RULE VII / MONEY CLAIMS - Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act

RULE VII
MONEY CLAIMS

Section 1. Jurisdiction of Labor Arbiters. Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, the Labor Arbiters of the NLRC shall have the original and exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide, within ninety (90) calendar days after the filing of the compliant, the claims arising out of an employer-employee relationship or by virtue of any law or contract involving Filipino workers for overseas deployment including claims for actual, moral, exemplary and other forms of damages.

Section 2. Updates in the Global Services Industry.

Consistent with the mandate in the preceding section, the NLRC shall:

Section 3. Joint and Several Liability. The liability of the principal/employer and the recruitment/placement agency on any and all claims under this Rule shall be joint and several. This liability shall be incorporated in the contract for overseas employment and shall be a condition precedent for its approval. The performance bond to be filed by the recruitment/ placement agency, as provided by law, shall be answerable for all money claims or damages that may be awarded to the workers.

If the recruitment/placement agency is a juridical being, the corporate officers and directors and partners, as the case may be, shall themselves be jointly and severally liable with the corporation or partnership for the aforesaid claims and damages.

Such liabilities shall continue during the entire period or duration of the employment contract and shall not be affected by any substitution, amendment or modification of the contract made locally or in a foreign country.

Section 4. Compromise Agreement. Any compromise, amicable settlement or voluntary agreement on money claims inclusive of damages under this Rule shall be paid within thirty (30) days from the approval of the settlement by the appropriate authority, unless a different period is agreed upon by the parties and approved by the appropriate authority.

Section 5. Effect of Illegal Termination and/or Deduction. In case of termination of overseas employment without just, valid or authorized cause as defined by law or contract, or any unauthorized deduction from the migrant worker's salary, the worker shall be entitled to the full reimbursement of his placement fee with interest of twelve per cent (12%) per annum, plus his salaries for the unexpired portion of his employment contract or three (3) months for every year of the unexpired term, whichever is less.

In case of any unauthorized deduction, the worker shall be entitled to the refund of the deductions made, with interest of twelve per cent (12%) per annum, from the date the deduction was made.

Section 6. Effect of Final and Executory Judgment. In case of final and executory judgment against a foreign employer/principal, it shall be automatically disqualified, without further proceedings, from participating in the Philippine Overseas Employment Program and from recruiting and hiring Filipino workers until and unless it fully satisfies the judgment award.

For this purpose, the NLRC or any party in interest shall furnish the POEA a certified true copy of the sheriff's return indicating the failure to fully satisfy a final and executory judgment against a foreign employer/principal.

Should the disqualified foreign employer/principal fully satisfy the judgment award, the NLRC or any party in interest shall furnish the POEA a certified true copy of the sheriff's return indicating full compliance with the judgment which may be a basis to lift the disqualification.

Section 7. Voluntary Arbitration. For OFWs with collective bargaining agreements, the case shall be submitted for voluntary arbitration in accordance with Articles 261 and 262 of the Labor Code.