400,000 Pinoy Seamen by End of 2011

The number of Filipino sailors working in the world’s merchant fleet is expected to hit 400,000 before the end of 2011.

Carlos Cao, Philippine Overseas Administration Office (POEA) administrator, attributed the rising number to the seamanship skills and competence of the Filipino seafarers.

“We are targeting to reach a 400,000-mark deployment of our seafarers overseas this year, and it is indeed, very encouraging, indications have surfaced that we may even surpass this target,” he added.

Continue reading at Philippine Star

Afghan Deployment Ban Change Sparks Illegal Recruitment Activities

The partial lifting of deployment ban to Afghanistan is not only seen as opportunity for Filipinos to land lucrative jobs in the war-torn Middle Eastern country. It also ushers a spate of illegal recruitment campaigns orchestrated by unregistered agencies or private individuals.


Recruitment veteran Emmanuel Geslani revealed this development as he warned aspiring OFWs looking to work in Afghanistan to check job offers carefully.

“The memo from the US military explicitly states that only those with existing contracts can be renewed and that no new workers can be deployed to those bases,” he said.

Geslani disclosed that part of illegal recruiting syndicates’ modus operandi is to post job openings for skilled construction workers to Dubai, and then transited to Kabul, where high-paying jobs at US bases in Kandahar or Bagram are located. Illegal recruiters are now looking for applicants in some provinces, especially in Central Luzon, Geslani said.

The deployment ban in Afghanistan and Iraq was partially lifted last Wednesday after the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) Governing Board approved it amid the clamor of workers there and upon recommendation of Executive Secretary Paquito Ochoa of Malacanang’s Overseas Preparedness Team.

Workers in Afghanistan may now also take a vacation back in the Philippines and will be allowed to go back to work place to finish their contracts.

According to POEA records, an estimated 5,000 OFWs are employed in US and international military camps in Afghanistan despite the deployment ban imposed by the agency in the war-torn country since 2001.

Pag-IBIG Fund Membership Must for Qatar Overseas Filipino Workers

The Pag-IBIG Fund membership has been made mandatory for all Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) as a pre-requisite for the issuance of an overseas employment certification, a Philipine Embassy spokesperson has disclosed.

The Pag-IBIG Fund is a convenient savings system for the Filipino workers through monthly contributions, that earn annual dividends, which are credited to the member’s account.

The new development has necessitated the signing of a collection agreement between the Fund and the Philippines Overseas Employment Agency (POEA), which provides OFWs leaving the Philippines with a more convenient registration system as well as an accessible and affordable remittance facility.

Under the agreement, the POEA collects Pag-IBIG membership contributions of P100 from OFWs going abroad as provided for under the 2010 collection servicing agreement between the agency and the Pag-IBIG Fund.

The Fund’s desk in the Philippine Overseas Labour office in Bin Omran area collects contributions and registers members in Qatar.

Continue reading at Gulf Times

POEA, dapat imbestigahan ang dumaraming bilang ng undocumented Overseas Filipino Workers sa ilang mga bansa

BY UNTVNEWS, MANILA, Philippines — Ipinanawagan ng grupong for Filipinos in Afghanistan sa administrasyong Aquino na imbestigahan ang pagkakaroon ng undocumented OFW sa bansang Syria.

Aabot sa mahigit labing-pitong libong mga OFW ang nasa bansang Syria na ang sinasabing undocumented.

Samantala, sa Malaysia naman ay mayroong dalawang daan at apatnapu’t-isang mga undocumented Filipino at karamihan sa mga ito ay mga babae at mga bata.

Ipinagtataka umano ng grupo kung papaano nakakalusot ang mga Pilipinong ito para makapagtrabaho sa kabila ng kawalan ng mga dokumento.

Continue Reading at UNTVNEWS

Work Visa Needed for Russia Stint – POEA

THE Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has begun implementing the guidelines issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs on obtaining legal documents for employment in Russia.

POEA Administrator Carlos Cao Jr. said the DFA advised Filipinos who wish to work in Russia to obtain work visas instead of commercial visas. Commercial visas are valid only for three months and are not renewable.

Cao said holders of lapsed commercial visas would have to leave Russia and apply for work visas.

He added that a Filipino entering Russia for work would need an invitation from the prospective employer or another company which was able to obtain visa quota.

“The invitation should be approved by the Russian Federal Migration Services,” he said.

POEA: We Don’t Lend Money to Overseas Filipino Workers

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) has clarified that that it is not engaged in lending money to overseas Filipino workers.

In a statement, POEA Administrator Carlos Cao Jr. said that the agency has no lending facility for overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

He said that the POEA was had been compelled to issue this clarification amid reports after a that a suspect had been nabbed or collecting fees from applicants for a cash loan from the POEA.

Cao said a couple was approached by an alleged fixer and offered to arrange their loan.

The couple, from came all the way from southern Philippines Zamboanga City, became suspicious and reported the incident to POEA security officers after the suspect failed to give them the amount they were borrowing.

Continue reading at Gulf News