Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary Claro Arellano and Kuwaiti Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs Sami Al-Hamad sign the Minutes of the Meeting, at the conclusion of the First Joint Committee Meeting (JCM) on the 2018 Philippines-Kuwait Agreement on the Deployment of Domestic Workers on 3 February 2020 at Sheraton Kuwait Hotel. (Kuwait PE photos)
3 February 2020 – The Philippines and Kuwait are one step closer towards the harmonization of employment contracts for domestic workers, following the convening of the First Joint Committee Meeting (JCM) on the 2018 Philippines-Kuwait Agreement on the Deployment of Domestic Workers on 2-3 February 2020 at Sheraton Kuwait Hotel.
Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary and Head of the Philippine Delegation Claro Arellano, and Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) Administrator Bernard Olalia on 3 February 2020 signed, on behalf of the Philippines, the minutes of the two-day JCM.
Several protections for Filipino domestic workers were tackled during the JCM, which the Philippines and Kuwait intend to institutionalize through a standard employment contract. Among the provisions that were discussed for inclusion in the standard employment contract are the use of mobile phones outside working hours, the non-confiscation of passports, welfare provisions such as food and clothing, and medical care coverage.
Other members of the Philippine delegation include Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac, POEA Director John Rio Bautista, Office of the Presidential Adviser on OFW Concerns Executive Assistant Edwin Bael, Philippine Embassy in Kuwait Third Secretary and Vice Consul Adrian Audrey Baccay, Assistant Labor Attaché Cathrine Duladul, and OWWA Kuwait Welfare Officers Llewelyn Perez and Genevieve Ardiente.
Meanwhile, Kuwaiti Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs Sami Al-Hamad, and Public Authority for Manpower (PAM) Deputy Director General for the Employment Sector Abdullah Saleh Al-Mutawah led Kuwait’s delegation to the JCM.
Philippine Chargé d’Affaires, a.i. and Consul General to Kuwait Mohd. Noordin Pendosina Lomondot, and Kuwaiti Ambassador to the Philippines Musaed Saleh Al-Thuwaikh also joined their respective country delegations to the JCM.
A Joint Committee, led by senior Philippine and Kuwaiti officials, was created by the 2018 Domestic Workers Agreement to follow up the implementation of the agreement between the two countries, and make recommendations to improve the welfare and well-being of Filipino domestic workers in Kuwait.
The convening of the first JCM between the Philippines and Kuwait coincided with the visit to Kuwait of DOLE Secretary Silvestre Bello III from 1 to 3 February 2020. Secretary Bello met with top Kuwaiti government officials, including Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister Anas Khalid Nasir Al-Saleh, Justice Minister Fahad Muhammad Mohsen Al-Afasi, and Finance Minister and Acting State Minister for Economic Affairs Mariam Aqeel Al-Said Hashim Al-Aqeel, with issues concerning the 230,000 Filipinos in Kuwait on top of the DOLE chief’s agenda. END
The Philippines and Kuwait convene the First Joint Committee Meeting (JCM) on the 2018 Philippines-Kuwait Agreement on the Deployment of Domestic Workers on 2 February 2020 at Sheraton Kuwait Hotel. Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Undersecretary Claro Arellano and Kuwaiti Assistant Foreign Minister for Consular Affairs Sami Al-Hamad led the delegations of their respective countries. (Kuwait PE photo)
