Obey contract obligations, POEA reminds OFWs

MANILA – The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) on Thursday reminded overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to honor their employment contacts.

In an advisory, Administrator Bernard Olalia said it is important for Filipinos who are employed overseas to fulfill the obligations, terms, and conditions contained in their employment contracts.

He added that they must also obey the labor laws in their host countries.

Olalia made the remark after receiving reports from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Milan, Italy on the increasing number of Filipino workers in Romania who run away from their employers.

Reports said the practice is becoming more prevalent among household service workers (HSWs) who would leave their employers and transfer to another without the proper settlement of issues with their previous employer and the foreign recruiter.

Under Romanian laws, termination of employment by the employee need not have a valid reason but shall be in the form of formal resignation by the worker.

The employee is required to notify the employer of the intention to resign not more than 20 working days for employees in non-management positions or 45 days for managers.

In case of dismissal, the employer must give at least 20 working days’ notice of termination. The employee is entitled to receive his salary and all other statutory rights during this period.

The POEA did not provide figures regarding the number of HSWs who left their employers.