The six Filipino nurses who were repatriated on Sunday have thanked Director General Saleh Al-Ahmari of the Ministry of Labor branch in Hail for his assistance and role in resolving their case.

“We, the six nurses of Ibn Seena Clinic, would like to thank you for the support and help you provided us in our case,” the nurses said in a letter to Al-Ahmari.

The nurses had stopped working after their contracts expired on October 2014 due to various problems such as non-issuance of iqama and delayed salaries.

“Because we did not have iqamas, we could not go out during our day offs,” they said.

They relied on the Filipino community for food and other needs while they were jobless for about six months. However, they continued to stay in the company accommodation.

“It makes you feel good deep inside that fellow Filipinos are willing to help compatriots in need. They are many and we are really indebted to them,” the nurses said in the letter.

The Filipino community also helped them refer their case to the Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Riyadh (POLO-Riyadh) and seek help from the Ministry of Labor in Hail.

However, the employer could not meet the cost of exit visas and one-way air tickets for the six workers. Eventually, their recruitment agency in Manila — Lead Resources Management — paid for their repatriation, including tickets.

They had arrived in the Kingdom in October 2013 for a monthly salary of SR2,500. “We did not even receive our last salary,” said the nurses — Andrian Marie A. del Mundo, Mei-Lin B. Gunio, Patrice Anne C. Garcia, Norina A. Magsilang, Lourdes G. Molina and Melanie Maurine A. Masakayan.