https://arab.news/9tp65
- Only Filipinos with prior work experience abroad will be deployed to Kuwait
- Manila will appoint welfare officers to assist overseas Filipino workers
MANILA: The Philippines has resumed sending workers to Kuwait, with new protections in place to secure their rights and welfare, the Department of Migrant Workers said, as a group of two dozen Filipino domestic workers readies to depart to the Gulf state this week.
Manila has been working to tackle labor concerns related to overseas Filipino workers in Kuwait since last year, when it suspended the deployment of first-time workers following the murder of domestic worker Jullebee Ranara in January 2023.
Bilateral relations saw another setback when Kuwait suspended the issuance of new visas for Philippine nationals in May 2023.
After a series of consultations, the countries reached an agreement in June 2024 to lift their respective suspensions.
“The resumption of OFW deployment was a result of the agreement between the Philippine government and Kuwait, which provides measures for enhanced OFW protection,” the DMW said in a statement.
“The 35 OFWs are Filipino domestic workers with prior experience working overseas and deployed through Philippine and Kuwait recruitment agencies with good track record. Eleven of them were sent off last Friday, led by Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac, while the 24 OFWs are set to depart this week.”
The new batch will join around 270,000 OFWs who live and work in Kuwait, which for years has been among the top destinations for Filipino migrant workers.
The Philippines and Kuwait have agreed to establish a joint committee to address labor affairs, implement a system for the whitelisting of recruitment agencies and appoint welfare desk officers to monitor and provide assistance for OFWs.
Arnold Mamaclay, president of the Philippine Employment Agencies and Associates for Corporate Employers in the Middle East, told Arab News that the Philippine Migrant Workers Office in Kuwait has been “very strict in verifying documents” to “make sure that OFWs are protected and will be deployed to companies who are well-verified.”
Other measures, such as electronic salary payment, will “address issues like non-payment and delayed wages,” he added.
Furthermore, he said sending “only those with prior work experience abroad” to Kuwait will reduce their “vulnerability to abuse.”