Review of bilateral deals on OFW protections sought

A senator on Monday called for the review of bilateral agreements on Overseas Filipino workers (OFW) protection following the deaths of two Filipinas in Kuwait.  

Senator Joel Villanueva, who chairs the Senate Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development committee, condemned the maltreatment, abuse, and death of the OFWs.

“The government must stop the abuse in its tracks by strengthening recruitment policy and ensuring that host countries comply with bilateral agreements on the welfare and rights of OFWs,” Villanueva said in a statement.

A bilateral labor agreement was signed between the Philippines and Kuwait in 2018, and was renewed in 2021.

It indicated the rights of OFWs in Kuwait, including their right to keep their passports and mobile phones and the right to guaranteed provision of food, housing and health insurance by employers.

Villanueva said the Philippines cannot rely on a “ban-lift-ban cycle of OFW deployment,” after the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said it is considering a ban on deployment to Kuwait.

“Every OFW we allow to work in a foreign land must be assured of a safe workplace, decent living condition, timely payment of correct wage and benefits, and must be able to return to their families alive and with gainful income worthy of their sacrifices,” he said.

OFW Jenny Alvarado reportedly died of coal smoke inhalation on January 2, along with her Nepalese and Sri Lankan co-workers in their workplace in Kuwait.

Meanwhile, OFW Dafnie Nacalaban was reported missing by her employer in October 2024.

Two months later, her body was discovered in an advanced state of decomposition in the residence of a Kuwaiti individual. — BM, GMA Integrated News