Singapore bolsters safety awareness of foreign domestic workers
Iloilo -- Here's good news to Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) who plan to work in Singapore.
The Singaporean government has taken steps to bolster the protection of vulnerable migrants, especially foreign domestic workers, working for the first time in Singapore through a compulsory Foreign Domestic Workers' Safety Awareness Course (FDW-SAC).
Labor and Employment Acting Secretary Danilo Cruz said that report reaching him indicated that the Singaporean government's efforts to safeguard foreign domestic workers dovetail with the Philippine government's initiatives to promote pre-departure orientation seminars (PDOS) to all OFWs leaving for global destinations.
The FDW-SAC is part of the package of measures to improve the safe ty and welfare of foreign domestic workers in the country. This was implemented by the Singapore Ministry of Manpower (MOM) last year in conjunction with the island-economy's safety body, the Singapore National Safety Council (SNSC).
The Singaporean Safety Awareness Course is compulsory for first time foreign domestic workers (FDWs) in the country but even those already employed prior to the initial implementation are encouraged to participate in the program.
The course is composed of two four-hour classes, each with forty FDWs actively participating in the program's theory and practicum components. The medium of instruction for the program is generally English but there are plans to hold classes in Filipino.
The course provides the participants with a training kit that incorporates "A Handy Guide for FDWs in Singapore; "Your Rights and Obligations When Working in Singapore; " and an "Orientation Video for FDWs."
Acting Secretary Cruz said the DOLE is eyeing the possibility of incorporating the Singaporean kit into the pre-departure orientation seminar (PDOS) for OFWs. "This would be good for their protection and welfare and help optimize their productivity in the Singaporean economy", he said.
In 2005, Singapore, sustai ned its place as one of the top 10 global destinations of OFWs, even as preliminary DOLE records show that some 20,189 OFWs were deployed in the host economy between January and August, or an increase of 25.14 percent compared to 16,133 in the same period 2004. (DOLE/PIA)