Sto. Tomas issued the clarification as she denied before a joint hearing of the Senate committeeson foreign relations, labor and employment and human resources allegations that she entered into an agreement with the Saudi government drastically cutting the minimum wage of OFWs.
The Senate committees, on the instigation of Sen. Manny Villar, chairman of the foreign relations committee, took Sto. Tomas to task over reports that she entered into an agreement with the Saudi government cutting the wages of semi-skilled Filipino workers from $350 to $130 a month.
There are at least 800,000 Filipino workers working in Saudi Arabia, majority of whom are nurses, construction workers and caregivers.
Testifying before the Senate joint committees, Sto. Tomas said what she signed was not a bilateral agreement between the Philippines and Saudi Arabia but "a mere document stating the minutes" of a meeting between Filipino and Saudi officials.
The document, a copy of which was obtained by The STAR, was dubbed "Summary of Discussions of Saudi Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs and Philippine Department of Labor Employment." It was dated May 25-28, 2002 and signed in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Under the section "Minimum Wage," the document stated: "Wages shall be determined by the dynamics of the market. However (both parties) agreed that the minimum wage of unskilled workers must not be less than the prescribed minimum wage of a non-agriculture worker in the National Capital Region of the Philippines. As for the domestic helpers, it shall remain the status quo."
Speaking to reporters later, Sto. Tomas explained that there are currently 104 nationalities of migrant workers in Saudi Arabia and it "is really the market rates that determine the salaries of workers."
She cited the case of Filipino nurses, whom she said are "still very much in demand and command much higher salaries."
Sto. Tomas said it is the Filipino semi-skilled workers such as construction workers and janitors who are facing stiff competition from other nationals such as Indonesians, Pakistanis, Indians and Sri Lankans.
Because of the law of supply and demand, Sto. Tomas said, these semi-skilled workers are given much lower salaries. "It is our choice if we decide not to send these workers to Saudi Arabia," she told Villar.
During the hearing, Villar expressed alarm that Philippine foreign affairs and labor officials may not be doing their best in representing the interests of OFWs during negotiations with officials of host countries. — Sammy Santos