OFWs in Simaisma seek gratuity, plane tickets from firm

By Joey Aguilar/Staff Reporter A group of Filipinos working for a ready-mix company moved their embassy and the Labour Court after their employer failed to pay their salaries for two months. The workers said they had not been paid since January after the company stopped its operations.   One of the affected workers, who has been with the company for more than seven years, told Gulf Times that he and his colleagues wanted their benefits, including gratuity and a plane ticket to go back to the Philippines - “nothing more and nothing less”. Most of the workers are Filipinos while some are Nepalese and Indians. The workers said they have to rely on donations from their friends, peers and other expatriate workers for survival. However, a company official denied this. “Many are helping us now. They call me on my mobile and visit us here,” one of the workers said. While some give the workers noodles, bread, rice, canned goods, bottled water and other food items, others donate cash. The workers said they also required diesel to run generators to get electricity in their accommodation in Simaisma, that too until 9pm.   The affected Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and other expatriates are wary of the summer as sleeping in a room without an airconditioner “will be too hard to bear”. “This is why we want to go home, but nothing is happening in the case,” said one of the workers. A total of 81 OFWs have appealed to the company to give what they say is due to them - gratuity and a ticket back home. However, there has been no response yet, prompting them to file a case in the Labour Court. The workers claim that no representative from the company has attended the three court hearings. Philippine labour attaché Leopoldo De Jesus said his office has been trying its best to help the workers get their dues. In a recent meeting with officials of the company, De Jesus said the management had promised to settle all the payments this month (March). It is also set to resume normal operations next month but the OFWs have refused to work for the said company. “We cannot blame the workers because they haven’t been paid yet, and they want to see their respective families,” De Jesus added. This reporter tried to call the company’s office numbers, but the two landlines were no longer available. Some of the workers said there was no reason to stay back as they were able to finish their two-year contracts. “Working for seven long years is enough. We really want to go home.” However, a company official who could be contacted said on condition of anonymity: “We will pay them but we are not Superman.” He told Gulf Times that they took over the company seven months ago and inherited several problems from the previous management, especially labour issues. The official vowed to pay all the workers but said they cannot do it immediately. He also claimed that many of the workers have issued wrong statements in a recent report. “Many of them are good friends of mine but some of them are lying. They are bad people,” he stressed. “We have been buying food for them - rice, chicken, shrimp, vegetables, fish and some canned goods. But they are saying bad things about the company now.” He also showed a receipt of the groceries that he bought for the workers for 10 days. The official rejected claims that majority of the workers did not want to work any more. He said only 7-8 people had refused to co-operate but the rest reported to the office in the past few days. He said they even allowed some of the workers to have a vacation in the Philippines. “One of my friends told me that some were even selling the rice we gave them. Is that good?” “All the Indians and the Nepalese are working now,” he said. “They know that we are good people and are businessmen.” Asked about the two months’ arrears, he promised to pay all their salaries in time. A reliable source told Gulf Times that the new management was waiting for the approval of a bank loan. The official also disclosed that they had been giving the workers  money to buy enough diesel for the generators. He also stressed that they had been co-ordinating and talking regularly with the Philippine embassy and the labour department.