CBCP hails draft deal on welfare of Kuwait OFWs

An official of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) has welcomed a draft agreement between the Philippines and Kuwait to protect the welfare of Filipino workers there.

Balanga Bishop Ruperto Santos, who chairs the CBCP’s Episcopal Commission for the Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant Peoples, expressed optimism that the deal would benefit overseas Filipino workers.

“We appeal to our government officials … to monitor that the memorandum of agreement is strictly followed,” he said.

The agreement, which will be signed in two weeks, allows OFWs to keep their own passports or give them to the Philippine Embassy for safekeeping to prevent employers from withholding them.

Filipino workers will also be allowed to keep their cell phones, while employers will not be allowed to send OFWs to other employers without the OFWs’ consent.

The workers are entitled to $400 net salary per month, to be deposited in a bank account opened by their employers. —Julie M. Aurelio