ACTS-OFW Partylist Rep. John R. Bertiz III has urged the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Department of Labor and Employment to create a Joint Crisis Management Team that would look into the plight of laid-off overseas Filipino workers in the Middle East, notably in Saudi Arabia.
Bertiz issued the call as he filed House Resolution No. 13 urging DFA and DOLE to create a Joint Crisis Management Team that would assist thousands of OFWs who were laid off because their respective companies in said countries went bankrupt.
“The apparent lack of coordination and policy consensus between the two departments continue to be felt on the ground by affected OFWs across Saudi Arabia and in some other areas across the Middle East, leading their families at home and workers onsite to the edge of desperation, if not depression,” he noted in his resolution.
Bertiz, a former OFW himself, noted that thousands of OFWs were affected by the financial problems of major Saudi trading and construction companies, notably by Saudi Oger Ltd., Mohammad Al-Mojil Group, Mohammed Al Barghash Trading and Contracting Co., among others.
“Every effort must be undertaken by Philippine diplomatic offices in the Middle East and in other parts of the world to ensure that OFWs fighting for their legal rights to full compliance be successfully pursued in the name of labor justice and human rights,” he explained.
Reports reaching the Partylist states that thousands of OFWs are affected by the economic downturn in the Middle East caused by terrorism, armed hostilities, and steep declines in the global prices of oil.
Due to this economic situation, the neophyte lawmaker also noted many OFWs bear the brunt of austerity measures being implemented by private companies that have declared or are suspected to be on the road to financial bankruptcy.
“Our OFWs remain stranded in work camps and accommodation awaiting the payment of back wages and end-of-service benefits for more than a year, with some workers suffering inhumane conditions,” he said.
For instance, Bertiz cited the predicament of stranded OFWs who were employed by Saudi Oger Ltd. as they face physical threat from foreign co-workers who have gone on strike and resorted to violence and destruction of company properties.
“The two departments must waste no time in reaching to laid-off workers. Due recognition and urgent assistance must also be provided to workers laid off or retrenched due to redundancy of positions,” he added. GLOCAL PINOY/FJ MAGLALANG
