‘OFWs laid off from Taiwan need compensation, not a lunch date’

MANILA, Philippines - Offer compensation, not a “lunch date," for Filipino workers who have lost their jobs abroad as a result of the global economic crunch. Migrante International gave this unsolicited advice on Wednesday to Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, who has reportedly promised at least OFWs laid off from Taiwan a meeting with President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo. Migrante has noted that as of November, at least 720 Filipino workers were rendered jobless when 12 companies closed down in Taiwan. The first batch of 103 workers returned to the Philippines on Tuesday and were said to have been invited to come to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) head office in Manila to meet with the President on Friday. Migrante suspects that Malacaňang would only use the occasion for PR purposes. “Instead of genuinely addressing the problems of these distressedcOFWs, Malacaňang would rather use them for a photo opportunity to cover up for their inutility. This is nothing but a display of government's utter callousness to the plight of the retrenched OFWs," said Migrante chairperson Garry Martinez in a statement. Migrante said most of the repatriated Filipinos complained that they had to pay for their own air fare. The Manila Economic and Cultural Office in Taipei, the Philippines’ de facto embassy in Taiwan, gave each OFW only $1,500 Taiwanese dollars or about P2,200 even though a one-way ticket air fare costs more than NT$5,000 or more than P7,300. Some of the workers were even forced to sell their belongings just to be able to pay for their tickets, said Martinez. On the Department of Labor and Employment’s (DOLE) promise to go after recruiters who did not pay for the air fare of the laid-off workers they deployed, Migrante advised OFWs no to accept any amount less than what they should be receiving as stated in their contract. “The OFWs are not the ones liable for the premature termination of their contract. Returning their air fare expenses alone is therefore an injustice to them. It is utterly infuriating that Secretary Roque himself seems to be working only for the interest of the recruiters and employers," said Martinez in the statement. Efforts to get the side of Secretary Roque and OWWA Administrator Carmelita Dimzon were in vain. Migrante said that the DOLE should immediately release the one-million bond posted by each recruitment agency to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and use it to compensate the laid-off OFWs. “Most of these laid-off OFWs are heavily indebted before leaving the country. They should not be punished for something they are not at fault of and should be compensated accordingly. Roque should stop protecting the recruiters. It is the OFWs who are paying their salary. Unless he is receiving pay-off money from employers and recruiters," said Martinez. According to Migrante, most of the OFWs were retrenched from companies involved in manufacturing textile, electronics, and metalwork, among others. The group warned that the situation will get worse next year as Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs announced that Taiwan will terminate 50,000 migrant workers next year, effectively affecting 11,550 Filipino workers. - Kimberly Jane T. Tan, GMANews.TV