CEDAW/C/PHI/5-6 countries. Female welfare officers were found in Hong Kong, Singapore, Tokyo, Osaka, Taiwan, Kuwait, Dubai and Greece; and women welfare coordinators headed the welfare centers in Hong Kong, Brunei and Dubai. 393. The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) has created a Migrant Workers’ Desk, which provides guidelines on how to pursue claims for money, injury and damages of overseas Filipino workers, including those who are victims of trafficking. The Desk is handled by women and is headed by a Labor Arbiter (or labor judge per Supreme Court instruction). 394. Employment contracts define the terms and conditions of employment of Filipino migrant workers, following compatible provisions of the laws of the Philippines and the host country while making reference to any international convention or stipulations in bilateral agreements. Since Philippine recruitment agencies are jointly and solidarily liable with their foreign principal, the worker can lodge contract-violation complaints with NLRC and POEA, naming the recruitment agency as co-respondent. From July 1995 to September 2001, about 3,370 cases a year were lodged with NLRC regarding claims for illegal dismissal (43 percent) and money or disability claims (49 percent). The annual disposition rate is 63 percent. In 1999, about 33 percent of the cases were filed by women workers. 395. Beginning in September 2002, OFWs in some destinations could avail themselves of additional welfare services on site under the program “International Social Welfare Services for Filipinos” of the social welfare department. As part of this program, the department deployed the first batch of social workers to five Middle Eastern countries (Abu Dhabi, Dubai, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia) and three Asian destinations (Singapore, Hong Kong, and Taiwan); and fielded a social welfare attaché in Malaysia and social workers on secondment in Japan. They are expected to render direct services (transportation, shelter, and food assistance); case management, including referrals to other social services, counseling, group therapy, and filing of cases; jail and hospital visits; values enhancement and skills training; and advocacy and social mobilization. A year since their deployment, the social workers have been able to assist 6,429 Filipinos: 3,820 in Malaysia, 158 in Japan and Hong Kong, and 2,451 in other countries where the social workers serve as technical assistants to the labor attaché. About 90 percent of the clients are women, aged 22 to 40 years; the rest are men and children. 396. During the period under review, the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration (OWWA) implemented a number of programs for overseas workers’ security and social protection. Among these are: a. Repatriation assistance, which is supported by a budget of PhP100 million for emergency repatriation of documented workers and facilitate the safe return of distressed overseas Filipino workers (OFW). b. Insurance program, which provides insurance coverage for all OFW who paid the OWWA fee. In 2000, around 472,153 OFWs enrolled under the program and insurance claims of PhP14 million were paid out to 4,310 claimants. Of the claimants, 10 percent are women workers. 108