SENATE Majority Leader Joel Villanueva welcomed Malacañang’s ratification of International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention No.190 to put an end to violence and harassment at work, saying this would give overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) the much-needed mantle of protection.
Villanueva said the ratification was a positive response to Senate Resolution No. 456 which he filed in February 2023 calling on the executive department to immediately ratify the convention.
“We thank President Bongbong Marcos for heeding our call to ratify this very important ILO Convention which will provide us a critical avenue to raise the concerns of our OFWs. We don’t want a repeat of what happened to Jullebee Ranara and the numerous cases of abuses,” Villanueva said referring to the OFW who was raped, murdered and burned by her employer’s son in Kuwait.
According to data from the Department of Migrant Workers, the highest number of welfare cases handled by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) involving OFWs from January to July 2022 is in Riyadh with 65,136 cases, followed by Kuwait with 43,225 and Malaysia with 29,049 cases.
The Majority Leader vowed to push for the Senate’s immediate concurrence to the ratification of ILO Convention No. 190 (ILO C190) or the Convention Concerning the Elimination of Violence and Harassment in the World of Work.
“We need to bring into force this new global framework to end violence and harassment at work,” he said.
“The Philippines’ ratification and concurrence are well past their due. I am hoping for the full support of my colleagues when we tackle this Convention in the plenary,” Villanueva added. (UnliNewsOnline)
