The Department of Migrant Workers has deployed 39 Filipino seasonal farm workers to South Korea on Thursday, February 29.
In a statement, the DMW said that the farm workers are from the town of Apalit in Pampanga.
The DMW said the deployment was made possible through the cooperation of their DMW Regional Office 3 (DMW-RO3), the local government unit, the Bureau of Immigration (BI), and the Clark International Airport (CIA).
The seasonal workers were able to complete their mandatory Pre-departure Orientation Seminar (PDOS) and were given Special Exit Clearance by the DMW.
“Ito ang unang batch ng mga seasonal farm workers na napaalis ng DMW sa ilalim ng “Interim Pipeline Processing” procedure na naglalayong maglaan ng mga probisyon at garantiya para sa karapatan at kapakanan ng mga manggagawang nakapaloob sa programang SWP, o ang Seasonal Work Program, ng mga local government units (LGUs) ng Pilipinas sa South Korea,” the DMW said.
“Ipinaalala ng DMW sa mga seasonal farm workers na nagnanais sumailalim sa programang SWP na WALANG BAYARIN na recruitment fee na dapat singilin sa kanila,” the department added.
The DMW urges the public to report if there will be recruiters demanding for a fee for the seasonal work in South Korea.
More batches of seasonal workers are expected to leave the Philippines.
“Tiyaking may dagdag proteksyon sa kanilang mga karapatan bilang manggagawa katulad ng kontrata, maayos na living at working conditions sa lugar ng kanilang pagta-trabaho, insurance, at welfare coverage bilang mga miyembro ng OWWA, o Overseas Workers Welfare Administration,” the DMW said.
