Protecting Our Own: Investigating OFWs’ COVID-19 Challenges and Health and Social Security Systems Literacy

The SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ (PIDS) will hold a public webinar on June 8, 2023, from 2:00 PM to 4:30 PM via Zoom. 

This virtual event will feature two SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½studies that tackled issues confronting our Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).

The first study, “The COVID-19 and Filipino Migrant Workers: Looking into the Philippine Government’s Post-COVID-19 Support Mechanism,” discussed the repatriation and return of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. Authored by SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½Senior Research Fellow Aubrey D. Tabuga and Research Analysts Anna Rita P. Vargas and Madeleine Louise S. Baino, it investigated the government’s and nongovernment organizations’ support programs for OFWs and the challenges encountered during the process. The study highlighted the need to enhance digital systems, strengthen partnerships, reexamine social protection and insurance for OFWs, and allot contingency funds for similar events.

Meanwhile, the second study, “Scoping Study on Health and Social Security Systems Literacy of Filipino Migrant Workers in East Asia,” examined the Filipino migrant workers’ literacy of health and social security systems in the Philippines and destination countries in East Asia, specifically Japan, Hong Kong SAR, and Singapore. Authored by SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½consultants Jocelyn O. Celero, Melissa R. Garabiles, and Evangeline O. Katigbak-Montoya, the study revealed that most OFWs possess a partial understanding of the basic schemes, which is influenced by their fellow OFWs, governance, social networks, informal channels, and the media.

A copy of the studies may be downloaded from the links below:

The COVID-19 and Filipino Migrant Workers: Looking into the Philippine Government’s Post-COVID-19 Support Mechanism  

/publication/discussion-papers/the-covid-19-and-filipino-migrant-workers-looking-into-the-philippine-government-s-post-covid-19-support-mechanism

Scoping Study on Health and Social Security Systems Literacy of Filipino Migrant Workers in East Asia

/publication/discussion-papers/scoping-study-on-health-and-social-security-systems-literacy-of-filipino-migrant-workers-in-east-asia

To register, go to . You may also tune in to the SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½and SERP-P Facebook pages for the livestream.

DOWNLOAD PRESENTATION:

of Dr. Aubrey Tabuga, Senior Research Fellow, SA¹ú¼Ê´«Ã½ 

of Dr. Jocelyn O. Celero, Associate Professor, Asian Center - UP Diliman and Dr. Evangeline O. Katigbak-Montoya, Assistant Professor, Department of International Studies - De La Salle University

of Director Jocelyn O. Hapal, Policy & Program Development Office, Overseas Workers Welfare Administration 

of Executive Director Ellene Sana, Center for Migrant Advocacy