By Jerome Aning
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: May 10, 2009
MANILA, Philippines -- The Filipino bus drivers who were stranded for three months in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, will file a class suit against their recruiter before a Manila court on Monday morning, an official of a non-government organization said.
The drivers will seek damages against CYM International Services and Placement Agency and will ask the court to nullify loans they incurred, amounting to P1.9 million each, said Susan Ople, president of the migrants welfare advocacy group Blas Ople Foundation, which has been helping the drivers.
"This is a team effort for justice," Ople, a former labor undersecretary, said in a statement sent to the Philippine Daily Inquirer (parent company of INQUIRER.net) Sunday afternoon.
Ople said the wives of the bus drivers sought their permission to join the suit.
Lawyer Reynaldo Robles, whose assistance the center sought for the OFWs, said the drivers were hoodwinked by the defendants into signing the documents, contracts or agreements, according to Ople.
"Thus, complainants' consent in such transactions is clearly vitiated ... the said transaction as well as all of its consequences including all undated checks must be annulled and or set aside," Ople said.
The suit would also seek actual, compensatory damages amounting to P100,000 each; moral damages amounting to P100,000 each; and, exemplary damages amounting to P100,000, or a total of P300,000 per complainant, she added.
The 137 drivers left their jobs in the Philippines to apply for jobs with the Road and Travel Authority in Dubai, through the CYM International. They were offered a monthly salary of P67,000 in dirhams. CYM referred the applicants to RJJ Lacaba to obtain loans to cover the placement fee of P150,300 each.
The drivers were asked to sign other papers that resulted in their original loan, together with other fees, being bloated to P1.9 million.
Some of the drivers have already returned to the Philippines while others remain in the United Arab Emirates after the labor department reportedly found new jobs for them in Dubai as well as in neighboring Qatar.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Sunday, May 10, 2009
UN to RP: Ensure rights of migrant workers
By Lira Dalangin-Fernandez
Reporter
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: May 07, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—As one of the biggest sources of migrant workers in the world, the Philippines should step up initiatives to ensure the protection of the rights of its workers, an arm of the United Nations (UN) said in a report.
The UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (“UN MWC”) said that being a “global model” for migration, it expects the Philippine government to employ higher standards of protecting the human rights of its workers.
The Center for Migrant Advocacy Philippines (CMA) released the concluding observations of the UN body on the report of the Philippines’ implementation of the Migrant Worker Convention.
The Philippines submitted its report to the UN body, which considered it during a meeting on April 23 to 24, 2009 in Geneva, Switzerland.
“In its concluding observations, the UN MWC recognized the fact that the Philippines is mainly a sending country and that most country destinations of Filipino migrant workers are not yet signatories to the MWC,” the CMA said in a news release Thursday.
The Committee also noted that the archipelagic geography of the Philippines limits the government in its fight against trafficking and its efforts to protect the human rights of migrant workers, the group said.
The Concluding Observation of the UN MWC also noted that “abuse and exploitation of Filipino migrant workers continue despite the Philippine government’s efforts to protect the rights of Filipino migrant workers abroad.”
”Many cases are underreported, and that most vulnerable are the women migrants. The Committee recommended to the Philippine government to exert more effort in the protection of women's rights and in the enhancement of women empowerment,” CMA quoted the report as saying.
Expressing concern on the Philippine government’s policy of exporting labor, as contained in Administrative Order 247 and 248 which put premium on the promotion of foreign employment of migrant workers over the protection of their human rights, the UN MWC also “strongly urged the Philippine government to review its labor migration policy in order to give primary importance to the protection of human rights.”
The UN MWC also noted the following observations: (a) failure of the Philippine government to set up a reliable and quality statistical database on migrant workers; (b) insufficient information on the content, conduct, and assessment of the pre-departure orientation seminars;
(c) the limited and conditional trade union rights granted to migrant workers in the Philippines, which is a violation of the MWC; (d) the absence of information on the use and operation of the Legal Assistance Fund for migrant workers; (e) the weak campaign against illegal recruitment; and (f) the restrictions on voting rights of Filipino immigrants and permanent residents abroad.
Ellene Sana, CMA executive director, said she hopes the government would take action on the observations of the UN body. She also welcomed the UN’s recognition of the role of non-government organizations in assisting migrant workers.
Reporter
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: May 07, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—As one of the biggest sources of migrant workers in the world, the Philippines should step up initiatives to ensure the protection of the rights of its workers, an arm of the United Nations (UN) said in a report.
The UN Committee on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of their Families (“UN MWC”) said that being a “global model” for migration, it expects the Philippine government to employ higher standards of protecting the human rights of its workers.
The Center for Migrant Advocacy Philippines (CMA) released the concluding observations of the UN body on the report of the Philippines’ implementation of the Migrant Worker Convention.
The Philippines submitted its report to the UN body, which considered it during a meeting on April 23 to 24, 2009 in Geneva, Switzerland.
“In its concluding observations, the UN MWC recognized the fact that the Philippines is mainly a sending country and that most country destinations of Filipino migrant workers are not yet signatories to the MWC,” the CMA said in a news release Thursday.
The Committee also noted that the archipelagic geography of the Philippines limits the government in its fight against trafficking and its efforts to protect the human rights of migrant workers, the group said.
The Concluding Observation of the UN MWC also noted that “abuse and exploitation of Filipino migrant workers continue despite the Philippine government’s efforts to protect the rights of Filipino migrant workers abroad.”
”Many cases are underreported, and that most vulnerable are the women migrants. The Committee recommended to the Philippine government to exert more effort in the protection of women's rights and in the enhancement of women empowerment,” CMA quoted the report as saying.
Expressing concern on the Philippine government’s policy of exporting labor, as contained in Administrative Order 247 and 248 which put premium on the promotion of foreign employment of migrant workers over the protection of their human rights, the UN MWC also “strongly urged the Philippine government to review its labor migration policy in order to give primary importance to the protection of human rights.”
The UN MWC also noted the following observations: (a) failure of the Philippine government to set up a reliable and quality statistical database on migrant workers; (b) insufficient information on the content, conduct, and assessment of the pre-departure orientation seminars;
(c) the limited and conditional trade union rights granted to migrant workers in the Philippines, which is a violation of the MWC; (d) the absence of information on the use and operation of the Legal Assistance Fund for migrant workers; (e) the weak campaign against illegal recruitment; and (f) the restrictions on voting rights of Filipino immigrants and permanent residents abroad.
Ellene Sana, CMA executive director, said she hopes the government would take action on the observations of the UN body. She also welcomed the UN’s recognition of the role of non-government organizations in assisting migrant workers.
Libya needs 16,000 workers
MANILA, Philippines -- The North African country of Libya is in need of more than 16,000 migrant workers, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said Saturday.
Citing a report from Philippine labor officials in Tripoli, Roque said oil-rich Libya is experiencing a construction boom and has remained relatively unscathed by the global financial crisis that battered major Filipino workers’ destinations such as Dubai and Taiwan.
“The employment prospects in Libya and nearby nations are favorable for OFWs as they continue to be the preferred choice among foreign employers,” Roque said, noting that OFWs have become popular abroad because of their skills, industry, adaptability, and facility with the English language.
Job opportunities abound in the Libyan oil and gas sector, construction industry, and health sectors, he noted.
According to the labor chief, "Korean firms like Daewoo, Hyundai, and Al Nahr are currently recruiting thousands of OFWs for their development and construction projects in Libya."
Philippine labor officials are "constantly conducting meetings with these companies as well as with other firms in Libya in need of foreign workers to pave the way for the recruitment and deployment of OFWs with appropriate skills to this country," Roque said.
Aside from opportunities in the infrastructure and oil industries, Libya is also opening its tourism and medical sector to Filipinos.
Talks were underway to allow Filipino health workers to work in Libyan hospitals, Roque said. Labor officials in Tripoli have requested the Libyan health ministry to allow the recruitment of around 4,000 Filipino medical workers for the Tripoli and Benghazi Medical Centers and other hospitals and clinics in Libya, he noted.
According to the Labor chief, Libya is also developing its tourism sector and has been luring hotel developers in the country, which serves as the gateway between the Mediterranean and Africa.
The Philippine labor office in Tripoli also reported that there were opportunities for OFWs in the hotel, oil and gas, and technical services sectors of Libya's neighbors like Algeria, Chad, Malta, and Morocco. - Kristine L. Alave, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Posted date: May 09, 2009
Citing a report from Philippine labor officials in Tripoli, Roque said oil-rich Libya is experiencing a construction boom and has remained relatively unscathed by the global financial crisis that battered major Filipino workers’ destinations such as Dubai and Taiwan.
“The employment prospects in Libya and nearby nations are favorable for OFWs as they continue to be the preferred choice among foreign employers,” Roque said, noting that OFWs have become popular abroad because of their skills, industry, adaptability, and facility with the English language.
Job opportunities abound in the Libyan oil and gas sector, construction industry, and health sectors, he noted.
According to the labor chief, "Korean firms like Daewoo, Hyundai, and Al Nahr are currently recruiting thousands of OFWs for their development and construction projects in Libya."
Philippine labor officials are "constantly conducting meetings with these companies as well as with other firms in Libya in need of foreign workers to pave the way for the recruitment and deployment of OFWs with appropriate skills to this country," Roque said.
Aside from opportunities in the infrastructure and oil industries, Libya is also opening its tourism and medical sector to Filipinos.
Talks were underway to allow Filipino health workers to work in Libyan hospitals, Roque said. Labor officials in Tripoli have requested the Libyan health ministry to allow the recruitment of around 4,000 Filipino medical workers for the Tripoli and Benghazi Medical Centers and other hospitals and clinics in Libya, he noted.
According to the Labor chief, Libya is also developing its tourism sector and has been luring hotel developers in the country, which serves as the gateway between the Mediterranean and Africa.
The Philippine labor office in Tripoli also reported that there were opportunities for OFWs in the hotel, oil and gas, and technical services sectors of Libya's neighbors like Algeria, Chad, Malta, and Morocco. - Kristine L. Alave, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Posted date: May 09, 2009
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