MANILA, 30 July 2004 — Philippine labor officials in the Middle East were told yesterday to closely monitor Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) crossing into Iraq to insure they are adequately covered by insurance.

This is in line with an order by the Philippine Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) requiring recruitment agencies and foreign principals to provide for additional insurance and hazard pay to OFWs who perform cross-border assignments to the troubled Mideast country.

Nevertheless, Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas said recruiters of OFWs required to cross into Iraqi territory will still be held liable for contract violations.

Sto. Tomas issued Department Order 63-04 following the kidnapping by Iraqi militants of Angelo dela Cruz, a truck driver based in Riyadh who was sent to Iraq by his employer.

Dela Cruz was freed last week after President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo gave in to the kidnappers' demand by pulling out the Philippine humanitarian contingent in Iraq weeks ahead of the scheduled withdrawal.

Arroyo's decision has strained Philippine ties with the United States and Australia, whose governments argued that the militants were emboldened into taking more foreign hostages to derail rebuilding efforts in Iraq.

Arroyo has defended her decision by saying she could not afford to sacrifice the life of a single Filipino citizen. Arroyo has ordered the departments of foreign affairs and labor to give priority to attending to the needs and welfare of OFWs, some 1.5 million of whom are working in the Middle East.

Sto. Tomas said part of the welfare and protection effort entails the provision of the hazard pay. She also said officials of Philippine Overseas Labor Offices (POLOs) in the Middle East will closely monitor OFWs in the region to ensure their employers' compliance with this order.

In addition, she said the officials will provide immediate assistance to those who may be adversely affected by acts of terrorism, violence and similar circumstances.

Sto. Tomas said DO 63-04 will cover newly hired OFWs as well as those already working as truck drivers, in Saudi Arabia and other Middle Eastern countries.

Many other Filipino truck drivers employed by trucking companies in Saudi Arabia usually brave long drives to deliver crude oil and other supplies to neighboring countries like Iraq. Their contracts, however, state that they will be working within the Kingdom.

DO 63-04 requires that all prospective OFWs be informed before the contract signing that they will be required to perform cross-border duties.

DOLE ordered that all land-based OFWs required to do this shall be covered by additional insurance cover of $35,000 and shall receive an additional 100 percent of their basic pay.

In case of accidents or any other events causing the OFW to stop working, the OFW should receive an indemnity pay equivalent to one month's basic salary plus cost of repatriation and accrued wages and other benefits.

Drivers and other OFWs onsite shall no longer be required to physically turn over their vehicles and other equipment in case they fail to perform their duties in areas outside their contracted countries of employment due to terrorism or similar cases.

Foreign Affairs Secretary Delia Albert said yesterday that Saudi Arabia has temporarily banned Filipinos working in the Kingdom from crossing the border to Iraq upon Manila's request. She said the government made a similar request to Jordan and Kuwait but Kuwait has not responded.

Asked if the ban would negatively affect foreign employers' preference for Filipino workers, Albert said: "It's really up to the contractors. But one thing is absolute. This is a momentary ban. We have cited a need for it - a preventive measure."

Foreign Undersecretary Jose Brillantes of the Office for Migrant Welfare Affairs advised Filipinos not to enter into contracts that would require them to cross the border.

"The problem is sometimes the Filipinos are willing to go to Iraq because the compensation is doubled, sometimes tripled," Brillantes said.