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Manila Bulletin devider Philippines devider National devider DOLE to speed up release of unpaid wages of OFWs in Saudi

DOLE to speed up release of unpaid wages of OFWs in Saudi

Published Nov 4, 2021 10:45 am

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to form a technical working group (TWG) to expedite the release of unpaid wages and end of contract payments of Filipino migrant workers from Saudi Arabia who were forced to return home in 2016.

(Jansen Romero / FILE PHOTO / MANILA BULLETIN)

"The Department will set up a TWG which will comprise significant DOLE agencies, as well as representatives from the workers’ group, to determine all details relevant to the release of the full settlement," Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a statement on Thursday, Nov. 4.

Bello directed the inclusion of representatives from the group of the affected overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in a bid to hasten the processing of claims of around 9,000 repatriated migrant workers.

The Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), which are DOLE’s lead agencies in protecting distressed OFWs, will also join the TWG along with the Department's labor office in the kingdom.

Saudi Labor Minister Ahmed Al-Rajhi agreed to pay the P4.6 billion worth of unpaid salaries and benefits of the affected OFWs during his meeting with Bello in Dubai last week.

The labor chief earlier said the unpaid wages are expected to be settled by the Saudi government when Al-Rajhi visits the country in December, in time for the holiday season.

OWWA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac said all specifics, such as eligibility, distribution mechanism, and documentary requirements, will be finalized through the TWG and should be ready before the scheduled visit of the Saudi labor minister.

The Department is expected to form and convene the TWG by next week.

"We acknowledge the urgency of your situation and we are ever-conscious that you have been waiting for your hard-earned and well-deserved wages for more than four years," Bello told the affected OFWs.

Bello earlier warned of a deployment ban in Saudi Arabia after it refused to pay the billions' worth of unpaid wages and benefit of the thousands of OFWs who were repatriated in 2016.

This, even after the affected workers won the case over their unsettled pay in the Middle Eastern country.

Related Tags

unpaid claims OFWs SAUDI ARABIA Silvestre Bello III overseas Filipino workers Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE)
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