The Department of Migrant Workers has pushed back against reports of a deployment ban to the Middle East, confirming that Filipinos may still travel to the region as long as airspace conditions permit.
DMW Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac said the agency is, however, applying tighter scrutiny on documentation — particularly for newly hired workers and first-time employers — to ensure that job sites remain operational amid ongoing conflict.
“What we’re doing right now is we’re being strict with pagtingin ng dokumento lalo yung newly-hired workers, yung new employers, we are looking at their documentation kasi kailangan sigurado na sila ay bukas at makakapagtrabaho ang workers, sa ngayon kasi maraming pinapauwi,” Cacdac said in an ABS-CBN News report.
Cacdac assured workers that those unable to return to their posts due to airspace restrictions would be allowed back once fighting subsides. He added that the displacement extends beyond domestic workers, touching sectors such as hospitality, transport, and construction — areas he saw firsthand during a recent visit to the region.
“We have been helping those who could not leave, patuloy lang ang ating effort dito, of course, kasi apektado rin ilang sektor sa abroad, galing nga ako don, may sectors gaya ng hospitality, transport, even construction,” he said.
The clarification came on the same day several government agencies staged a reintegration program for Overseas Filipino Workers displaced by the Middle East conflict. The event featured a job fair offering roughly 5,000 positions sourced from 15 private recruitment agencies, 13 local employers, and multiple government bodies — with openings spanning healthcare, caregiving, hospitality, call centers, BPO, and accounting services, as well as a government-to-government placement for hotel workers in Croatia.
Around 4,400 Filipinos have been brought home since the conflict began, through a combination of government-chartered and commercial flights. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration head Patricia Yvonne Caunan said six in ten of those repatriated are female domestic helpers now weighing their next steps.
“Marami sa kanila ang nagsasabi na gusto na nilang magtrabaho dito o maghanap ng trabaho abroad o magsimula ng negosyo,” Caunan said.
Her agency’s survey found 1,400 repatriates interested in starting a business, more than 600 looking for local jobs, and 742 still intent on working abroad — with some eyeing markets in Europe and Asia rather than returning to the Middle East.
“Admittedly nung nag-survey kami, marami pa rin ang gusto mag-abroad, tinitingnan nila markets outside Middle East like Europe na nagbukas sa ating mga kababayan, marami rin sa Asia,” Caunan said.
Both DMW and OWWA acknowledged they could not give a precise count of how many Middle East-based OFWs remain stranded and unable to return to work.
Among those at the reintegration fair was Laina Gampong, a domestic helper who had worked in Kuwait since 2013 before volunteering for repatriation out of fear.
“Natatakot po kami sa giyera doon, tuwing gabi parang may nahuhulog na missile, tapos parang laging kinakabahan dahil sa bomba,” she said.
Gampong eventually secured her employer’s permission to leave for the Philippine embassy, where she spent two weeks in a government shelter before being flown home.
Mary Jane Alcala, who had worked as a cleaner in the UAE since 2006, was among the most recent arrivals. Her company halted operations, leaving workers without pay and struggling to cover rent.
“Nag-stop din work namin, no work no pay, syempre rent namin problema,” she said.
Alcala said her visa remains valid and a return is not out of the question — but for now, she plans to put her family’s land in Leyte to use with a poultry and livestock venture.
“Kasi may lupa kami, gusto naming taniman yun, poultry and livestock. If ever maging okay takbo ng business, syempre mag-stay,” she said.
Editor’s note: TGFM had earlier reported on a possible deployment restriction to the Middle East, citing reputable outlets including Sunstar Davao and Philstar.com. The DMW’s clarification on Monday addresses those earlier reports.
