Saudi, PH ink pact on workers

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz (left) and Saudi Arabian Labor Minister Adel Bin Mohammed Fakeih INQUIRER FILE PHOTO/PHOTO OF MINISTER FAKEIH FROM GCF.ORG.SA

MANILA, Philippines—Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and Saudi Arabian Labor Minister Adel Bin Mohammed Fakeih signed in Jeddah on Sunday an agreement on the recruitment of Filipino domestic workers and the duties and responsibilities of their Saudi employers.

The agreement, described by Baldoz and Fakeih in a joint statement as “historic,” came after last year’s pact on the standard employment contract (SEC) to be observed by employers and Filipino household service workers (HSWs) in the Middle East kingdom.

The agreement lays down areas of cooperation between the two countries, including the following: a mutually acceptable recruitment and deployment system; recruitment of workers through offices that practice ethical recruitment and are licensed by their respective governments; prohibition to deduct from the salary of the worker any cost attendant to recruitment and deployment;

Right of recourse to competent authorities in case of contractual disputes; legal measures against recruitment offices, companies and agencies for any violation of applicable laws, rules and regulations; and resolution of any issue arising from the implementation and enforcement of the agreement.—Jerome Aning