Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 5043

Introduced by
REP, ARLENE D. BROSAS (Gabriela Women’s Party);
REPS. CARLOS ISAGANI T. ZARATE, FERDINAND R. GAITE, and EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT (Bayan
Muna Partylist); REP. FRANCE L. CASTRO (ACT Teachers Partylist); and
REP. SARAH JANE |. ELAGO (Kabataan Partylist)

EXPLANATORY NOTE

When this bill was fist filed in the 15% Congress, it mainly trained its concer on the situation in the Middle East and
North Africa (MENA) where violent civil unrest and the labor nationalization of domestic work among Arab countries
were taking place, endangering some 2.1 million OFWs who faced not only getting caught in the crossfire but also
being dislocated and deported. Two years afer, the politcal situation in MENA has not improved while events have
tolled outside of these regions which underscore the importance of ths bill necessitating its immediate enactment.

While North Africa has remained a tinderbox of politcal instability’, the labor nationalization policy in the Middle East
has graduated into a full-blown crackdown. In Saudi Arabia, the crackdown assumed the form of house-to-house
searches to flush out undocumented foreign workers, forcing some 6,000 Filipinos to put up tent cites in Philippine
Posts and embassies in Riyadh and Jeddah to escape the Saudi police.

In 2016, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia officially adopted the “Saudization” policy or “Nitagat” in a bid to reduce the
‘number of expatriates working in the Middle East kingdom and to prioritize the hiring of Saudi nationals in the private
sector. Such policy has exerted pressure on Filipinos in working Saudi and has trimmed the deployment of Filipinos to
the country by around 20 percent.

Elsewhere, beset with high unemployment, Japan and South Korea have lately followed suit in implementing more
stringent labor migration rues. Its estimated that roughly 100,000 Filipinos will be affected by this new tight-sted
approach on migrant labor in these two countries. The mass deportation of undocumented Filipinos already started in
Japan early this year when Japanese authorities forcibly hauled 40 Filipinos from their shelters and unceremoniously
flew them back to Manila2.

‘There are stl periodic eruptions of cian uprisings in Egypt and Tunis. Libya had installed transition goverment but the country
is yetto restore order as roving fullyarmed milfs compete with one another in carving their on polical turfs, paying lite regard
to the central authority. Syria continues to be riven by a civil war whose end is nowhere insight. In June this year, the polticl
‘unrest even spread to Turkey.

2IN THE 16™ Congress, this has been the subject of House Resolution No. 95, authored by the Gabriela Women's Party, calling
fora congressional investigation.


Indeed, never have recent global developments s0 gravely challenged the country’s labor export policy as an
employment generation strategy. Even Europe and the United States are also in the thick of clamping down hard on
rmigrant labor to stem the tide of high unemployment in their economies and to ease the pressure on their welfare
obligations, It is estimated that these developments, as they occur in multiple fronts, will allogether affect some 3.5
milion Filipinos facing the threat of sudden termination of ther employment contracts and involuntary repatriation.

Itis this situation that this bill seeks to address and is, hereby, re-filed.

When the first trickles of repatriation occurred several years ago following the explosion of politcal unrest inthe Middle
East, the Department of Labor and Employment was reported to have distributed a financial grant of P10,000 to each
OFW retumees of Region 10. The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration did the same thing when OFWs started
‘etuming to the country from Libya. But as the financial grant was not mandatory, not all retuming distressed OFWs
received the amount and nothing has been heard of this DOLE/OWNWA initiative since then. Moreover, the amount of
the financial grant was ‘Yoo modest'to be of help tothe distressed OFWs who were mostly not paid of ther salaries in
their host countries and came home toa pile of debts.

Under Republic Act No. 8042 or the ‘Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995’, as amended by RA 9422
and RA 10022, the government is mandated to formulate and implement welfare and social services programs for
‘OFWs. Unfortunately the welfare and social services programe that are mentioned in RA No. 8042 contemplated only
‘of good weather situation of OFWs. RA 8042 has no provision for services and programs for distressed OFWs who
find themselves in crisis situations and are forced to leave their host countries because of natural or man-made
calamities or for any reason other than the termination of their work contrac.

‘The OWWA collects USD $25 (approximately equivalent to P1000) denominated as “contributions” per contract from
each OFW who leaves the country. This is compulsorily exacted from each OFW even though the OFW is yet to earn
hishher pay and regardless of how much pay he/she is to receive in working abroad. But for every P10 that OWWA
spends, only P0.60 centavos go to the welfare and services programs for OFWs. The rest are spent for the operational
expenses and investment programs of OWWA. Other welfare services and expenses, including emergency assistance,
‘are subject to approval by the OWWA Board as per the OWWA Omnibus Policies enacted in 2003. The OWWA
‘Omnibus Policies also effectively limited the services and welfare assistance being provided by the agency only to
‘OFWs who have active contracts and paid membership dues/contibutions to OWWA..

Because of these, distressed OFWs who were forcibly repatriated or evacuated due to crisis situations, or those who
have gone undocumented due to conditions and situations out of their control (ie. victims of trafficking, illegal
recruitment), are not guaranteed emergency financial assistance and benefits from the government - a clear violation
of the very mandate of RA 8042, as amended by RA 9422 and RA 10022.

Political analysts are of the observation that given the shaping poltical configuration in the Middle East and the
persistent aftershocks of the 2007 global economic crisis in the major capitalist countries, it will take along while before
the foreign labor market will settle down back to normalcy. This brings home the incalculable risks that attend the labor
export policy of the govemment that are now bearing down on our OFWs.


Itis, therefore, an imperative that the country must have a program that will provide a lifeline of relief and support for
distressed OFWs, regardless of whether they are documented or not

On these grounds, it is eamestly sought that this bill be approved with dispatch.

hb
Gabriela Women’s Party
-
RAED care
Bayan Muna Pai Bayan Muna Partylist

lan
EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT FRAN TRO
Bayan Muna Partylist feachels Partylist

i
SARAH JANE |. ELAGO
Kabataan\Partylist


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Constitution Hills, Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. SUE)

Introduced by
REP. ARLENE D. BROSAS (Gabriela Women’s Party);
REPS, CARLOS ISAGANIT. ZARATE, FERDINAND R, GAITE, and EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT (Bayan
Muna Partylist); REP. FRANCE L. CASTRO (ACT Teachers Partylist; and
REP, SARAH JANE |, ELAGO (Kabataan Partylist)

AN ACT PROVIDING FOR FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE FOR DISTRESSED
OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKERS (OFWs)

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Declaration of Principles - The State shall at ll mes uphold the dignity and promote the welfare of all
its migrant workers, whether documented or non-documented. It recognizes that OFWs are forced to seek employment
abroad in order to survive in the face of rising unemployment at home. Their continuing aggravated and disadvantaged
position as job seekers in the explitative employment market abroad places them in extremely vulnerable and
distressing situations not only during natural and man-made calamities, but also as @ consequence of employment
policy changes in receiving countries. The State, therefore, endeavors to alleviate ther situation by providing financial
assistance which will hopefully tide them over during their most difficult ime,

Section 2. Financial Assistance for Distressed OFWs and Schedule of Release-The Financial Assistance For
Distressed OFWs shall be in the amount of Fity Thousand Pesos (P50,000) to be released to each distressed OFW
within seven (7) days after the fling of application. The minimum requirement for fiing of application shall be the OF W's
passport or any travel document, as proof of his/her county of orgin and date of aval.

Section 3. Distressed OFWs — Distressed OF Ws shall refer to all Filipino Nationals, whether documented or non-
documented, who lost their jobs and were forced by circumstances to etum to the country. The term shall include, but
is not limited to, those who have been victims of human trafficking andlor ilegal recruitment, those who have been
‘sexually abused, those who have been maltreated or undergone slave-ike conditions or involuntary servitude, those
‘who have run away from their employers, those who have been repatriated from host countries hit by natural and man-
made calamities, including civil disorders, those who have sought refuge at Welfare Centers and those who have been
found stranded anywhere in host countries where they intended to seek employment.


Section 4. Implementing Agency and Funding ~ The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) is hereby
tasked to implement this Act. The Financial Assistance for Distressed OFWs as provided for inthis Act shall be charged
‘against the funds of the agency and shall form part of the OWWA program package for distressed OF Ws, independent
‘and separate from the existing OWWA livelihood and starter kit packages that are optional for retumed OFWs.

Section 5. Penalties — Any employee of the government found to have caused the delay of the release of the Financial
Assistance for Distressed OFWs within the schedule mentioned in Section 2 of this Act shall be subject to the penalties
as follows:

a. Ifthe employee who caused the delay is the supervisor or head or any equivalent capacity, he/she shall be
proceeded against in accordance with Section 11 (a) of the Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and
Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees’;

b. Inall other cases, the penalties shall be as follows:
First offense — 90 days suspension
Second offense - 120 days suspension

Third offense — dismissal from service

Section 6. Implementing Rules and Regulations - The OWWA shall issue the Implementing Rules and Regulations
for this Act within three months after the approval of this bill.

Section 7. Repealing Clause — All other laws, decrees, rules and regulations, orders, and issuances inconsistent with
the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

‘Section 8. Effectivity - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in any
newspaper of general circulation.