Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) Administrator Bernard Olalia said that they are just waiting for an order from the Department of Labor and Employment on sending Filipino household workers (HSWs) to the UAE.
In September last year, the UAE and Philippines signed a memorandum of understanding on mutual cooperation in the recruitment and employment of domestic workers in the UAE.
The MoU highlights the keenness of both nations to bolster cooperation in the field of labor, and facilitating the process for approving and recruiting domestic workers in a way that ensures transparency between the contractual parties and that the process is in accordance with the laws of both nations.
Olalia said that as per the agreement, a group will be formed to assess the employers of potential Filipino household workers.
“Itong entity na ito, which was especially formed by the UAE government, ang purpose nito is to guarantee ‘yong full protection ng ating mga worker,” Olalia explained.
Meanwhile, the Philippine Association of Agencies for Kuwait (PHILAAK) expresses confidence that the deployment ban of household workers to UAE will be lifted.
“Besides Saudi Arabia, mayroon tayong Singapore, Malaysia, Jordan, Bahrain. Pero ngayon kasi we are looking forward dito sa pagbubukas ng United Arab Emirates,” PHILAAK Vice Chairperson Dolly Uanang said.
