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Pinoy Abroad

Palace to OFWs from Libya: Get loans if P10k aid too small


If they find the P10,000 financial assistance too small, overseas Filipino workers returning from strife-torn Libya can avail of government loan assistance, Malacañang said Saturday. Deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte also said the returning OFWs can also try out for jobs at home and abroad, with the Labor Department assuring them "first crack" at job openings. “Naintindihan natin ang concern nila ... Sinabi ng OWWA sa mga nakukulangan sa P10,000, pwede naman sila mag-apply for loan assistance para madagdagan ang tulong sa kanila," she said on government-run dzRB radio. (We understand their concerns. The Overseas Workers Welfare Administration has advised those for whom P10,000 isn’t enough that they can apply for loan assistance as additional aid.) The Department of Labor and Employment earlier said that OWWA issued guidelines for the financial assistance for OFWs displaced by the Libyan crisis. Valte meanwhile reminded OFWs receiving the P10,000 not to expect cash, because the government gives out money in cheques. “Gusto ko i-clarify the assistance is in the form of a cheque. May misconceptions [na] bibigyan sila [ng] cash. Gobyerno ito, lahat yan binibigyan sa check," she said. (I want to clarify the assistance is in the form of a cheque. There are misconceptions the money will be given in cash. This is a governmental act, and we hand the money as cheques.) Valte also said there are job offers for OFWs returning from Libya, including 2,000 openings abroad and more jobs open at home, although she conceded these may not be as high-paying as the jobs they left in Libya. “Di ganoon kataas ang bayad tulad ng kinikita nila sa Libya. Ang pagkakaalam ko kasi an engineer is paid P15 to 20,000, sa Libya P50 to 60,000. Malaki ang diprensya," she said. (The pay is not as high as what they earn in Libya. From what I know, engineers here are paid P15,000 to P20,000 while Libya pays them P50,000 to P60,000. That’s a big difference.) DOLE: OFWs from Libya to be prioritized for overseas work Meanwhile, the DOLE said Filipino workers repatriated from Libya will get first crack at job openings in other countries. DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said recruitment agencies have pledged to give the repatriated workers priority for overseas employment. “During a meeting with licensed recruitment agencies (LRAs) last week, agencies which hired and sent OFWs to Libya have assured us that they will give precedence to OFWs repatriated from Libya for jobs in other countries," Baldoz said in a news release posted Saturday on the government portal. She said OFWs who want to stay home can avail of assistance for local jobs or livelihood from the National Reintegration Center for OFWs (NCRO).—JV, GMA News

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