BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN 23 OCTOBER 2019. In line with its on-going efforts to create greater awareness on the host government’s labor laws and regulations, the Philippine Embassy in Brunei Darussalam held a “Seminar on Brunei Labor Law and other Regulations” on 20 October 2019 at the Philippine Chancery.

 Through the efforts of Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO), officials from the Department of Labour under Brunei’s Ministry of Home Affairs gave a presentation to members of the Filipino community on pertinent laws governing Brunei’s labor and employment standards. Two hundred thirty (230) participants, composed mostly of semi-skilled, domestic workers and representatives of accredited recruitment employment agencies attended the seminar.

In his welcome remarks, Philippine Ambassador Christopher B. Montero noted the value of the seminar as part of the Philippine Government’s overall empowerment program for OFWs. He likewise cited the Embassy’s ongoing initiatives to assist newly-arrived Filipinos in Brunei adjust to their new environment through the regular conduct of the Post-Arrival Orientation Seminar (PAOS) and other stakeholder engagement activities, including the recent publication and circulation of the Basic Information Guide Booklet for Filipinos in Brunei. He underscored the valuable contributions of Filipino workers in Bruneian society, and encouraged them to always ensure observance of local laws, and respect for the religious and cultural traditions of their adopted home.

 In his presentation, Mr. Zulfadhli Bin Suhai, Senior Labour Inspector of the Department of Labour, provided an overview of the terms and conditions of employment contracts, as well as the standard provisions on the payment of salary, rest days, hours of work, public holidays and labor dispute settlement. During the open forum, Mr. Zulfadhli noted that the Labour Department has handled only eight (8) cases involving disputes between Filipino workers and their employers for the current year 2019. This, he said, was among the lowest number of cases registered compared to disputes/complaints lodged by other foreign nationalities.

For her part, Labor Attaché Melissa Mendizabal encouraged workers and employers to make it a point to visit POLO in order to amicably settle any issue or dispute before filing any formal complaint at the Labour Department.  

The attendees expressed appreciation to the Embassy for organizing the said event in terms of creating higher awareness on the rights of OFWs in Brunei. Participants were also provided with flyers/information guides from the Labour Department, the Basic Information Guide Booklet Philippine Embassy. END