3,000 Pinoy DHs barred from leaving for Saudi

MANILA, Philippines — Nearly 3,000 Filipino household service workers will not be able to leave the country to work in Saudi Arabia even as the Philippines resumes the deployment of HSWs and construction workers in the Middle East country starting today.

Recruitment consultant Manny Geslani said the new age requirement bars thousands of Filipino domestic helpers from seeking employment in Saudi Arabia.

Geslani said recruitment agencies are disappointed that HSWs would not be able to leave, although they have verified contracts, approved visas and passed their medical examinations.

“Their plane tickets have been paid and booked for their departure,” he said.

The HSWs were able to secure employment requirements before the Anti-Human Trafficking Law setting a 24-year age limit for female workers departing for work abroad took effect last July, according to Geslani.

The deployment suspension imposed by the government last year prevented HSWs from leaving the country.

Geslani said the Saudi Ministry of Human Resources and Social Development has started accepting visa applications from employers and foreign recruitment agencies for domestic workers from the Philippines.

Foreign and local recruitment agencies, however, will submit new visa requests for female HSWs 24 years old and above.

The Department of Migrant Workers admitted that the new age limit would derail the departure of thousands of domestic helpers.

The Coalition of Licensed Agencies Deploying Domestic Services has appealed to Migrant Workers Secretary Susan Ople to allow HSWs with complete requirements and booked plane tickets to depart so as to fulfill their contracts with their employers in the Middle East.

The group pointed out that the recruitment industry has been suffering from poor deployment due to the Saudi deployment ban.

The new age limit for HSWs will further affect their operations, the group added.

Aside from HSWs, Filipino construction workers will also benefit from the resumption of deployment to Saudi Arabia, which has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.