Fast facts

2015 SOF (released on 18 May 2016)

April to September 2015- 2.4 million estimated
OFWs

97.1 % of which were classified as Overseas Contract Workers

(OCWs) or those with existing work contract

2.9 % worked overseas without contract.

Saudi Arabia remained the top destination of OFWs which accounted for 24.7 % of
the total OFWs in 2015.

CALABARZON registered the largest share of OFWs with 17.9%

Central Luzon with 15.1%

National Capital Region (NCR) with 11.0%

Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) reported the smallest percent

share of OFWs with 1.5%.

Remittances

MANILA, Philippines Personal remittancesby

overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) reached $2.7 billion
in March 2016(1.4% higher than in March 2015, said
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Governor Amando
Tetangco Jr.)
March cash remittances from OFWs channeled
through banks amounted to $2.4 billion, a growth of
1.5% year-on-year.

Importance of OFW Remittances

Economic Growth
Remittance Inflows
>food
>shelter
>clothing
>health finances
>investments

International
Reserves at
comfortable
level

Pinay domestic helper sa Jordan, namatay sa pagmamalupit ng

amo.
(ABS-CBN News)
Aug 21 2016

Pinoy na na-comatose sa Saudi, pinabayaan

ng employer.
TV Patrol, Agosto 19, 2016

NBI arrests ex-OFW for illegal recruitment in Davao

del Norte
Thousands of OFWs remain stranded, unpaid in Saudi
Arabia
OFW raped by employer dies in Saudi
Ilang maysakit na OFW, umapela ng tulong para
makauwi na

17 March 1995
Flor Contemplacion, a Filipina domestic
helper was convicted for killing another
Filipina domestic helper in Singapore.
She was sentenced to be hanged.

Mass actions were staged in the Philippines

protesting the verdict and pressuring the
government to intervene to stop the
execution.
Despite diplomatic efforts by the Philippine
government, Flor Contemplacion was
hanged on 17 March 1995.

07 June 1995
Pres. Fidel Ramos signed into law
Republic Act 8042 otherwise known as
the
Migrant Workers and Overseas
Filipinos Act of 1995

R.A. 8042

Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995

(7 June 1995, Fidel V. Ramos)

Amendments

R.A. 9244 (10 Apr 2007)

R.A. 10022 (8 Mar 2010)

Definitions

Overseas Filipino Worker person to be engaged, is engaged or has been engaged in a

remunerated activity:
(a) in a state of which he is not a citizen

(b) on board a vessel navigating the foreign seas other than a government ship used for
military or non-commercial purposes
(c) on an installation located offshore or on the high seas

Overseas Filipinos dependents of migrant workers and other Filipino nationals

abroad who are in distress
Gender-sensitivity cognizance of the inequalities and inequities prevalent in society
between women and men and a commitment to address issues with concern for the
respective interests of the sexes

Acts Punishable

Illegal Recruitment- any act of canvassing, enlisting,

contracting, transporting, utilizing, hiring, or
procuring workers and includes referring, contract
services, promising or advertising for employment
abroad, whether for profit or not, when undertaken
by non-licensee or non-holder of authority.

Illegal Recruitment involves the following:

(committed by any person, whether a non-licensee, non-holder, licensee or holder of
authority)

(a) To charge or accept directly or indirectly any amount greater than that specified
in the schedule of allowable fees prescribed by the Secretary of Labor and
Employment, or to make a worker pay or acknowledge any amount greater than
that actually received by him as a loan or advance;
(b) To furnish or publish any false notice or information or document in relation to
recruitment or employment;
(c) To give any false notice, testimony, information or document or commit any act
of misrepresentation for the purpose of securing a license or authority under the
Labor Code, or for the purpose of documenting hired workers with the POEA,
which include the act of reprocessing workers through a job order that pertains to
nonexistent work, work different from the actual overseas work, or work with a
different employer whether registered or not with the POEA;

(d) To induce or attempt to induce a worker already employed to quit his

employment in order to offer him another unless the transfer is designed to
liberate a worker from oppressive terms and conditions of employment;
(e) To influence or attempt to influence any person or entity not to employ any
worker who has not applied for employment through his agency or who has
formed, joined or supported, or has contacted or is supported by any union or
workers' organization;
(f) To engage in the recruitment or placement of workers in jobs harmful to
public health or morality or to the dignity of the Republic of the Philippines;
(g) To obstruct or attempt to obstruct inspection by the Secretary of Labor and
Employment or by his duly authorized representative;
(h) To fail to submit reports on the status of employment, placement vacancies,
remittance of foreign exchange earnings, separation from jobs, departures and
such other matters or information as may be required by the Secretary of Labor
and Employment;

(i) To substitute or alter to the prejudice of the worker, employment contracts approved and
verified by the Department of Labor and Employment from the time of actual signing thereof
by the parties up to and including the period of the expiration of the same without the
approval of the Department of Labor and Employment;
(j) For an officer or agent of a recruitment or placement agency to become an officer or member
of the Board of any corporation engaged in travel agency or to be engaged directly or
indirectly in the management of travel agency;
(k) To withhold or deny travel documents from applicant workers before departure for
monetary or financial considerations, or for any other reasons, other than those authorized
under the Labor Code and its implementing rules and regulations;
(l) Failure to actually deploy a contracted worker without valid reason as determined by the
Department of Labor and Employment;
(m) Failure to reimburse expenses incurred by the worker in connection with his
documentation and processing for purposes of deployment, in cases where the deployment
does not actually take place without the worker's fault. Illegal recruitment when committed by a
syndicate or in large scale shall be considered an offense involving economic sabotage; and
(n) To allow a non-Filipino citizen to head or manage a licensed recruitment/manning agency.

Classifications of Illegal
Recruitment
I. Simple Illegal Recruitment involves less than three (3) victims or recruiters
II. Illegal Recruitment involving economic sabotage:
a. Large Scale committed against three (3) or more persons individually or as
a group.
b. Syndicated committed by a group of three (3) or more persons conspiring
or confederating with one another.

Prescriptive period for prosecuting Illegal

Recruitment cases? (Sec.12, R.A. 8042)

Simple IR five (5) years

IR involving economic sabotage (Large Scale and
Syndicated) twenty (20) years

Other Punishable Acts:

(1) Grant a loan to an overseas Filipino worker with interest exceeding eight percent (8%) per annum, which will be used for payment of
legal and allowable placement fees and make the migrant worker issue, either personally or through a guarantor or accommodation
party, postdated checks in relation to the said loan;
(2) Impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement whereby an overseas Filipino worker is required to avail of a loan only from
specifically designated institutions, entities or persons;
(3) Refuse to condone or renegotiate a loan incurred by an overseas Filipino worker after the latter's employment contract has been
prematurely terminated through no fault of his or her own;
(4) Impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement whereby an overseas Filipino worker is required to undergo health examinations
only from specifically designated medical clinics, institutions, entities or persons, except in the case of a seafarer whose medical
examination cost is shouldered by the principal/shipowner;
(5) Impose a compulsory and exclusive arrangement whereby an overseas Filipino worker is required to undergo training, seminar,
instruction or schooling of any kind only from specifically designated institutions, entities or persons, except for recommendatory
trainings mandated by principals/shipowners where the latter shoulder the cost of such trainings;
(6) For a suspended recruitment/manning agency to engage in any kind of recruitment activity including the processing of pending
workers' applications; and
(7) For a recruitment/manning agency or a foreign principal/employer to pass on the overseas Filipino worker or deduct from his or her
salary the payment of the cost of insurance fees, premium or other insurance related charges, as provided under the compulsory worker's
insurance coverage.

Persons criminally liable:

Principals;

Accomplices ;

Accessories;

In case of juridical persons, like partnerships or

corporations, the persons liable are the officers having
ownership, control, management or direction of their
business who are responsible for the commission of the
offense and the responsible employees/agents thereof shall
be liable.

Penalties

Simple Illegal Recruitment

_ imprisonment : 12yrs and 1d to 20yrs
_fine : P1,000,000.00 to P2,000,000.00

Illegal Recruitment involving Economic Sabotage

_life imprisonment
_fine : P2,000,000.00 to P5,000,000.00

*the maximum penalty shall be imposed if the person illegally recruited is less than eighteen (18) years of age or committed by a non- licensee
or non-holder of authority

Other Punishable Acts

_imprisonment : 6yrs and 1d to 12yrs
_fine : P500,000.00 to P1,000,000.00

*automatic revocation of the license or registration of the recruitment/manning agency, lending institutions, training school or medical
clinic.

Where to file a case :

Regional Trial Court

_province or city where the offense was committed
or
_where the offended party actually resides at the time of the commission of the offense

Labor Arbitration Branch of the NLRC

_money claims arising out of an employer-employee relationship or by virtue of any

law or contract involving Filipino workers for overseas deployment including claims for
actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damage

Services

all embassies and consular offices, through the POEA, shall issue travel advisories or disseminate information on
labor and employment conditions, migration realities and other facts; and adherence of particular countries to
international standards on human and workers' rights which will adequately prepare individuals into making
informed and intelligent decisions about overseas employment
repatriation of the worker and the transport of his personal belongings shall be the primary responsibility of the
recruitment agency. All costs attendant to repatriation shall be borne by or charged to the agency concerned and/or its
principal.

*remains of a deceased worker

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) shall undertake the repatriation of workers in cases of war,
epidemic, disasters or calamities, natural or man-made, and other similar events without prejudice to reimbursement
by the responsible principal or agency

*emergency repatriation fund

Migrant Workers and Other Overseas Filipinos Resource Center - (24) hours daily
Pre-Employment Orientation Seminars (PEOS) - inform migrant workers not only of their rights as workers but also
of their rights as human beings, instruct and guide the workers how to assert their rights and provide the available
mechanism to redress violation of their rights

Services

Legal Assistant for Migrant Workers Affairs - primarily responsible for the provision and
overall coordination of all legal assistance services to be provided to Filipino migrant
workers as well as overseas Filipinos in distress
National Reintegration Center for Overseas Filipino workers (NRCO) - formulate a
program that would motivate migrant workers to plan for productive options such as entry
into highly technical jobs or undertakings, livelihood and entrepreneurial development,
better wage employment, and investment of savings.cral
Interagency Committee - implement a shared government information system for
migration
Country Team Approach - all officers, representatives and personnel of the Philippine
government posted abroad regardless of their mother agencies shall, on a per country basis,
act as one country-team with a mission to protect Filipino migrant workers as well as to
promote of their welfare.

People of the Philippines

vs.
Beth Temporada
Facts:
Beth Temporada is an accused for the crime of Large Scale Illegal Recruitment in
which the prosecution alleged that theaccused recruited and promised overseas
employment, fora fee, to complainants Rogelio Legaspi, Jr. as technician in
Singapore, and Soledad Atle, Luz Minkay, Evelyn Estacio and Dennis Dimaano as
factory workers in Hongkong. After collecting the alleged placement fees
amounting to P282,160, it was also noted that such placement fees are in excess of
or greater than that specified in the scheduled ofallowable fees prescribed of the
POEA and without reasons and without fault of the said complainants, failed to
actually deploy them and failed to reimburse them the expenses they incurred in
connection with the documentation and processing of their papers forpurposes
oftheir deployment.The accused-apellant nowcontends that theprosecution
failed to establish all the elements of the offense that were charged to them.

Is Temporada Liable for Illegal Recruitment

under RA 8042 ?

Article 13(b) of the Labor Code defines recruitment and

placement:
"Recruitment and placement" refers to any act of
canvassing, enlisting, contracting, transporting, utilizing,
hiringorprocuringworkers, and includes referrals,
contract services, promising or advertising for
employment, locally or abroad, whether for profit or not.

It was held that to constitute illegal recruitment in large scale, three (3)
elements must concur:
(a)the offender has no valid license or authority required by law to
enable him to lawfully engage in recruitment and placementof workers;
(b) the offender undertakes anyof the activities within the meaning of
"recruitment and placement" under Article 13(b) ofthe Labor Code, or
any of the prohibited practices enumerated under Article 34 of the said
Code (now Section 6 of R.A. No. 8042); and
(c) the offender committed the same against three (3) or more persons,
individually or as agroup.

Supreme Court Related Rulings

Pp vs Lalli ( GR 195419, 12 Oct 2011 ), the Supreme Court

convicted a lady recruiter in Mindanao and sentenced her to LIFE
IMPRISONMENT with a fine of two million pesos for the crime of
illegal recruitment. The High Court also convicted the same woman
of TRAFFICKING IN PERSON, involving the same victim, and
sentenced her to another LIFE SENTENCEwith another fine of half
a million for deploying a young woman to Malaysia and led her to
become a prostitute.
The Court held that there was no double jeopardy despite the fact
that the recruiter and the victim were the same in both the Illegal
Recruitment and the Trafficking cases, because the first crime is a
violation of the Labor Code, as amended, and the second was a
violation of a special law, R A 9208 or the Anti-Trafficking Law.

G.R No. 178337

Illegal recruitment is committed when two essential elements concur:

(1)that the offender has no valid license or authority required by law to

enable him to lawfully engage in the recruitment and placement of workers,
and
(2)that the offender undertakes any activity within the meaning of
recruitment and placement defined under Article 13(b), or any prohibited
practices enumerated under Article 34 of the Labor Code.[39]
Held:
To be engaged in illegal recruitment, regarding the 2nd element, it is plain
that there must at least be a promise or an offer of employment from the
person posing as a recruiter whether locally or abroad.

Pp vs Romero
(GR 10387 to 87, 26 July
1993)

Even if the complainant later executed an affidavit of

withdrawal and has forgiven the recruiter, the court
may still convict her, if the withdrawal is done rather
belatedly, after the prosecution has rested its case and
after all the witnesses against the accused already
testified and all documentary evidence already
testified.

Pp v. Benson Ong,
(G R 119594, 18 Jan 2000)
Even if the accused merely suggested where to apply,
and which agency to approach, conviction can also be
justified even if there is no money involved.
Money Is Not Material To A Prosecution For Illegal
Recruitment Considering That The Definition Of
Illegal Recruitment Under The Law Includes The
Phrase Whether For Profit Or Not