DOLE to help OFWs claim backpays, get loan faster

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has announced it will help returning and repatriated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) claim their backpay from foreign employers and make the process of getting loans and benefits easier and faster.

“[We] assure you of the labor department’s assistance in claiming your unpaid wages and benefits. We have also created a technical working group to thoroughly review the rules and guidelines in applying for a loan,” DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a statement on Monday, according to the Inquirer.net.

The DOLE move comes as hundreds of Middle East-based OFWs lost their jobs due to the closure of several companies.

Bello said the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) has doubled the enhanced livelihood assistance to displaced OFWs from P10,000 to P20,000 in cash.

Meanwhile, under a draft guidelines, immediate families of deceased OFWs and those who are still abroad could process their claims and loans using proper documentation, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration chief Hans Leo Cacdac said.

Last month, the Filipino Times reported that DOLE is looking to partner with Land Bank of the Philippines to lower the minimum amount of loan for OFWs from P100,000 to P50,000 to allow more Filipinos to borrow cash,

“We are finalizing the rules for the loan with the officers of Land Bank of the Philippines. We hope to sign a memorandum of understanding with them in June,” Cacdac said.

The loans for repatriated OFWs are intended to help them continue sustaining their families.

Photo Credit: Asianews