The Migrant Workers Office (MWO) has witnessed a remarkable surge in Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) availing their services, indicating a growing trend over the years. In 2022, the number of individual verified contracts reached an all-time high of 92,614, marking a significant increase from 72,556 contracts recorded in 2019.
The primary reason behind the OFWs’ visits to the MWO is the verification of their employment contracts—a crucial prerequisite for obtaining an overseas employment certificate (OEC). This essential document serves as an exit pass, demonstrating an individual’s legal status as an overseas worker when presenting it to immigration officers before embarking on their journey.
The MWO experiences a bustling daily flow of clients, with an average of 400 to 500 transactions handled. Notably, 70 percent of these clients have successfully converted their visit visas to working visas. Atty. John Rio Bautista, Labor Attaché in Dubai and Northern Emirates, oversees the growing jurisdiction that now exceeds 700,000 Filipinos, with numbers continuing to rise.
Meanwhile, Cebu Pacific, the largest carrier in the Philippines, has recently celebrated its 10th anniversary of the Dubai-Manila-Dubai route on May 6 at the JW Marriott Hotel in Dubai. Candice Iyog, Cebu Pacific’s Chief Marketing and Customer Experience Officer, said during the event that it is set to double the capacity of its Dubai-Manila route as it grows by 109% of its pre-pandemic level in May, equivalent to up to 29,000 additional seats per month.
This report shows the influx of passengers travelling from the Philippines to the UAE, and vice versa, which can be connected to the number of OFWs that process their travel documents.
According to the MWO, the rise in the number of OFWs getting their contracts verified is closely linked to the number of OFWs wanting to go to the Philippines for vacation. Especially with the announcement of the end of the pandemic and the ease in travel restrictions, OFWs are taking this chance to go home to their families after years of postponing their trips.
Mr. Enrique Rodrigo, Refinery Operator in Dubai and a father of three daughters, said that the ease in travel protocols has taken away his worries of travelling in and out of the UAE.
“I feel more relaxed now that I don’t have to worry about the strict rules before going home and returning to my work abroad. With this, I grabbed the chance to travel home two weeks ago to spend time with my family and attend the graduation of my youngest daughter,” Rodrigo said.
MWO’s data showed that it has catered to the highest number of verification services in July 2022, with 11,012 employment contracts verified. According to Atty. Bautista, months like June and July show the highest volume of OFWs going home to the Philippines as most of them plan it to attend the graduation ceremonies of their families back home.
“Nandoon pa rin ‘yung traditional na pag Christmas, maraming umuuwi sa Pilipinas. Ang sunod dyan na season is Ramadan, meron ding influx ng clients dahil nga may mga establishments na sarado, shortened ‘yung working hours — they would rather spend their time for vacation in the Philippines. And also in the months of June and July, umuuwi ang OFWs mostly because summer dito sa UAE, at sa atin naman sa Philippines, graduation time ng students,” Atty. Bautista said in an interview with The Filipino Times.
Mr. Nelmar Apostol, who works as a Senior Process Operator in Dubai, shared that his daughter is graduating this May 31 which is why he came home to the Philippines last week.
“I travelled to the Philippines this May for two reasons — to attend my daughter’s Senior High School graduation and to visit my sick mother who is on a regular hemodialysis,” Apostol said.
Mr. Joselito Gaudia, Oil and Gas Operator in Dubai, explained the importance of going home to the Philippines to celebrate the milestone of his daughter.
“This is an accomplishment hindi lang sa anak kundi sa magulang, being there on that important event is like a farmer harvesting his fruits of labor, where all your hard work and sacrifices have finally paid off,” Gaudia stated.
In March 2023, the MWO has recorded 7,374 OFWs that availed MWO’s services, which continues to rise until this day. To address the significant increase in the demand of their services, the MWO has taken some steps to ease the number of OFWs lining up at the MWO on weekdays and to accommodate those who could not visit the office on regular days.
Adjustments on the schedule of MWO services
Effective May 25, 2023, the schedule for contract verification for OFWs with confirmed flight schedules will be adjusted.
The MWO has released an advisory where it explained that OFWs with confirmed flight schedules falling on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, should visit the MWO one day before their flight schedules. They can have their employment contracts verified on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays.
From Mondays to Thursdays, the MWO is open from 7:30AM to 3:30PM, with a cut-off entry by 3:00PM.
Meanwhile, for OFWs with confirmed flight schedules falling on a Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday, they should visit the MWO on a Thursday or Friday preceding their flight schedules.
During Fridays, the MWO is open from 7:30AM to 12:00PM, with a cut-off entry by 11:00AM.
This move allows them to assist more OFWs who are planned to travel to the Philippines, easing the burden of having to queue in endless lines and wait for long hours.
Further, in consideration of the upcoming Eid holiday in June, the MWO is set to issue another advisory for the adjustment of the schedule of their services.
“Given the long weekend and holiday this June for the Eid, we are expecting that more will have their contracts verified and take their vacation in the Philippines. Advisory will be issued in June to inform the public of the MWO timings and schedule in anticipation of the Eid,” Atty. Bautista said.
Special consular missions
On May 20, 2023, the MWO and the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) has mounted another special consular mission in their office in Al Qusais which offered services like passport renewal, notarial, civil registration, report of marriage, Legal Capacity to Contract Marriage services, contract verification, OWWA, SSS, and Pag-IBIG services.
It has successfully delivered 600 individual MWO services — 176 of those are for contract verification, 134 for OWWA services, 148 for SSS services, and 141 for PAG-IBIG services.
Special consular missions are organized to facilitate the delivery of services for the benefit of OFWs. Aside from the regular working hours of MWO and PCG, OFWs can attend missions like these if they are not available on weekdays to process their documents.
Aside from the mission in Dubai, the MWO has also travelled recently to other emirates such as Ajman and Ras Al Khaimah to bring their services to the Filipino communities residing in those emirates. Moreover, they also respond to requests from different companies and schools in the country to assist them with the processing of their documents.
“’Pag may sufficient number ‘yung isang company, we can organize. Every opportunity na merong sufficient number of Filipinos na kailangan ng contract verification, ica-cater namin. Sa halip na magpunta sila dito, we try to lift their burden by going to them,” Atty. Bautista said.
Online submission system
With the rising temperature in the UAE, it becomes incredibly hard for everyone to stay for long hours outside. One major concern of the MWO is how OFWs line up for long hours to wait for their turn to verify a contract, and as a solution, it has launched an online submission system where they may have their documents verified without having to visit the office physically.
With the tagline “Save Time. Go Online,” OFWs can save time and effort by submitting their employment documents to MWO’s online submission forms through their website www.polodubaiportal.org.
This is available for all OFWs, with or without flights, as long as they have valid employment visa issued by Dubai, Sharjah, Ajman, Umm Al Quwain, Ras Al Khaimah, and Fujairah.
In the online submission system, a new form is published every Monday, with a capacity of 500 applications for each form. The link will automatically close once the limit has been reached, or at 11:59PM of Wednesday, whichever comes first.
An individual is only required to visit the MWO two weeks after successfully finishing the online process to collect and pay for his or her verified contract.
While the MWO continues to assess our needs, OFWs in the UAE should also do their part by ensuring that they bring the complete requirements when processing these documents. Cooperation in both parties will surely result in a timely and more convenient processing of applications—fast tracking your flight home to your loved ones in the Philippines.
To know the complete requirements for contract verification of skilled workers, domestic workers, and returning seafarers, you can visit their website at www.polodubaiportal.org.
