SAN FERNANDO CITY, La Union—Officials of the Ilocos regional offices of four government agencies servicing the needs of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) said that most OFW have not been remitting their salaries and wages to their spouses, parents, children and other beneficiaries.


According to officials of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and the Commission on Filipino Overseas (CFO), they have noted an increase in the number of complaints regarding the failure to receive regular allotments from abroad, where the OFWs are based.


Nonnette Legazpi-Villanueva, chief of the POEA regional center for Luzon based in this city, said the Cordillera Administrative Region (CAR) has the most number of husbands who have reported the nonremittance from their wives who are working as domestic helpers or care givers abroad.


Villanueva said female Cordillerans outnumber their male counterparts in the deployment of OFWs.


“It’s sad to note that there are increasing complaints of nonremittance and delinquent remittance of wages among our OFWs. There are family members and relatives coming to our office complaining about this matter,” she said.


Villanueva said the Ilocos, which ranks fourth nationwide in the deployment of OFWs, also suffers from the same problem.


The National Capital Region is first in the deployment, followed by Southern Tagalog and Central Luzon.