POEA backs OFW bid to delay SSS fee rule


By
 Samuel P. Medenilla
 -
311
The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is now pushing to defer the implementation of a new rule, which, if applied, would make it mandatory for overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to remit premium payment to the Social Security System (SSS) prior to the issuance of their overseas employment certificates (OEC).
The POEA submitted a recommendation to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to suspend the said rule stipulated in Rule 14, Section 7 of the implementing  rules and  regulations (IRR) of Republic Act (RA) 11199, or the Social Security Act.
POEA Administrator Bernard P. Olalia said the deferment of the rule, together with Rule 15 of the IRR containing the provision of date of effectivity of SSS coverage, stays until the completion of further review by the Joint Committee of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), DOLE and SSS.
He said POEA made the decision based on the unanimous opposition by the recruitment sector and OFW, and migrant advocates against the said policy during sectoral consultation.
“The bone of contention is the incoherence of the provision of Section 9-B of the law and Rule 14, Section 7 of the IRR,” Olalia said in his memorandum to Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III submitted last June 27.
He noted the participants of their dialogue agreed the said rule “should be determined by a joint committee of the DFA, DOLE and SSS and not solely by the SSS.”
They also concluded the “tying-up” of payment of SSS contribution to OEC issuance is an ultra vires act since it is not stipulated in the provision of RA 11199.
An OEC is a requirement issued by POEA for aspiring OFWs before they could work abroad.
Olalia also said it is not the mandate of POEA to collect SSS premium and that contributions from OFWs should only be collected after their deployment abroad.
To recall, these same issues were raised by concerned stakeholders during the stakeholder consultations. However, the said concerns were not addressed in the published IRR of RA 11199.
The Blas Ople Policy Center (BOPC), one of the migrant advocacy groups opposing the linking of OEC and SSS premiums, lauded POEA’s stand against the rule.
“I hope DOLE will uphold this stand which is backed by the OFW sector,” BOPC head Susan Ople said in her Twitter post.

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