ORGANIZATION AND ADMINISTRATION OF THE WELFARE FUND FOR OVERSEAS WORKERS

WHEREAS, the
overseas employment development of the
Government undertaken through the Ministry of Labor has generated an
explosion of the presence abroad of Filipino workers, now estimated to
be around 1.7 million in 107 countries of the world;

WHEREAS, there is every indication
that the overseas demand for Filipino workers would continue to
increase in the coming years;

WHEREAS, because of the volatile
situation in many
countries hosting this labor force, the Government is continually under
stress in efforts to provide overseas Filipino workers adequate
protection;

WHEREAS, in response to the
distressed conditions of
many of these workers, the Government, under Letter of Instructions No.
537 issued on May 1, 1977, authorized the creation in the Ministry of
Labor of a Welfare and Training Fund for Overseas Workers to be funded
with contributions from overseas employers of Filipino
workers;

WHEREAS, it is deemed that the
objectives and
purposes of the Fund as set forth in LOI No. 537 can best be served by
now formalizing operations into a comprehensive Welfare Fund.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, FERDINAND E.
MARCOS, President of the Philippines, by virtue of the
powers vested in me by the Constitution, do hereby Order and
Decree:

SECTION 1. Welfare Fund
for Overseas Workers. There
is hereby created a “Welfare Fund for Overseas Workers,” hereinafter
referred to as the Welfund which shall be used for the purpose of
providing social and welfare services to Filipino overseas workers,
including insurance coverage, legal assistance, placement assistance,
and remittance services.

SEC. 2. Fund Source.
All contributions to
the Welfare and Training Fund collected pursuant to Letter of
Instructions No. 537 issued on May 1, 1977 shall be transferred to the
Welfund. Fees and other charges may be imposed by the Overseas
Employment Development Board, the Bureau of Employment Services, and the
National Seamen Board, subject to the approval of the Minister of
Finance. Such fees, charges and other collections shall accrue to the
Welfare and Training Fund.

SEC. 3.
Administration. The Welfund shall
be administered by a Board of Trustees consisting of the Minister of
Labor as Chairman, the Deputy Minister of Labor as Vice Chairman, and
the Executive Director of the Overseas Employment Development Board, the
Executive Director of the National Seamen Board, the Director of the
Bureau of Employment Services, the Administrator of the Welfund, and one
representative each from the management and labor sectors who shall be
appointed by the President, as members.

An Administrator shall be appointed by the President upon
recommendation of the Minister of Labor, who shall have the
qualifications, rank and compensation of a Bureau Director.

SEC. 4. Responsibility
and Powers. The Board of Trustees of the Welfund shall have
the following responsibilities and powers:

1. To formulate and implement
   measures and programs to attain the fund’s objectives and purposes;
2. To enter into agreements and contracts in
   connection with its operations and objectives;
3. To manage Fund resources subject to the provisions
   of Sec. 5 hereof; and
4. To issue rules and regulations to carry out the
   objectives and purposes of the Welfund and the provisions of this
   Decree.

SEC. 5. Fund
Management. The Welfund shall
be recorded as Special Account in the General Fund and transactions in
it shall be subject to such rules and regulations as may be formulated
by the Minister of Finance, who shall act in consultation with the
Minister of Labor and the Minister of the Budget. A maximum of five per
cent (5%) of any investment income earned by the Fund may be utilized
for operational expenses, except as may be approved by the President.
Such operational expenses shall be subject to the usual budgetary
process established by Sec. 40 of P.D. No. 1177 and to the rules on
organization, compensation and honoraria determined for agencies of the
government under P.D. NO. 985.

A fund staff shall be formed within the Office of the Minister
of
Labor, whose compensation and operating expenses shall be charged to
fund income, subject to the limits provided under this
Section.

SEC. 6. Repeal
Clause.—Letter of
Instructions No. 537 and any and all laws, decrees, executive orders,
rules and regulations or parts thereof in consistent with this Decree
are hereby repealed and/or modified accordingly.

SEC. 7.
Effectivity.—This Decree shall take effect
immediately.

Done in the City of Manila, this 1st day of May, in the year of
Our Lord, nineteen hundred and eighty.

			(Sgd.) FERDINAND E. MARCOS President of the Philippines
	By the President:
	(Sgd.) JOAQUIN T. VENUS, JR.
		Presidential Assistant