The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has imposed a moratorium on the deployment of seasonal workers to South Korea, after receiving a number of complaints from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

The complaints include unsafe labor conditions, underpayment of wages, overwork, along with two cases of deaths.

“The two OFWs fell ill as they were there… Whether or not it was work-related, para sa 'min it's already a cause for us to be concerned. One wonders, 'yung isang case halimbawa after two days nasawi na siya. One wonders kung bakit siya may sakit at na-deploy. So, somewhat related to the process of recruitment, medical exams, etc. So we want to look into all of these things,” said DMW Officer-in-Charge Hans Leo Cacdac.

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The DMW aims to sit down with the Departments of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Foreign Affairs (DFA) and the Bureau of Immigration (BI) to come up with a set of guidelines for the deployment of seasonal workers to South Korea.

Cacdac said that many of the workers were deployed through agreements between Philippine local government units and sister cities in South Korea.

“We had also been talking to a group of LGUs already who have reached out to us, and finding ways in which we can help them with their different kinds of situations, as it relates to their so-called sisterhood agreements with their partner LGUs in Korea," he said.

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"But the bottom line here is we want to invoke our fair and safe recruitment laws, which means that we, that the recruitment of OFWs, should be through the DMW or through a licensed recruitment agency under a set standard, set standards of protection to ensure the welfare and protection of OFWs. Meaning we review the contracts, we review the manner of recruitment, and we review the manner of deployment, and monitor their stay as they work abroad.”

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Meanwhile, Cacdac appealed for patience as the distribution of financial assistance is still being processed for around 500 Filipino workers who were laid off after the ELE Group of Companies declared bankruptcy.

The DMW has so far distributed financial assistance of 1,050 New Zealand dollars or P36,800 to around 200 affected Filipino workers, with 350 more to distribute. A hundred other Filipinos with resident visas are being aided by the DFA.

Aside from financial assistance, the DMW is also looking at providing legal assistance. Cacdac said workers have the option to come back to the Philippines.

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“The other thing we're looking into is legal assistance. Kasi we have received information that the workers also have labor claims against the company. So we are also helping them with their legal claims," he said.

"There's a mechanism whereby one could come home and a special power of attorney could be given to the embassy… So mag-iiwan ng special power of attorney doon to our labor attache and the, or the embassy. And the embassy, the legal retainer of the Migrant Workers Office, the Labor Attache's office, will carry on with the case. And then kung may, kung nanalo, and then yung proceeds non ita-transmit dito sa worker. And we trust the New Zealand labor claims process enough to institute a process of special powers of attorney to be signed by the workers."