The Department of Labor and Employment has announced no deployment ban to work in Taiwan despite Taiwan’s call for suspension of accepting Filipino workers to work in their country.  However, processing of work visa of newly hired workers to Taiwan is temporarily stopped.

The labor department also stressed that there will be no imminent evacuation of Filipino workers  from Taiwan and has rejected to repatriate Filipino workers in Taiwan since there is no large imminent danger to the lives of Filipino workers in Taiwan such as civil wars.

Labor secretary Rosalinda Baldoz advised Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who are greatly affected by the tension should apply in alternative destination like South Korea and Middle East.

View Here to See the List of Job Openings For Filipinos Abroad

Department of Labor and Employment secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said that huge number  of Filipino workers are coming back to the Philippines and opt to work here with more local firms offering high salaries.

Baldoz points out that many overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) working in entertainment and gaming companies in Macau are lured to go back in the country and work here as they are  being offered the same salary that they were getting overseas.

“The Philippines is also seeing for the first time a return migration of our workers from Macau being absorbed by the emerging entertainment and gaming industry in our country,” Baldoz said.

“So what we are seeing is these new industries (entertainment and gaming) right now are setting the trend on what could be the new face of the labor market,” she added.

Baldoz said that the government is now doing theuir job to reduce reliance on foreign remittances of OFWs to sustain the country’s economic and social growth. He said that President Aquino wants to give OFWs a fair choice to stay and work in the country or abroad.

“The aspiration that the President has put in the social contract with the Filipino people, the challenge for his administration according to him is really to expand the base of employment here and also to keep on ready the jobs that are here to ensure we have employable work force and to ensure all labor laws are being complied with by the employers so that the benefits that are due to our workers are assured,” Baldoz said.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is serious with their pledge to monitor overseas recruitment agencies and file charges on those who will violate POEA rules and regulations.

POEA cancels the license of Lifeline International Philippines, Inc. for collecting excessive placement fee from an applicant who applied for a job in Taiwan. According to the complainant, he was asked to pay P120,000 as placement fee but he was only able to pay P50,000 but was not issued an official receipt. The complainant said that he was able to sign a contract but was not get deployed.

POEA administrator Hans Leo Cacdac has ordered Lifeline and Country Bankers Insurance Corporation to refund to the complainant the amount of PhP50,000 which was paid as placement fee.

On the other hand, POEA also cancelled the license of ABC Manpower, Inc. for asking excessive fees to an applicant seeking for a job as household service worker (HSW) in Hong Kong despite the withdrawal of case if the complainant.

Cacdac noted that under Household Service Workers’ Reform Package Rules, particularly Governing Board Resolution No. 6, Series of 2006, POEA prohibits the collection of placement fee from household workers, whether collected prior to their deployment or on-site through salary deduction.”

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Social Security System (SSS) members who are earning P25, 000 or less from are now eligible to avail Educational Assist (Educ-Assist) loan program of the government unit. SSS aims to assist its members’ financial support for their or his/her family member’s education.

Aside from increasing the salary cap of borrowers, SSS also increases the loanable amount per semester from P15,000 to P20,000 for college degrees. For vocational-technical courses, SSS raises its maximum amount to P10,000 from the previous cap of P7,500.

Members  with a minimum of 12 posted contributions, including at least one paid contribution within the past three months prior to the date of application are eligible to borrow. Moreover, members without any contribution for the past three months can pay and present the proof of payment to SSS.

However, SSS reminded that the loan proceeds must be used to pay tuition fees and miscellaneous fees only.  SSS will automatically send the payment to the school where the loan beneficiary is enrolled.

Per guidelines, loan beneficiaries can be the SSS members themselves or their children. Unmarried members can designate their siblings, including their half-brother or sister. No substitution of beneficiary is allowed.

Under the new guidelines, a married SSS member can now designate up to two loan beneficiaries, who can be the member himself or herself, his or her spouse or legitimate or illegitimate children. Unmarried members remain entitled to one loan beneficiary.

Application forms for the Educ-Assist loan program are available at the nearest SS branches. These may also be downloaded from the SSS website at www.sss.gov.ph.

Not all agencies require their applicants to pay for placement fees. It’s a fact. If the employer shoulder all the application expenses of their candidates then no placement fee will be asked.

To help jobseekers find a job that is Placement-Free, www.WorkAbroad.ph has lists down 20 agencies that require no placement fee based from their job postings at the website. They are:

With over 50,000 jobs in more than 100 countries from accredited recruitment firms nationwide, WorkAbroad.ph is considered as one of the trusted overseas jobsite in the Philippines by both POEA-recruitment agencies and Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).  Plus, registration and multiple applications are absolutely free.

View Here To See the Complete List of Job Openings With No Placement Fee!