FORMER House Speaker Alan Peter Cayetano said the newly approved Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Act will ensure ethical recruitment for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
He said the issues related to their recruitment, employment, and deployment will be addressed and regulated.
“Kasi ‘pag desperado o maraming economic crisis, maraming mga recruiter na nanloloko din o maraming mga employer din. O kaya, sa mga bansa na medyo hirap sa karapatan ng migrant workers, naaapi talaga. So, I wanted to make sure na yung ethical recruitment, nandiyan sa bagong batas,” Cayetano said in a media interview on January 7, 2022.
Cayetano filed the bill creating the new department as Senator in 2017.
While that did not make it into law, he filed a similar bill in the House of Representatives in 2019.
As Speaker, he led the House in passing the measure in March 2020.
The bill aimed to create a Department of Filipinos Overseas and Foreign Employment — a single agency that would focus solely on the concerns of Filipino migrants.
When the Senate approved its version on December 14, 2021, the House adopted it the following day in order to bypass the need for a bicameral conference committee meeting and to allow the measure to be transmitted to Malacañang for the President’s signature.
It was finally signed into law by President Rodrigo Duterte on December 30, 2021.
“I think una tayo sa buong mundo na ilagay ‘yun sa batas and magkaroon ng departamento [para sa Migrant Workers],” Cayetano said.
“At the heart of this bill is ethical recruitment,” he added.
The Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) are to continue their mandate of looking after the rights of migrant workers during the transitory period and prevent any untoward action or exploitation.
Cayetano warned Filipinos to be wary of overseas job offers that are “too good to be true” to avoid being illegally recruited.
Cayetano said the President can already appoint a Secretary to the DMW in the coming weeks, but added that it will take time to set up the department itself. The law mandates that the Department must be completed within two years from the effectivity of the Act.
“In a few weeks, pwede na po magappoint yung Presidente ng Secretary na lang, pero yung mismong Departmento, sa 2023 pa or 2024,” he said.
Cayetano earlier said the manpower for the DMW is already there and all that is needed is a point person for it to finally operate.
“Nandyan naman y’ung mga tao eh – mga taga-POEA (Philippine Overseas Employment Administration), Owwa (Overseas Workers Welfare Administration), USec. Sarah Arriola ng OUMWA (Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers' Affairs) sa DFA (Department of Foreign Affairs),” he said.