DOLE welcomes Taiwan's decision to resume normal verification of OFW applicants

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A March 17, 2011 press release by the Department of Labor and Employment

Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz lauded the recent decision of Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) to return to normal the document verification standards for Filipino workers applying for jobs in Taiwan.

Baldoz, citing a report from Labor Attaché to Taipei Reydeluz D. Conferido, said the CLA had announced that it will start cooperating with Taiwan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs to return to normal verification standards the application process for Filipino workers.  This after Taiwan increased the processing time for Taiwan employers who want to hire Filipino workers for the first time, in protest of Philippine government’s action against Taiwanese fraud suspects who were deported to China early last month.

“Taiwan CLA’s positive action means that the verification process period covering job applications of our OFWs shall be reverted to the normal 7-12 days instead of the longer 40 days,” the labor explained.

The CLA raised the verification standards and extended the processing period for employers hiring foreign workers for the first time, as a sign of protest against the Philippines, including four categories: first hiring, re-hiring, visa permit, and replacement.

During the ‘higher standards period’, CLA remarked on its permit letters for first hiring, re-hiring, recruitment, and replacement that “employers cannot recruit foreign workers from the Philippines” or “only Philippine workers (with specified name and passport numbers) may be selected for recruitment”.  With the latest positive development from Taiwan, the CLA vowed to raise the document processing efficiency for pending applications and release permit letters as soon as possible after returning to normal verification standards.

Employers who were affected by CLA’s earlier restriction policy but still would like to hire Filipino workers shall be allowed to alter the procedure within the valid permit letter and need not apply for a change at CLA.

“We are grateful that the row with Taiwan is finally over, even while we have remained very optimistic that the issue would just be temporary.  In the end, when all things have been considered in different perspectives, it becomes an inevitable fact that our workers’ skills and work attitude are assets to any industry in any country,” Baldoz said.

She also expressed appreciation to Philippine officials who have successfully negotiated for Taiwan’s reconsideration of its provisional policy.

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