Bello, Saudi counterpart meet over work ban
The ban was lifted days later after the foreign employers were required by the Saudi government to shoulder the costs of Covid-19 health protocols of OFW upon arrival
Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III on Sunday said he would meet his counterpart from Saudi Arabia following his threat of a total ban of Filipino migrant workers there.
Bello made the threat after a Saudi general refused to let three Filipino workers back home and were reportedly not paid their back wages and end-of-service pay, mirroring the cases of more than 9,000 Filipino migrant workers.
“I told them that if you don’t let them come home, we will impose a deployment ban. The king must have scolded him. So, the three were allowed to go home,” he added.
“My counterpart in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia learned about this, so he is requesting a meeting with me,” he said in an interview.
Bello said he and his counterpart would meet before the Asia and Middle East Labor Ministers Meeting in Dubai, which both of them are attending. Bello said he is flying out on Sunday night for the said event and will return on 29 October.
He said the government has spent P3 billion in the repatriation of abused Filipino workers from Saudi Arabia.
“As early as August 2016, Filipino workers there did not receive their salaries for one to two years. We repatriated them because they have nothing to eat, nowhere to sleep,” Bello added.
“We gave Special Power of Attorney to our lawyers there so they can file workers’ claims before the courts. They did and they won. But until now, they’ve yet to be paid,” Bello said.
He said the government has spent P3 billion in the repatriation of abused Filipino workers from Saudi Arabia.
In May, the Department of Labor and Employment ordered a deployment ban to Saudi Arabia after the agency received reports that overseas Filipino workers (OFW) were required to shoulder the cost of Covid-19 health and safety protocols by their employers or foreign recruitment agencies.
The ban was lifted days later after the foreign employers were required by the Saudi government to shoulder the costs of Covid-19 health protocols of OFW upon arrival.