THE OFW party-list group on Tuesday praised the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) for spearheading a review of the Seasonal Workers Program (SWP).
OFW party-list Rep. Marissa Magsino cited the DMW’s Advisory No. 1 s. 2024 dated January 11, 2024, putting a moratorium on the employment and deployment of Filipino seasonal agricultural workers to South Korea under the Seasonal Workers Program.
This is in response to the documented reports of illegal recruitment and labor violations under the program.
“While we acknowledge that the program provides livelihood opportunities to our countrymen, it should not come at the expense of the dignity and rights of our Filipino workers. We should always put the welfare and safety of our kababayans ahead of any other consideration,” Magsino said.
“That is why I laud DMW for standing its ground and reviewing the mechanisms and guidelines of the program to ensure that once the moratorium is lifted, our Filipino workers will be clothed with the protection of our policies, which should be strictly followed by the South Korean employers if they want to continue benefiting from the diligence of our Filipino Seasonal Agricultural Workers,” she added.
The DMW implements the program in coordination with the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), and the Bureau of Immigration (BI).
DMW is halfway in drafting the guidelines that will strengthen the rights of Filipino workers deployed under the SWP to South Korea. DMW committed to fast-track the release of the guidelines this month in order to lift the moratorium in time for the harvest season in South
Korea.
The ‘Foreign Seasonal Workers Dispatch Program’ was designed to address manpower shortages in South Korea, allowing Filipino workers a 3 to 5-month stint in Korean farms under MOUs between local government
units. However, persistent concerns regarding subpar conditions, including inadequate meals, lodging violations, long work hours, and alleged mistreatment, necessitate a prompt resolution.
During a town hall meeting of the party-list lawmaker with leaders of the Filipino Communities in South Korea in June last year, Magsino received reports of labor violations against Filipino seasonal workers.
“As the program primarily operates through LGU-to-LGU agreements, the implementation system lacks the stringent screening of DMW, thus they do not have the protection usually given to Overseas Filipino Workers
(OFWs) under standard contracts,” Magsino lamented.
In response to the clamor against the program, Magsino, in House Resolution 1343, sought an inquiry into the ‘LGU to LGU’ arrangement governing the recruitment and deployment of Filipino Seasonal Agricultural Workers to South Korea. She also delivered a privilege speech last July 31, 2023, which discussed the issues faced by OFWs in South Korea, including the labor violations under SWP.
“I believe that DMW, DFA, DILG, and BI are balancing the welfare of our countrymen and the benefit of the program, and they will issue strong and clear guidelines as soon as possible,” Magsino said.
“The program may have been temporarily stalled, but this will eventually bring greater benefits in terms of the protection of our workers’ rights and clarity of their status as Overseas Filipino Workers in order for them to be covered by existing laws,” she added.
