POEA suspends companies involved in oil platform accident



The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has issued an order 
preventively suspending the companies involved in an oil rig explosion in the Gulf 
of Mexico last year, which claimed the lives of three Filipino workers and seriously 
injured three others. 

Administrator Hans Leo J. Cacdac ordered the preventive suspension of DNR 
Offshore and Crewing Services, Inc. -- the manning agency in the Philippines which 
deployed the oil platform workers -- pending investigation of the recruitment 
violation case filed against it. Also preventively suspended are three entities 
involved in employment of the workers and are subject of a docketed disciplinary 
action case -- Black Elk Energy Offshore Operations, D&R Resources, and Grand Isle 
Shipyard. 

The preventive suspensions pending investigation are based on express findings of 
the Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement (BSEE) of the United States 
Department of Interior, as relayed by Labor Attache Luzviminda Padilla of the 
Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Washington, D.C. The BSEE reported 
that the explosion was primarily caused by the failure of Black Elk Energy Offshore 
Operations and all its contractors, including Grand Isle Shipyard, to adhere to 
established safety procedures in oil platform operations. 

The purpose of the preventive suspensions is to ensure that no further death, 
injury, abuse or exploitation of Filipino workers will occur. 

Cacdac said the manning agency, employers, and contractors have the obligation 
to provide workers with orientations on recruitment policies and procedures, and 
to ensure decent and safe employment and living conditions. 

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more