Group: HSWs for Taiwan should pay placement fee
MANILA, Philippines - An association of manpower agencies wants the government to scrap a policy that exempts Filipino household workers (HSWs) being hired for Taiwan from paying placement fees.
Jackson Gan, president of the Pilipino Manpower Agencies Accredited to Taiwan (Pilmat), said the Philippine government needs to review the policy that requires Taiwanese employers to shoulder the fees, which he said is making Filipino HSWs less competitive.
Gan told GMANews.TV on Friday that an existing agreement between Taiwan and the Philippine government requires the worker to pay a month of her salary to the manpower agency (roughly US$500).
But HSWs are exempted under Resolution No. 6 Series of 2006 issued by the Governing Board of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).
In a letter to Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, the Pilmat leader said the POEA resolution should be reviewed amid the present recession affecting Taiwan.
Gan expressed fears that the 20,000 job vacancies for caretakers – which is categorized under household service workers – would be given to other nationalities because the present resolution burdens the Taiwanese employers with the placement fees.
“The Taiwan caretaker must be exempted from the Governing Board No (6) series of 2006 so that we can offset the lost job order from factory workers to caretaker at the same time recover from this present crisis," Gan said in the letter.
The global economic meltdown, which resulted largely from the raging financial crisis in the United States, has caused more than 1,250 overseas Filipino workers in Taiwan to lose their jobs. Thousands more are feared to go jobless at the crisis worsens next year.
POEA chief Jennifer Manalili told GMANews.TV that Gan’s proposal was “under consideration" but it would take time before the Governing Board reaches a decision on the matter.
Manalili said that they have not yet seen the 2001 agreement between the POEA and Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs.
“Kasi we don’t have (We don’t have) the file so we asked him, ‘Can you give us a copy?’ Sabi nya ‘Basta meron yun’," Manalili said.
She said the POEA would hear the concerns of manpower agencies especially considering the recent crisis in the economy.
“Any request will be attended to. Because we are open to this realizing the crisis but we have to do it through the process of consultation," she added.
The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco), Manila’s de-facto embassy in Taiwan, reported that it is also seeking a greater share of employment opportunities for Filipino workers to be offered under Taiwan’s giant economic stimulus plan.
Despite the “setback," MECO said Taiwanese industries not hit hard by the crisis continue to hire overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). - GMANews.TV
Jackson Gan, president of the Pilipino Manpower Agencies Accredited to Taiwan (Pilmat), said the Philippine government needs to review the policy that requires Taiwanese employers to shoulder the fees, which he said is making Filipino HSWs less competitive.
Gan told GMANews.TV on Friday that an existing agreement between Taiwan and the Philippine government requires the worker to pay a month of her salary to the manpower agency (roughly US$500).
But HSWs are exempted under Resolution No. 6 Series of 2006 issued by the Governing Board of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA).
In a letter to Labor Secretary Marianito Roque, the Pilmat leader said the POEA resolution should be reviewed amid the present recession affecting Taiwan.
Gan expressed fears that the 20,000 job vacancies for caretakers – which is categorized under household service workers – would be given to other nationalities because the present resolution burdens the Taiwanese employers with the placement fees.
“The Taiwan caretaker must be exempted from the Governing Board No (6) series of 2006 so that we can offset the lost job order from factory workers to caretaker at the same time recover from this present crisis," Gan said in the letter.
The global economic meltdown, which resulted largely from the raging financial crisis in the United States, has caused more than 1,250 overseas Filipino workers in Taiwan to lose their jobs. Thousands more are feared to go jobless at the crisis worsens next year.
POEA chief Jennifer Manalili told GMANews.TV that Gan’s proposal was “under consideration" but it would take time before the Governing Board reaches a decision on the matter.
Manalili said that they have not yet seen the 2001 agreement between the POEA and Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs.
“Kasi we don’t have (We don’t have) the file so we asked him, ‘Can you give us a copy?’ Sabi nya ‘Basta meron yun’," Manalili said.
She said the POEA would hear the concerns of manpower agencies especially considering the recent crisis in the economy.
“Any request will be attended to. Because we are open to this realizing the crisis but we have to do it through the process of consultation," she added.
The Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco), Manila’s de-facto embassy in Taiwan, reported that it is also seeking a greater share of employment opportunities for Filipino workers to be offered under Taiwan’s giant economic stimulus plan.
Despite the “setback," MECO said Taiwanese industries not hit hard by the crisis continue to hire overseas Filipino workers (OFWs). - GMANews.TV
Comments