He said the decision to increase the salaries of the domestic workers from US$200 to US$400 is part of government's efforts to eliminate OFWs from being victims of maltreatment and abuses. (MSN/Sunnex)For more Philippine news, visit Sun.Star General Santos. (February 4, 2007 issue)
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