Overseas Filipino workers’ rights advocate Toots Ople said on Saturday that there are currently no vacancies for Filipino migrant workers in Russia.
After the imposition of the total deployment ban in Kuwait, repatriated OFWs have been looking for alternative countries where they can find new employment, reported GMA.
The Philippine government has also been in contact with other countries, such as China, asking to open their labor markets to Filipino workers.
However, Ople revealed during a forum held last February 17 in Quezon City that there are no jobs available for OFWs in Russia as of the moment as opposed to Labor Sec. Silvestre Bello III’s early pronouncement that Russia is becoming a good alternative for skilled and professional Filipino workers.
As part of the government’s contingency plan after the deployment ban, it was previously reported that jobs in China, Czech Republic, Germany and Japan will open for affected OFWs.
A total deployment ban in Kuwait was implemented following the numerous cases of alleged abuse that OFWs suffer from their employers.
As of 2013, there are at least 4,000 Filipino migrant workers in Russia.
According to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), Russia has a high demand for precision instrument production workers.
