Good news for Filipinos who wish to work and live in Canada. The Labor Department announced that a new Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) was recently signed between the Philippines and Saskatchewan, Canada.The new agreement contains provisions that would open up even more job prospects for Filipino applicants and provide better protection for Filipinos in the Canadian province.

The new MOU that enhance the provisions of the previous labor agreement between both jurisdictions was signed by Secretary of Labor, Rosalinda Baldoz and Saskatchewan Premier Brad Wall on October 7, 2013. The first MOU between the Philippines and Saskatchewan that was signed in 2006, is said to be a trailblazer on the orderly recruitment and deployment of Filipino workers to qualified employers in the Province.

Baldoz said, “It was the first of a ‘new generation’ of agreements that incorporated human resource development concerns into consideration and paved the way for the signing of three (3) other MOUs in the Canadian provinces of Manitoba, British Columbia, and Alberta,” she said.

Baldoz said the updated MOU aligns with recent policy developments in both countries. In the Philippines, Republic Act 10022 amended the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act and

provided for stronger protective mechanisms in the deployment of workers.

The Saskatchewan government meanwhile has recently enacted two (2) important legislations that govern the employment, recruitment and immigration of foreign workers to their province: (1) “The Saskatchewan Employment Act” and (2) “The Foreign Workers Recruitment and Immigration Services Act (FWRISA).”

The Employment Act provides for employment standards, including a prohibition on the charging of fees by employment agencies to job seekers, occupational health and safety measures, labor relations, among others.

The FWRISA covers provisions on the licensing of foreign workers’ recruiters, registration of employers of foreign nationals, prohibited practices, sharing of information, and inspection, investigation and enforcement. The MOU seeks to implement streamlined, efficient and ethical recruitment practices in human resource between the Philippines and Saskatchewan. Among the shared priorities for cooperation are:

(1) exploring arrangements for skills upgrading, skills gap training and mutual recognition of qualifications of professional and trade workers

2. streamlining of recruitment processes;

3. examining mechanisms of monitoring Filipino workers recruited in third countries and receive protection under Saskatchewan and Philippine legislation;
   
   (4) establishing transparent access of Filipino workers to justice systems;

   
   (5) supporting integration, reintegration and human resource development programs, among others; and
   
   (6) sharing of information.
   
   

Under the streamlined recruitment process, the Philippine Overseas Labor Office shall accredit the employer/licensed employment agency in Saskatchewan who will recruit workers in the Philippines, without further verification, on the basis of the registration system of employers to be undertaken by Saskatchewan authorities, under the FWRISA.

The employer shall cover the costs relating to recruitment of the Filipino worker. The employer and the registered recruitment agencies in the Philippines were prohibited from charging directly or indirectly, any payment from the applicant. To date, the Philippines is one of the largest sources of immigrants and temporary workers for Canada because of their skills, fluency in English and laudable work ethics.

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