[ POEA MEMORANDUM CIRCULAR NO. 06, S. 2014, August 06, 2014 ]

MONITORING AND REPORTING OF LANDBASED OFWS BASED ON EBOLA VIRUS-STRICKEN COUNTRIES



Adopted: 06 August 2014
Date Filed: 13 August 2014

Pursuant to POEA Governing Board Resolution No. 14, Series of 2014, dated 04 July 2014 on the imposition of a deployment ban on new hires for Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone due to the spread of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD), all agencies which have deployed workers to the said countries are hereby directed to undertake the following:

1. Monitoring and Reporting

1.1 Using the attached OFW Monitoring Form, all recruitment agencies which have deployed land-based workers to the said countries shall regularly submit to this Administration the following reports:

  1. Status report on the condition/ situation of their deployed workers on-site, on a WEEKLY basis or IMMEDIATELY when any worker manifests EVD symptoms; and
  2. Report on vacationing/ returning workers AT LEAST ONE WEEK prior to their return to the Philippines.

The agencies are directed to closely monitor the condition of their deployed workers and coordinate with their respective employers on matters affecting the welfare and employment status of the workers due to the threats of the Ebola Virus Disease.

1.2 Offices/Focal Persons

Agency reports shall be addressed and emailed to the following:

  1. Department of Health (DOH)
    Dr. Lyndon Lee Suy
    Tel. No.: 6517800 loc 2354
    Email:emerging.doh@gmail.com
  2. Department of Foreign Affairs Office of Middle East and African Affairs (OMEAA)
    Ms. Iris Vanessa Caranzo
    Tel. No.: 8343016
    Email: iris.caranzo@dfa.gov.ph
  3. Department of Foreign Affairs
    Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA)
    Director Lorenzo Jungco
    Tel. No. 8344884
    Email: lorenzo.jungco@dfa.gov.ph
  4. POEA Pre-Employment Services Office
    Director Nini Lanto
    Tel. No. 7221150
    Email: pso _poea@yahoo.comormar keting__poea@yahoo.com.ph
  5. Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA)
    Mr. Hector Cruz
    Email - hector-cruzjr@yahoo.com

2. Medical Testing and Clearance. Employers shall ensure that medical testing and treatment will be administered to their workers at the first signs/ manifestations of EVD symptoms (i.e., fever, headache, intense weakness, joint and muscle pains and sore throat).

Workers who have been treated of the EVD symptoms shall seek medical clearance from the local health authorities of the country of employment prior to their departure for the Philippines.

3. Information Dissemination. All concerned are hereby directed to disseminate official advisories on EVD from the following:

3.1
Department of Health (DOH):
Ebola Advisory (Tagalog)
http:/ /www.healthpromo.doh.gov.ph/ ebola-advisory-tagalog/
3.2
World Health Organization (WHO):
Ebola Virus Disease Fact Sheet No. 103
http:/ /www.who.int/mediacenter/factsheets/fs103/en/

4. Repatriation. In the event that the current Alert level in the said countries is elevated to Alert Level 3, employers/ agencies shall ensure the immediate repatriation of their workers who desire to be repatriated under the policy of voluntary repatriation.

Likewise, in the event that the Alert Level is raised to Alert Level 4, employers/ agencies shall ensure the immediate repatriation of their workers under the policy of mandatory repatriation, with all the workers administered Ebola Virus Test, at no expense to the workers, prior to their departure for the Philippines.

For strict and immediate compliance.

(SGD) HANS LEO J. CACDAC
Administrator