OWWA offers Php20k livelihood aid for terminated OFWs

Labatt de la Torre says aid is given to terminated workers
who undetake to go home for good

By Vir B. Lumicao

Filipino migrant workers who have lost their jobs prematurely due to termination, maltreatment and other employer violations of their contracts can apply for a Php20,000 livelihood aid from the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration on their return home.

This little-known benefit was disclosed recently at Filipino community gatherings by new welfare attaché Marivic Clarin, and confirmed in an interview on Nov 22 by Labor Attache Jalilo dela Torre.

According to Labatt dela Torre, terminated workers who go home for good are endorsed to OWWA offices in the workers’ regions.

“Lahat ng terminated na umuuwi, binibigyan namin ng endorsement sa regional offices ng OWWA” so they can receive the livelihood aid, Labatt Dela Torre said.

But it appears there has not been a lot of takers in the eight years that the “Balik-Pinas, Balik-Hanapbuhay” program has been in existence.

Statistics from the Department of Labor and Employment show that only 260 OFWs have received the benefit as of the end of the third quarter this year.

This may be because OWWA is said to be meticulous in evaluating the returning worker’s proposed project so that the financial aid does not go to waste.

“Kasi, yung iba, ipinambabayad lang sa utang,” Clarin said. 

She said the intent of the program is to help distressed OFWs, primarily wards of government shelters who have cases against their employers, those who are terminated for medical reasons, or are laid off due to their employers’ financial difficulties.

Clarin with livelihood program
provider Ofelia Baquirin

Clarin said the cash assistance comes with a development training to provide the recipients basic skills in doing the livelihood project of their choice.

The training is said to be provided by OWWA, other government agencies, as well as non-government organizations and OFW cooperatives or groups in the regions.

Evaluation and supervision of the project is conducted to ensure its success, especially now that the aid amount is bigger than before, Clarin said. 

The livelihood assistance was put in place during the tenure of Former President Benigno Aquino III, but the aid given at the time was in the form of starter kits worth Php10,000.

Clarin said that since 2016, the livelihood grant had been doubled to PhP20,000.

But she admitted that the success rate among aid recipients has been low “because not everyone is cut out for business”.

One recipient, an illegally terminated worker from Naga City, told The SUN she applied for the assistance in January 2016 and got a check for PhP10,000. She said the check was not issued to her but to a local merchant who provided her a starter kit for her project.

Another former Hong Kong-based OFW who went to Russia only to discover it was a job scam, said she tried applying for the livelihood assistance but balked when she was told she would have to stay in the Philippines for good.

In Nueva Vizcaya province, where former OFWs have formed a cooperative and undertaken livelihood projects, there were 85 recipients of the OWWA assistance as of the end of the third quarter this year, said its president Cristina Gauuan Reyes.

She said in her barangay, there are 20 recipients whose projects, namely piggery, sari-sari store and fish vending, are being coordinated by the cooperative.

She said the “Balik-Pinas, Balik-Hanapbuhay” beneficiaries in the 15 municipalities of Nueva Vizcaya received PhP20,000 each, which they put into their chosen businesses. They received help from the provincial government in the form training.

The reintegration program was introduced to help former OFWs rejoin Philippine society by offering them livelihood opportunities if they decide to stay home for good.

(OFWs who undergo livelihood training are in the best position to come up with a sound project proposal, like these members of Diwa't Kabayan Benlife Society: https://www.facebook.com/leo.deocadiz/videos/1959148447466791/)


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2 Pinays charged with harming young wards

Two Filipina domestic workers have appeared in separate courts to each face a charge of ill-treating or assaulting their young wards.

Ando pleaded not guilty to ill-treatment of her ward in Shatin court

Merlyn Ando, who has been held without bail since May this year, pleaded not guilty to the offence before Shatin Magistrate Wong Sze-lai on Nov. 22. She will face trial on Jan 29-30.

No details of the case were read out in court.

Tuen Mun court, where Inabiohan faces a charge of assaulting her ward

However, local media have reported that she was accused by her employer of mixing detergent in the milk of her young ward. The reports said the mother found a plastic container of powder detergent beside the can of infant formula that was being fed to the baby.

The second domestic helper, Eden Inabiohan, appeared on Nov 23 before Tuen Mun Magistrate Ivy Chui Yee-mei for an update on her case.

Inabiohan, who is out on bail, has been charged with assaulting her young ward.

No details of the case were mentioned during the hearing.

Magistrate Chui adjourned the case until Dec 24 at the request of the prosecution, and extended the helper’s bail.  - Vir B. Lumicao

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Delayed payment of wages

By Cynthia Tellez

Recently,  some domestic workers came to the Mission to seek assistance, while others were there to refer friends who needed help.

While waiting for their turn, they shared stories about work experiences, including delays in their salary, many for more than a week, others for almost two months. This caught our attention and so we joined the conversation.

One said that her salary for this month, for example, was supposed to be for two months earlier. The reasons given by her employer was that she either forgot or simply had no time to go to the bank. Another worker had it worse, because her employer said he was experiencing financial difficulties so she decided to just wait.

Their fellow migrants regarded this as ‘better than having no work at all’. But then, they kept on saying that their families back home were of course affected by the delay in their salaries, with one complaining that they cannot just give promissory notes to the school for late payment of tuition fees.

Usually, domestic workers regard the matter of delayed salary as a non-issue and dismiss it as if nothing happened. But delayed wages, being part of the Employment Ordinance, is a serious omission on the part of the employer. This act falls under the protection of wages and is prohibited like illegal deductions.

Let us quote from the HK Labour Department’s “A Concise Guide to the Employment Ordinance”, on Payment of Wages:



‘Wages shall become due on the expiry of the last day of the wage period. An employer should pay wages to an employee as soon as practicable but in any case not later than seven days after the end of the wage period. An employer is required to pay interest on the outstanding amount of wages to the employee if he fails to pay wages to the employee within seven days when it becomes due.’



Offences and Penalties
‘An employer who willfully and without reasonable excuse fails to pay wages to an employee when it becomes due is liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, to a fine of HK$350,000 and to imprisonment for three years.’

‘An employer who willfully and without reasonable excuse fails to pay interest on the outstanding amount of wages to the employee is liable to prosecution and, upon conviction, to a fine of $10,000.’




In the above excerpts from the said Guide, it is clear  that delayed salary is an offence under the Employment Ordinance.

But because this is a serious offence by your employer, you need to present concrete proofs.

Following are some tips to guide you in case similar things happen and termination of contract is unavoidable.



One, it would be best to open a bank account and ask your employer to deposit your salary into the said account. The deposit is either printed in your bank book (you can regularly update it), or your employer must give you a bank receipt stating the amount deposited. The important thing is that a date is always printed on any of these. This will show the regularity on when your salary is given.

Two, if you are paid by cash or cheque, you can make a prepared receipt stating the amount of the salary and the date it is given.  You can use any clean sheet of paper to do this. Here is a sample receipt, say your contract started when you arrived on 3rd September 2018:



“THIS SERVES AS A RECEIPT FOR PAYMENT OF WAGES
Received the amount of  FOUR THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED AND TEN ONLY (HK$4,410 .00) in cash, as payment for my salary for 03 September - 02 October 2018.  Under DH Contract No_______________.
Signature: ___________________________________
Name in block letters: __________________________
Date ___________________________
You can prepare this type of receipt every time your salary is given to you. Make several copies of this, leaving the amount and inclusive dates blank so that you will not waste time in writing the whole thing every time the salary is given.

For payments made by cheque:

“THIS SERVES AS A RECEIPT FOR PAYMENT OF WAGES
Received the amount of  FOUR THOUSAND FOUR HUNDRED AND TEN ONLY (HK$4,410 .00) in cheque:
Cheque No.___________,
Date Issued___________, as payment for my salary for 03 September - 02 October 2018.  Under DH Contract No:_______________.

Signature: ________________________________
Name (in block letters): ________________________
Date  : _______________________________________  Take a photo of the cheque before depositing, if possible.

I am sure there are other means on how you can gather proof to substantiate your complaint against delayed salary payment. Just be sure to keep these pieces of evidence in a safe place.

Three, always keep a diary stating what happened during your supposed pay day and onwards.

Four, for the more serious cases of delayed payment of wages, you can file a complaint against your employer at the Labour Department. You may consult service providers like the Mission for help in doing this. After calling the attention of your employer to the repeated delays, you can file claims for your unpaid wages plus wage in lieu of notice because by not paying you within the prescribed period, your employer is deemed to have terminated your contract. Further, your employer is liable for committing an offence under the law.

Together with your claim, do not forget to mention to the Labour Officer to compute your delayed salary plus interest for the whole period of delay. The interest imposed is in the Labour Ordinance and in fact a separate case against your employer.

Just remember that there is no less important or more important offence or case as far as the law is concerned. The law is law and every violation will be meted with corresponding penalties.

If you have any further questions, or would like to ask for clarifications, please do not hesitate to call the Mission at 2522-8264.
---
This is the monthly column from the Mission for Migrant Workers, an institution that has been serving the needs of migrant workers in Hong Kong for over 31 years. The Mission, headed by its general manager, Cynthia Tellez, assists migrant workers who are in distress, and  focuses its efforts on crisis intervention and prevention through migrant empowerment. Mission has its offices at St John’s Cathedral on Garden Road, Central, and may be reached through tel. 2522 8264.


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‘Katutubo 2018’: First Philippine native design fest in HK

Connie Atijon, a multi-awarded weaver who has been invited to various exhibition events in the Philippines and in Canada and Australia, turns out hablon from her traditional loom.

By Daisy CL Mandap

The first thing that struck guests at the first-ever Philippine fashion show to be held in Hong Kong on Nov. 10 was the presence of a woman quietly weaving Iloilo’s famous hablon cloth in one corner of the Sheraton Hotel in Kowloon, where the event was  held.

Even more striking was her use of a heavy-looking handloom weaver made entirely of wood, a sight that looked totally anachronistic in a modern city like Hong Kong.

The events catalogue for “2018 Katutubo Haute Couture” named her as Connie Atijon, a multi-awarded weaver who has been invited to various exhibition events in the Philippines and in Canada and Australia. Her presence at “Katutubo” highlighted what organizers Likhang Pamana wanted to achieve, which was to focus on the weaver as she sets off the magic that ultimately leads to the creation of beautiful native Filipino outfits.



At the opening cocktails for the event, Consul General Antonio A. Morales paid tribute to the four women who set up Likhang Pamana, and conceived the Katutubo runway show and exhibition as their first project in Hong Kong. He said they helped raise the awareness of Philippine culture among the local people.

“It is ironic that despite the fact that there are many Filipinos in Hong Kong, the knowledge of Hong Kong people about the Philippines is still lacking. And we need more of these activities to make them more aware of the richness of Philippine culture, so thank you Likhang Pamana for making Hong Kong people more aware of Philippine culture.”



But Morales said the benefit from the landmark project also extends to Filipinos in Hng Kong.

“We hope that through this event we get a better appreciation of our Filipino identity, recognizing the country’s multi-cultural heritage, and harnessing the power of our culture as a means, not to focus on differences of which we have many…but to bring out commonalities and humanity to the fore.”



Ana Briones-de Guzman, operations director of Likhang Pamana, responded by saying that their group was formed out of a desire to give back to the Philippines by promoting its rich cultural heritage as reflected in its local products.

The three other women who make up Likhang Pamana are Myrna Pama Hill, who serves as PR director; Catherine Tating-Marsden, artistic director; and Jhoannaliza Timbreza-Siao, creative director.

Aside from Atijon the weaver, the other artists and groups that took part  in the group’s initial foray into Philippine arts promotion were Joanique Studio, Kandama Social Enterprise, Narda’s, Zarah Juan, Antique Provincial Tourism, Jaki Penaloza, Joy Anya Hill of Anthill, Regine Sarabia Espinosa, Galleria Camaya and Everyday PNay.  The two-day event culminated in an arts fair on Chater Road the next day, Nov 12.

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