Villanueva seeks ‘strict monitoring’ of household workers’ training

Sen. Joel Villanueva. (File photo from Philippine Daily Inquirer)

With the ban on the deployment of “skilled and semi-skilled” workers to Kuwait lifted, Sen. Joel Villanueva emphasized the need to strictly monitor the training of household service workers (HSWs).

In a statement issed on Tuesday, Villanueva asked the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to report on the status of the their training.

“We welcome the lifting of the deployment ban, and at the same time, we would want DOLE and POEA to report on the required training before the deployment of HSWs through TESDA’s NC-II Domestic Work certification,” Villanueva, chair of the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment, and Human Resources Development, said.

The senator’s comments came after presidential spokesperson Harry Roque said that domestic helpers would still be prevented from working in Kuwait, as DOLE would still need to improve its recruitment.

Malcañang added that HSWs would undergo “mandatory training” that would be shouldered by their recruiters.

The mandatory training, he said, would be in addition to training HSWs already at the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority’s (TESDA).

“We would want to know whether this has been complied, how many recruitment agencies are complying, how many HSWs have been certified prior to deployment, and what are the problems encountered,” Villanueva said.

The Philippine government imposed a ban on the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to Kuwait, amidst reports of violence and abuse of employers in that Gulf state.

“We urge the DOLE and POEA to conscientiously pursue the upgrading of household service work as a profession with unique skills set and not slaves consistent with ILO Convention 189 on Domestic Work, which the country actively campaigned for,” Villanueva said. “Our HSWs should already be armed with NC II certificates as professional service workers, and recruitment agencies should be required to deploy only certified HSWs.” /atm