Bank accounts a must for HSWs from Philippines

Philippine overseas labor offices in Riyadh (POLO-Riyadh) and Jeddah (POLO-Jeddah) confirmed yesterday that Saudi employers are required to open bank accounts for Filipino household service workers (HSW).
HSWs include domestic helpers, baby sitters, gardeners, cooks and family drivers.
It has also been confirmed that the embassy of the Philippines in the Kingdom has made it mandatory for all local housemaid recruitment companies to supply monthly reports showing deposits of housemaid salaries. Labor Attaché Alex A. Padaen of Jeddah-POLO told Arab News yesterday that bank accounts are crucial because it will ensure that workers are paid on time.
An official of POLO-Riyadh added that "it's also one way of avoiding any dispute over salaries later on."
The officials added that according to circulars and laws of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the standard salary is $ 400 a month, although this is not mentioned in the standard employment contract.
In addition to the opening of a bank account, they added, HSWs have to work eight hours daily and entitled to a day off weekly.
Domestic helpers should be at least 23 years old at the time they are recruited.
Padaen said that the Philippine labor offices in the Kingdom do not accept individual applications.
“Individual applicants for a housemaid, for example, have to approach accredited Saudi recruitment agencies. The documents should include the employment contract, visa and plane tickets. The agency submits these to the POLO for accreditation,” Padaen said.
The procedure is in accordance with POEA's Memorandum Circular No. 8 that states local recruitment agencies should have existing offices with enough staff and proper facilities to ensure the protection of HSWs.
“If we think they qualify, we issue them a certificate of accreditation that they send to their counterparts in the Philippines which, in turn, will bring it and other documents to the POEA for registration,” he said.
The POEA examines the documents and once they are registered, they can start recruiting house workers for deployment in Saudi Arabia.
The Philippine Embassy in Riyadh said the monthly reports detailing the account numbers of the Filipino housemaids working in the Kingdom must show that monthly salaries are deposited in the accounts, and the iqama number of the housemaid must appear on the report.
The embassy also demanded that the reports be upgraded each month, as per authenticated documents and papers.
"There will no longer be any business dealings with any office that stops issuing the monthly reports," Adam Musa, the labor attaché at the embassy, told Ash-Sharq. "Until the day before yesterday, the number of labor contracts authenticated at the embassy reached 4,414," he added.
"There is delay, because of training courses given to the housemaids," Musa said, referring to complaints about the late arrival of workers from the Philippines. "These housemaids are given training and orientation regarding the local Saudi culture, etiquette, and the types of duties required of them." Musa said that most housemaids are Christian, because Christianity is the dominant religion in the Philippines. He indicated that "the sponsor has the right to choose housemaids that are of a certain religious persuasion."
"The embassy follows up on the financial situation of the housemaid, the contractual relationship with the recruitment office, and the monthly reports, which are a top priority in the new contracts."
It was reported earlier that Labor Secretary Erlinda Dimapilis-Baldoz would be visiting the Kingdom next month at the invitation of Saudi Labor Minister Adel Fakeih but reliable sources said the Saudi Ministry of Labor has not yet issued its final approval.
“Labor Secretary Erlinda Dimapilis-Baldoz will be coming for the signing of the standard labor agreement between Saudi Arabia and the Philippines,” Padaen said. She wants to sign the agreement as soon as she arrives, he added.
Asked why there seemed to be a rush among Saudi employers to hire Filipino domestic helpers, Padaen said that it was because the Kingdom's population is growing. As of last year, the Kingdom's population was estimated at 25 million.
The Kingdom started issuing visas for HSWs on Oct. 1, 2012. The recruitment of HSWs had been halted over differences between the Kingdom and the Philippines over the rights of housemaids. Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Khaled bin Saud bin Khaled had earlier announced that the Kingdom would begin issuing visas after it had reached an agreement with the Philippines that respects the sovereignty of the Kingdom and its laws while protecting Saudi employers.