Settlement of unpaid salaries of OFWs in Saudi Arabia ‘just a matter of time’ ---- By SUNDY LOCUS, GMA Integrated News

The settlement of the unpaid salaries of more than 10,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who lost their jobs after several companies declared bankruptcy in Saudi Arabia is “just a matter of time”, Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Susan Ople said Tuesday. Ople made the remarks a day after the second State of the Nation Address (SONA) of President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos Jr. where he touted the processing of the unpaid claims amounting to around 2 billion riyals. “His Royal Highness Crown Prince Mohammad Bin Salman committed his government's settlement of claims owed to Filipino construction workers dating back to 2015 to 2016," Ople said in a statement. "As far as the DMW is concerned, based on our talks with the Ministry of Human Resource and Social Development the resolution of claims is just a matter of time,” she added. “We need to defer to and respect the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's own internal processes in handling such claims,” Ople said. Saudi commitment In November last year, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia committed to allocating some 2 billion riyals for the unpaid salaries of some 10,000 overseas Filipinos employed by construction companies that declared bankruptcy in the years 2015 and 2016. The companies included three major oil firms: Saudi Oger, MMG, and the Bin Laden Group. The DMW in March said it would provide P10,000 in aid to each worker waiting for the Saudi government to fulfill its promise. The funding for the initiative came from both the DMW and the Department of Social Welfare and Development. Seafarers Marcos also mentioned in his speech the upskilling of seafarers and the European Union’s continued recognition of the seafarers’ issued by the Philippines. The DMW will continue coordinating with other government agencies “to build momentum and transformational changes to expand opportunities for the global Filipino seafarers”. “It took 17 years for the Philippines to attain significant progress in terms of international maritime education and skills certification standards. We will work closely with DoTr, CHED, Marina, and other relevant agencies to build momentum and transformational changes to expand opportunities for the global Filipino seafarers,” Ople said. OFW pass Meanwhile, Ople said that the “OFW Pass”—the digital version of the Overseas Employment Certificate (OEC)—was being pilot-tested in ten countries. These are the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Hongkong, Singapore, Malaysia, Oman, Japan, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom. “We are closely monitoring the feedback from our OFWs because an app that is new will always have its set of challenges. This is why we still have the standard OEC until the transition from analog to digital has gained traction,” the Secretary said. According to Ople, the SONA report “reflects not just a government in action but a country on a shared journey towards a much brighter future for all - including our migrant workers”. “We at the DMW will do what needs to be done so that "walang maiiwan" sa ating sama-samang paghubog sa Bagong Pilipinas,” she added. —NB, GMA Integrated News

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