PH-Saudi Arabia labor pact up for review

THE labor agreement between the Philippines and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) is up for review in a bid to make it more attuned to times, the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said.

In a public forum earlier in the week, Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said that he and Saudi Ministry on Human Resources and Social Development (MHRSD) head Ahmad bin Sulaiman Alrajhi have agreed to conduct a review of their bilateral labor agreements.

"We discussed the forthcoming review of two major bilateral labor agreements we have with Saudi Arabia – one is the 2013 Domestic Worker Agreement and the other is the 2017 General Labor Agreement," said Cacdac.

"We aim to modify or emphasize greater protection for our overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in Saudi Arabia," he furthered.

In particular, the DMW chief said they want to make the bilateral agreements more responsive to the current needs of OFWs.

"We both agreed that it’s time to review in the context of the many factors that affect domestic workers and OFWs in general in this day and age," said the official.

Cacdac said more bilateral discussions will be made when he visits Saudi Arabia within the year.

To note, Saudi Arabia is the leading destination for OFWs. (HDT/SunStar Philippines)