Question & AnswerQ&A (POEA Memorandum Circular No. 10-A)
STITP refers to a Technical Intern Training activity for foreign workers who have already acquired skills under Technical Intern Training and aim to further master skills in shipbuilding activities within the scope of job categories and works specified by the Immigration Act of Japan and the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT).
An FSW is a worker who has completed the STITP and is engaged in Designated Shipbuilding Activities or Individual Enterprise Type Designated Shipbuilding Activities employed under contract by an Accepting Shipbuilding Company or Individual Enterprise Type Accepting Shipbuilding Company.
The SO must select appropriate FSW candidates, implement legal selection and deployment procedures, inform prospective FSWs about the program and their duties, monitor their status through close coordination with the Designated Supervising Organizations, and cooperate to resolve problems such as accidents or runaways.
A DSO supervises the implementation of Designated Shipbuilding Activities, ensures the proper implementation of the supervision plan, coordinates with Sending Organizations and Accepting Shipbuilding Companies, establishes consultation systems for FSWs, and cooperates with the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) in welfare and labor-related issues.
ASCs must notify the DSO within two weeks of an FSW's engagement or resignation, report if the FSW is unable to conduct activities, maintain work logs for three years, and cooperate with DSO and POLO in resolving welfare and labor problems.
Salaries must be the same or higher than those paid to Japanese workers of comparable skill. Housing should be secured by DSOs or ASCs, accommodation fees must not exceed market prices, the fee must be explained, and shared housing fees must be fairly distributed. Utilities must not exceed actual consumption.
No, collection of fees or deposits from FSWs or their families by Sending Organizations or DSOs for placement, selection, or deployment under the FSWAP is strictly prohibited.
FSWs are issued a Shipbuilding Worker visa category. Periods of stay vary: two years after STITP completion; re-entry within one year allows two more years; after more than one year allows three years; the total maximum stay as technical intern and FSW is five years.
They must have participated in the STITP for approximately two years and have demonstrated good conduct during the technical intern training.
Registration can be revoked or cancelled due to expiration of business license, false documentation or misrepresentation, final judgment in disciplinary actions, cancellation of the SO/PRA license, or mutual written agreement to pre-terminate the registration.