Insurance policy for PH household service workers in Hong Kong suspended indefinitely
Credit to Author: The Manila Times| Date: Mon, 14 Jan 2019 11:41:43 +0000
THE Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) indefinitely suspended the implementation of the insurance policy for household service workers (HSWs) in Hong Kong as it is currently seeking the opinion of the Department of Justice about the legality of the policy.
POEA Administrator Bernard Olalia didn’t give timetable as to when the opinion of the DoJ may come out, hinting that the policy, originally planned to be imposed last Oct. 15, 2018, may be suspended further until mid-year.
“POEA sought the legal opinion of the DoJ on the legality of the implementation,” Olalia told the Manila Times in an interview on Monday.
According to the official, HK may not honor the insurance that will be used as warrant for any claims of aggrieved HSWs as the insurance will be issued in the Philippines and not in their territory.
Once approved, all HSWs working on the island-state are mandated to pay $144 as insurance in any local insurance firm. This aims to compel employers who will shortchange their workers by not paying the right salary as stipulated in their contract to pay the insurance, not the HSW.
The policy has been under attack from various labor groups, who claim that it will be used to increase government revenues at the expense of lowly-paid domestic helpers. ED VELASCO
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