The Philippines government has issued a revised list of ‘safe to work’ countries for its nationals, but Qatar, home to some quarter-million Filipino expats, has not made the cut.

Despite the high concentration of Filipinos across the GCC (they make up about 13 percent of the population here), Oman is the only Gulf country on the list of 155 countries that the Philippines government said adheres to social and labour laws that protect Filipinos’ rights.

That doesn’t mean expats are not free to work in the Gulf – for now, the National reports.

Two months ago, Qatar’s Emir made the country’s first-ever state visit to the Philippines, but no mention of labor rights was reported.

Last year, the Philippines had said it was considering banning its citizens from domestic labor in Qatar due to concerns over workers’ safety, but ultimately did not add it to its blacklist.

Thoughts?

Credit: Image courtesy of Wikipedia