Riyadh-Minister of Labor and Social Development Dr. Mufrej Al-Haqbani highlighted orders issued by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz on resolving the crisis of unpaid salaries for foreign laborers, providing basic needs for them such as food and medical services, plus shouldering the cost of their airfares if they wish to return home, or moving them to a new company without notifying the previous one if they wish so.

“The ministry is working on assigning lawyers to follow up the claims of affected laborers and to protect their rights without being charged any fees,” said Haqbani following a meeting with his Filipino counterpart Silvestre Bello in Riyadh.

They both discussed possible ways to reinforce bilateral cooperation in the field of labor, plus potential mechanisms to develop it.

Bello expressed Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte’s gratitude to King Salman for the notable performance of Saudi authorities with regards to the delay in the payment of the wages.

He also hailed measures taken by the government and the efforts exerted to provide care and services for the affected Filipino laborers.