POEA wants OFWs’conditions in Mideast monitored

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has advised recruitment and manning agencies to monitor the status of their deployed workers and seafarers in and around the Middle East countries in view of the tension between Iran and the United States.

In an advisory, POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia directed all Philippine Recruitment Agencies (PRAs) to monitor and report the condition of their workers following a prescribed OFW (overseas Filipino worker) monitoring form.

The POEA also directed all manning agencies to monitor Filipino seafarers onboard vessels transiting in the Persian Gulf, Strait of Hormuz, Mediterranean Sea, Red Sea, Gulf of Aden, Arabian Sea, Gulf of Oman and the Indian Ocean.

The agencies were asked to submit an inventory or list of all seafarers, including trade routes, type of vessel, contact numbers, and information on their respective employers.—Tina G. Santos