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MANILA, Philippines – A stricter work permit for foreign workers in the Philippines is coming out soon, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said on Sunday.
The TUCP said the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (NTIPC) had reached the final stages of reviewing the Employment Permit for Foreigners (AEP) to make it more stringent.
The NTIPC is chaired by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) with representatives from the labor and business sectors.
According to the TUCP, which is among the labor groups represented in the NTIPC, the measure seeks to ensure that local jobs are protected and that foreign workers are not victims of makeshift employers.
“We have to make sure that no foreigner eliminates local jobs and at the same time ensure that foreign workers are not victims of slave labor,” TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said in a statement.
The labor group said the permit was revised in light of the reported series of kidnappings, torture and other forms of violence inflicted on Chinese POGO workers last year; bribery of immigration officials; and the Philippine government’s decision to allow Chinese workers to work in the construction industry, which took jobs away from Filipino workers.
The TUCP also pointed to reports of Chinese nationals caught violating health protocols, saying these were a “serious cause for concern.”
In addition, the TUCP said it would raise the issue of authorized workers in the construction industry at a meeting of the Construction Industry Tripartite Council, with representatives from labor groups, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), the Department of Commerce and Industry. (DTI), the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH), the Technical Education and Capacity Development Authority (TESDA) and Filipino contractors.
The meeting is scheduled for September 28.
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