Gabriela Women's Party Rep. Liza Maza (second from right) in OFWs rally against the new POEA guidelines,  Hong Kong, Jan. 28

Weekly protest actions in the Philippines and a big mobilization in Hong Kong are already set to show that overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), their families and supporters are against the new guidelines of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).

Extortion

Migrante International, an alliance of organizations of overseas Filipinos and their families, announced on Feb. 3 that weekly protests would be held at the POEA and Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) offices starting Feb. 6.

Under the new guidelines, those applying as domestic helpers abroad had to undergo additional training under POEA’s Pre-Qualification for Household Service Workers scheme.  The training would cost them P10, 000-P15, 000 ($205.29 to $307.94 at an exchange rate of $1=P48.71). Aside from this, the guideline sets the minimum wage of overseas domestic workers to $200 to $400.  It also stipulates that no placement fee should be charged to applicants, but limits the minimum age to 25 years old.

Dolores Balladares, chairperson of the United Filipinos in Hong Kong (Unifil-HK), said that the seemingly good aspects of the new guidelines, particularly the provision on the $400 minimum wage for domestic workers and the prohibition on the charging of placement fees, are but “sugar coatings to cover the real intent of the new scheme.”

These measures, government officials said, were put in place to protect contract workers from possible abuse.

But Migrante chair Connie Bragas-Regalado said that the government’s justification for the additional training is based on their baseless conclusion that the abuse of OFWs can be traced to their lack of skills in operating household appliances.   

Calling this absurd, Bragas-Regaladao asked, “What about those who are raped, killed or outrightly treated as modern-slaves?”

Bragas-Regalado also said that the so-called “professionalization” program for domestic workers is but the government’s “bid to justify extortion” in the form of new training fees.

Reforms?

The latest POEA resolution clarified that only newly-hired maids are required to undergo a competency assessment administered by the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) and a language and culture training from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA).

Meanwhile, Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said that his department has agreed to set the minimum age requirement for domestic helpers to 23 years old from 25.

Balladares said that these “reforms” only show that “the government is just trying to douse the mounting protests of OFWs against these new policies.”
 
“We will not be trapped by such an obvious ploy to dampen the anger of current OFWs and drive a wedge between us and our fellow OFWs,” she said.  

She said that so long as the guidelines stay, “extortion of the government shall remain.”

Global campaign

After a series of protest actions, OFWs in Hong Kong are preparing for a big mobilization on Sunday, Feb. 4.

Unifil-HK data showed that Hong Kong, one of the main destinations for OFWs working mostly as women household helpers, is home to about 118,000 domestic helpers.

Last week, Gabriela Women’s Partylist Rep. Liza Maza consulted migrant workers in Hong Kong regarding the new POEA guidelines. Maza has earlier filed a resolution in Congress urging an investigation into the new POEA guidelines. She also delivered a privilege speech at the House of Representatives expressing the sentiments of OFWs demanding that the new guidelines be scrapped.

She described the policy as “pure and simple money-making venture at the expense of millions of Filipino domestic helpers around the globe.”

“Kinakalakal na sila, kinokotongan pa,” (They are not only being commodified, they are also subjetcted to extortion) she said. 

She also said this scheme of forcing even veteran domestic helpers to shell out some P12, 000 ($246.35) for training is “preposterous,” noting the number of “used and abused” OFWs allegedly not getting any substantial help from the government. 

The congresswoman said that the government refuses to help OFWs who are undocumented even if they are victims of rape and human trafficking.

“Registered or not, it is the duty of the government to protect its citizens abroad,” she said.

Migrante is coordinating with their members and allied organizations in other countries such as Taiwan, Korea, Japan, Macau, Canada, and Europe to mount an international campaign against the said training scheme. Bulatlat

BACK TO TOP ■  PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION  ■   COMMENT

© 2007 Bulatlat ■  Alipato Publications

Permission is granted to reprint or redistribute this article, provided its author/s and Bulatlat are properly credited and notified.