OFWs in CNMI urged to renew their OWWA membership
Posted on April 9th, 2009
There is an ongoing online public service campaign for all Filipino workers in the CNMI (Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands) to renew their membership to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). This campaign is initiated by Paul Madriaga, the internal vice president of the United Filipino Organizations in the CNMI.
The campaign was prompted by the death of two Filipino workers in the past two weeks in Saipan, who were found not to have renewed their membership with the OWWA. Because of this, their families were not able to receive any benefits from the agency.
OWWA provides overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) insurance for their families, just in case something happens to them, Madriaga said as he took note of the recent deaths of two OFWs. Unfortunately, many OFWs in the CNMI neglect to renew their OWWA membership. They only do so when they are about to go on vacation in the Philippines. If they don’t go on vacation, they wouldn’t renew their membership.
Renewing OWWA membership is simple, the OFWs can download the application from the agencies website at www.owwa.gov.ph and fill it up, or they can go to the OWWA office on the ground floor of the Marianas Business Plaza (formerly Nauru Building) in Susupe and request for the form. As of 2008, only 3,325 of the estimated 8,000 to 10,000 OFWs in the CNMI renewed their OWWA membership.
OWWA membership requires an annual payment of $25 representing their membership contribution, a small amount that goes a long way in helping their families after they’re gone. The benefit included in this membership is life insurance coverage for the duration of this employment contract, which includes P100,000 for natural death and P200,000 for accidental death.
Aside from the life insurance, there are also other benefits of being an OWWA member, Madriaga stressed.
Friends of the two Filipinos workers who died, are now asking for monetary donations and raising money to help the families back home for funeral expenses and other needs.
