The Market Monitor Minding the Nation's Business
The Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) has assured the safety and continued employment of 412 Filipino seafarers working in offshore operations in the Persian Gulf, following a high-level visit to Saudi Arabia by Secretary Hans Leo Cacdac.
Speaking in an online briefing, Cacdac said he met with officials of Zamil Offshore, which employs the Filipino crew aboard support vessels operating within the Gulf.
“It was a very fruitful meeting as well, and we were positively assured by Zamil Offshore representatives of the safety of our 412 seafarers in these support ships, and number two, that they have food and water and adequate supplies, and other basic needs. So, they’re being taken care of,” he said.
Cacdac added that the seafarers remain actively employed, with contracts in force and remittances—equivalent to 80 percent of their earnings—continuing to reach their families in the Philippines. He also noted that strong onboard internet connectivity allows regular communication with loved ones back home.
The DMW chief said Zamil Offshore officials expressed appreciation for Filipino workers, citing their “knowledge, competence, and seamanship,” and even signaled plans to hire more in the future.
He also stressed that the Filipino crew are operating within relatively secure zones and are not traversing high-risk routes such as the Strait of Hormuz.
“The 412 seafarers on those ships will continue to work within the Persian Gulf. They will not exit the Persian Gulf out of the Strait of Hormuz,” he said.
Cacdac said his visit forms part of intensified government monitoring of Filipino seafarers in the Middle East, amid ongoing regional tensions.
He reported that 1,161 Filipino seafarers have exited the Gulf via the Strait of Hormuz between April 2 and 18, many aboard cruise ships already operating in the region.
“Since day one, monitored na natin sila (they are being monitored). We’ve been meeting with the manning agencies. We’ve been requiring them to, not just meeting them but requiring them to file the necessary reports,” he said.
The DMW continues to track vessels carrying Filipino crew through coordination with shipowners and manning agencies, as well as real-time marine traffic systems. Ships still in the Gulf, he added, are either docked or anchored in safe areas with sufficient provisions.
“And of course, we’ve been monitoring them, the current situation and location of the ships through marine traffic. Kaya alam natin kung nasaan yung mga barko at alam natin yung mga nag-exit kaya nasa talaan natin yung 1,161 na nakapag-exit na ng Strait of Hormuz (So we know where the ships are and we know who has exited, which is why we have the 1,161 who have already exited Strait of Hormuz on our list),” he said.
“The count we had was around 4,600, so 1,161 have exited. Subject to further validation of the figures, safe to say that the 4,600 have been reduced,” he added.