200,000 jobs ready for OFWs displaced by Mideast crisis

MANILA, Philippines — Around 200,000 job opportunities abroad for returning overseas Filipino workers are being prepared by the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), as the total number of repatriated OFWs from the Middle East exceeded 4,000.

Migrant Workers Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said the government is ready to assist repatriated OFWs by matching them with available employment opportunities, based on their skills and work experience.

“We are prepared for their arrival in the Philippines. Approximately 200,000 job orders are already available. We have an understanding of their profiles and respective fields of work, which allows us to align them with suitable employment opportunities. We are also considering the conduct of job fairs to enable them to explore alternative employment in other countries should they lose their jobs in the UAE,” Cacdac said.

The DMW reported that a total of 4,241 OFWs and their dependents have been repatriated from the Middle East as of April 3, amid escalating tensions in the region.

The latest batch of 344 repatriates arrived at Villamor Air Base in Pasay City on Good Friday via the government’s seventh chartered flight from the United Arab Emirates. Of the total, 228 were OFWs, 68 were dependents and 48 were stranded Filipinos.

Earlier that day, the DMW reported that 198 OFWs and 46 of their dependents from Bahrain also arrived at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 3 aboard Gulf Air Flight 0154, following land travel across Bahrain before departing from Dammam, Saudi Arabia.

Around 1,500 OFWs and their dependents, mostly from the UAE, are still awaiting repatriation.

Cacdac also said the government will continue to extend assistance to returning workers, including financial aid, temporary accommodation and livelihood. — Rhodina Villanueva, Rudy Santos