OVERSEAS Filipino workers in Canada can now avail of the COVID-19 recovery assistance being offered by the Canadian government, according to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III.
Citing a report by the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POGO) in Vancouver, Bello said Canada has made changes to its employment insurance program by introducing a package of recovery benefits to better support not only its citizens but also qualified temporary Filipino workers.
“The Canadian government’s continuous support to temporary Filipino workers is very much appreciated by the Philippines, most especially at this time of the pandemic,” Bello said.
The first of three aid packages include the Canada Recovery Benefit that gives income support to employed and self-employed individuals directly affected by the pandemic and who are not covered by the state emergency insurance.
Beneficiaries of this package will receive CAD 1,000 for a two-week period.
Another assistance, called the Canada Recovery Caregiving Benefit, provides income support to those who are unable to work because they must care for their child under 12 years old or has a family member who needs supervised care. Under this, a household may receive CAD 500.
The third aid measure is the Canada Recovery Sickness Benefit that extends income support to those who are unable to work because they are sick or needed to self-isolate due to COVID-19. Qualified OFWs will receive CAD 500 for a one week-period.
“The new recovery package will be in effect for a year from last month,” said Bello.
Records show there are some 90,000 OFWs based in Canada.
Meanwhile, nearly 250,000 repatriated OFWs have now been reunited with their families, according to the Labor Department.
A DOLE report said there were 248,469 repatriated OFWs who have been returned to their home regions after coming back from abroad.
The past week alone, DOLE said a total of 10,921 repatriated OFWs have been brought to their home provinces.
