By Veronica Uy
www.INQUIRER.net
Posted date: February 14, 2008
MANILA, Philippines — (UPDATE) The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has suspended a circular requiring employers to pay a $5,000 repatriation bond and direct-hire Filipino workers to post a performance bond equal to three months’ pay.
Memorandum Circular (MC) 04, series of 2007, was suspended after a directive from President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo, POEA Administrator Rosalinda Baldoz said.In a phone interview, Baldoz told INQUIRER.net the suspension will remain in effect pending discussions by the POEA governing board on Monday.The suspension means direct-hires will be processed under POEA rules in effect before MC 04 was issued.MC 04 received a lot of flak from overseas Filipino workers’ (OFWs) organizations and advocacy groups when it took effect January 16 this year.
The OFWs complained the additional requirements would either be passed on to them by their employers or make them unattractive to employers abroad.But Labor Secretary Arturo Brion, who heads the POEA governing body, said the additional requirements were meant to protect the workers. Baldoz said discussions will center principally on professionals who will be adversely affected by the order.“We will review the order to see if there is a need for a more relaxed policy pertaining to professionals and countries with a long track record of workers’ protection,” she said.The POEA chief foresees a very lively discussion on Monday, particularly on the definition of professionals.The new order would “relax” the rules for direct-hire “professionals, those to be employed by reputable companies already providing adequate protection, and similarly situated employers.”Earlier, the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) backpedaled on the controversial order and said it would consider exempting countries with verified protective mechanisms.Some two weeks ago, Brion said of the 35 countries with a high concentration of OFWs, the Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) in Italy, Geneva, and Hong Kong have so far confirmed that employers have been complying with the requirements guaranteeing repatriation assistance and payment of salaries.
Friday, March 7, 2008
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6 comments:
Supposedly, this is to help protect the Filipino worker. If anything, it lessens the opportunity. To date: Employers hiring filipino caregivers who are exiting directly from the Philippines will have to submit the LMO and the original contract for authentication by POLO office.
ADDENDUM TO THE EMPLOYMENT CONTRACT
1.Employer to bear cost of transportation from origin to destination and back, during the period of employment.
2. Termination of employee shall be for just cause.
3. Employer to be responsible for medical treatment during the time employee is not covered by OHIP.
4. In the event of work-related death during the term of employment, the employer shall be responsible for repatriation of remains.
How will your agency deal with this new rule?
WOW! Are they serious?
It doesn't seem to work for the Live-in caregiver program. It wouldn't be valid. For me I think it's just another way for Philippines to make it harder for their people to actually get a leg up. Though this new rules is being trumpetted as "protection" I highly doubt it.
First - airfare, maybe to get here some families will - but then again, how can a family be guaranteed that the hired nanny will actually report for duties? As I understand it, there's nothing holding them to the job offer. They can come and in two days leave.
Second - just cause -- during the probationary period are we required to give just cause?
Third - Medical treatment -- posibly - it's just 200 or so for three months visitors coverage.
Fourth - repatriation of remains - isn't this the Filipino Governments responsibility?
Another option: we could always hire other nationalities too.
We are very glad to know that POEA has suspended it.
http://www.poea.gov.ph/news/2008/PR_Feb2008_suspendMC4.pdf
At this time the four points are still required to be signed by employer and authenticated through POLO in Toronto/Philippine Consulate in Toronto.
A few of our families got delayed in this -- Nannies were hired out of Hong Kong, but wanted to exit from the Philippines so they can visit their families before leaving for Canada. While trying to complete the exit requirements of POEA - was told that they needed to have the original employment contract verified and authenticated --once completed, employer to send the docs to nanny.
The fees are as follows:
verification fee - US$10.00 payable to the PHILIPPINE OVERSEAS LABOR OFFICE
authentication fee - $28.75 payable to the PHIILIPPINE CONSULATE GENERAL
Include a pre-paid self addressed envelope to be used when they mail back the documents to the family, once verified and authenticated.
This would delay the arrival of the nanny about 3-4weeks.
I have to agree with Jack's comments. I think Philippines forgets who their competition are -- that China, India and Latin America are also sources of "cheap" labour. Families have so many options. They don't have to have a Filipino National!
I feel that the 2 conditions : 1) employer having to pay 2 way trip is unecessary as the foreign live in caregiver,once in Canada does not expect to retun to the Philippines.
2)employer pays the cost of repatration of remains. That is a heavy burden to place on the employer.
For sure, Canadian employers will stop hiring caregivers from the Philippines.
Employers for caregivers are not to be compared to business enterprises.
The new policy of the Philippine Government regarding caregivers bound for Canada is a big problem for us caregivers.Some employers doesnt want to sign the addendum because this is just an added expenses to them.So, they think why hire caregivers from the Philippines if they can hire caregivers from other countries or in canada..Our problem now as caregivers is, even if we already have our work visa for canada, if the employer wont sign the addendum, what's the used of our visa, all the hardship, the expenses we incurred in this application?The bottomline is, we can't go to canada even if we already have our plane ticket beacuse of this new problem w/ the addendum.The addendum is just a barrier, it stops the opportunity for us to work in canada.I hope the government will imposed the addendum to big companies only not to private employers who hire caregivers..
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