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PHL-KSA new labor pact won’t solve domestic workers’ woes –group

Tuesday, May 28, 2013 16:19

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Press Release

29 May 2013

PHL-KSA new labor pact won’t solve domestic workers’ woes –group

The Filipino migrant rights group, Migrante-Middle East (M-ME) today said the labor agreement on the hiring of Filipino household service workers (HSWs) recently signed by the Philippines and Saudi governments won’t solve domestic workers’ woes as the group doubts its ‘honest to goodness’ implementation.

On May 19, 2013, Philippine Labor secretary Rosalinda Baldoz, who visited Saudi Arabia, and Saudi Deputy labor minister Mufarrej bin Saad Al-Haqbani, on behalf of Saudi Labor minister Adel Fakeih, formally signed a labor agreement on the hiring of Filipino HSWs.

Last year, both governments have agreed a new standard contract for Filipino HSWs that stipulates a minimum monthly salary of 1,500 Saudi rials, weekly rest day and daily rest peridos, paid vacation leave, non-withholding of passports and work permit, free communication and humane treatment.

“There is no doubt that the real intent of the new labor agreement is to continue the supply of Filipino HSWs, which services are needed by the Saudi employers, in line of the PH govt. labor export policy. The new labor pact is like a loose platform that would ensure, at least every 5 years, the trading of Filipino HSWs into the Saudi labor market,” said MIGRANTE vice chairperson John Leonard Monterona, also regional coordinator of Migrante International in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA).

Monterona added governments of other Asian countries such as Indonesia, Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Nepal, have been deploying their own people as domestic workers in the Kingdom for the past years opening a stiff competition with old-timer labor-sending countries like India, the Philippines, and Pakistan in peddling their respective household service workers into the Saudi labor market.

“While there are pro-domestic worker provisions in the standard contract as integral into the new labor contract, both governments failed to include mechanisms that will ensure transparency and accountability of erring employers and unscrupulous recruitment agents. These are very important undertakings that will give teeth to the new labor agreement in terms of protecting and upholding domestic workers rights and welfare,” Monterona averred.

Monterona specifically asked, given the rampant labor rights violations and abuses, how would an erring employer or unscrupulous recruitment agents will be disciplined or punished? He added there is no mention of this in the new labor pact, thus it is presumed that Saudi labor law will apply.

“The dilemma is that in Saudi labor law, domestic workers are not even recognized! How would the Philippine govt. assert the supposed pro-domestic workers provisions of the new labor pact and standard contract when in fact the Saudi govt. as per its own labor law is not recognizing domestic work as real work,” Monterona lamented.

As the new labor pact signed between the Philippine and Saudi governments on the hiring of Filipino HSWs failed to recognize ‘domestic work as work’, Monterona believed it won’t solve domestic workers woes.

“The new labor pact only offers a band-aid or temporary remedy to Filipino domestic workers woes under erring employers and unscrupulous recruitment agents,” Monterona opined.

He added the new labor pact is still a far cry from the standards set forth by the International Labor Organization.

“It would be better if the PH govt. through its labor department would be able to convince the Saudi govt. to recognize domestic work as work on its own labor law. Or the Saudi govt. would pass local legislations recognizing domestic work,”Monterona suggested.

“So clearly, the Aquino III administration, just like previous administrations, is on track to intensifying the peddling of Filipino labor despite public posturing that it is determined to end forced migration of Filipinos amid calls to generate decent domestic jobs. PH labor export policy, in itself, is a policy dilemma,” Monterona ended. # # #

2012 Anti-SONA rally. Migrante Intl. file photo

Reference:

John Leonard Monterona

MIGRANTE vice chairperson

Regional coordinator, Migrante-ME

Mobile No. 0063 923 420 0112

Source: http://migranteme.blogspot.com/2013/05/phl-ksa-new-labor-pact-wont-solve.html

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