The Israeli government is working with Manila to ensure that Filipino caregivers are getting the benefits due to them before resuming their deployment to Israel.

Israel Ambassador to Manila Ilan Fluss said deployment for Filipino caregivers was interrupted in October 2022 due to an Israeli regulation that sought to establish a framework that will ensure these workers get the same services other local and foreign employees get in the country.

“The workers in Israel, it doesn’t matter if they’re a foreigner, they get the same rights and obligations but due to the challenge that the caregivers are employed directly by the elderly person or the disabled person, it is more complicated how to make sure that there is an entity behind to take care of the different issues that are arising either for the elderly person or for the caregiver,” he said in an interview with reporters on Thursday.

“[T]here was a basket of services that a caregiver should get and then the caregivers have to pay for those basket of services. This was the issue, which had to be sorted out,” he added.

Fluss clarified that there is no deployment ban in place and that Israel and relevant Philippine government agencies are merely working to find a way forward concerning the issue.

“The moment we finished the technical discussions and understanding it can (re)start immediately. So there is no deadline,” he said.

The regulation, he added, has no effect on Filipino caregivers already in Israel as well as OFWs in other fields of work.

“For hotel workers, the employers are responsible for everything. The challenge with the caregivers is that the employee is an individual, it’s not a company that has an HR that takes care of everything,” he said.

“So that was the issue. How do we take care of caregivers when they’re working, but there’s no really institution,” he added.

Fluss reiterated that they continue to recognize the contribution made by the over 30,000 Filipinos working as caregivers in Israel.

He emphasized that Israel is committed to ensuring their security and welfare while citing the growing people-to-people relations between the two states.

Fluss’ statement followed the historic visit of Israeli Foreign Minister Eli Cohen to Manila this week, which signaled Israel’s renewed interest to forge stronger cooperation with the Philippines in various areas, including economic, labor, and defense, among others. (PNA)