The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) said it is “keeping a close watch” on the release of unpaid wages to Filipinos who worked in Saudi Arabia.
“We’re keeping close watch doon sa [on] Saudi claimants who have been receiving communication from the Saudi side and have been informed…na supposedly ay mare-release ‘yung sums of money [that the sums of money will supposedly be released] through checks,” DMW officer-in-charge Hans Cacdac, quoted by CNN, said.
The DMW further said it has yet to see the claims released to the over 10,000 displaced overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).
“We’re helping them out with the encashment of the checks, but we’re keeping our expectations modest at this stage,” Cacdac added.
DMW Undersecretary Bernard Olalia said there are some challenges, including making sure that the widows of workers who already died are still able to receive the payments issued to their deceased spouse.
The department added that not all displaced OFWs entitled to the claims have been contacted by the Middle Eastern country.
Cacdac earlier said he is planning to visit Saudi Arabia in January to again discuss the matter with officials there.
Last year, the Saudi government vowed to pay around 2 billion riyals (about P29.7 billion) to settle the unpaid claims of Filipinos left jobless after the construction firms they worked for declared bankruptcy in 2015 and 2016.
The DMW reported that it has received emails from more than 12,000 people after it asked claimants to send their details. The department submitted the list to the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development for validation, Cacdac said.