Department of Labor and Employment-Overseas Workers Welfare Administration Outreach in Moscow Reaches Out to Filipinos

Filipinos inside the Philippine Embassy in Moscows ballroom and receiving room during the DOLE-OWWA Outreach on 1-2 February 2020. (V. Cara photo)

MOSCOW 14 February 2020 — Over 1,000 Overseas Filipino Workers received assistance and service during the Department of Labor and Employment-Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (DOLE-OWWA) Outreach Mission at the Philippine Embassy in Moscow over the weekend of 01-02 February 2020.

The Outreach allowed OFWs to apply for or renew their OWWA membership, have their working contracts verified, and apply for Overseas Employment Certificates (OEC).  Many OFWs were also able to consult with the team on various issues.

The Outreach Team was composed of Labor Attaché Delmer Cruz and Welfare Officer Sylvia Gabriel who are assigned to the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in Berlin, Germany but who concurrently cover Russia.

During the Outreach, Atty. Delmer gave a talk on the services and benefits provided by DOLE and OWWA to the gathered Filipinos. Atty. Cruz’s talk was webcast live on the Philippine Embassy’s Facebook Page (@PHLinRussia) and can still be viewed there. 

Philippine Ambassador to Russia Carlos D. Sorreta, expresses his appreciation to the Outreach Team, also conveyed his gratitude to the Filipinos who went to the Embassy, “I would like to thank our kababayans for their patience and understanding. It was a very large crowd but everyone was cheerful and patient and followed instructions. Because of the cooperation of our kababayans, we were able to serve everyone who came, even those who arrived late. Thank you, too, to our very reliable volunteers who helped out.”

“I would also like to thank our Embassy officers and staff who once again gave up their weekend to serve our kababayans. All pitched in, from preparing the venue, to cleaning up after, from managing the flow of people to pre-checking documents and to actually helping process applications and writing out official receipts, from providing coffee and tea, to preparing and serving merienda for 1,000 people for two days,” Ambassador Sorreta said.

Over the same weekend, the Embassy also provided Overseas Voters Registration services and successfully registered over 100 Filipinos.

Embassy officials and the Outreach Team also discussed possible ways to better serve Filipino workers in Russia, including a DOLE-OWWA outreach mission this year to St. Petersburg, filing OEC applications directly with Labor Attaché Delmer Cruz (a service available only to those with valid employment contracts and work visas, as well as with ability to remit payment to the POLO Berlin official bank account), the recent amendment to Russia's law allowing prospective employers to hire outside statutory quotas, and the way forward for the negotiations for a bilateral labor agreement. They agreed to continue working closely on these issues. END

 Labor Attaché Atty. Delmer Cruz gives a talk on the services and benefits provided by DOLE and OWWA to the gathered Filipinos on 1 February 2020 during the DOLE-OWWA Outreach. Atty. Cruz’s talk was webcast live on the Philippine Embassy’s Facebook Page (@PHLinRussia) and can still be viewed there. (Moscow PE photo)

Embassy staff assisting the DOLE-OWWA Outreach Team in processing OWWA memberships and renewals. (V. Cara photo)

 After the completion of the Outreach Mission, the DOLE-OWWA Team met with Embassy officials and discussed possible ways to better serve Filipino workers in Russia, including a DOLE-OWWA outreach mission this year to St. Petersburg, filing OEC applications directly with Labor Attaché Delmer Cruz (a service available only to those with valid employment contracts and work visas, as well as with ability to remit payment to the POLO Berlin official bank account), the recent amendment to Russia's law allowing prospective employers to hire outside statutory quotas, and the way forward for the negotiations for a bilateral labor agreement. (C. Narvaez photo)

For more information, visit https://www.moscowpe.dfa.gov.ph, or https://www.facebook.com/PHLinRussia/ or https://twitter.com/phlinrussia.