Page 50 - 2017 JAN-JUN - KAAKBAY

50 January to June
2017

Occupational Safety and Health Administration Holds Information Drive in New York Consulate

A team from the Occupation Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) of
the US Department of Labor conducted an information awareness session at the
Philippine Center in New York last April 3, 2017.

In partnership with the Philippine Consulate General in New York, the OSHA
Team headed by Ms. Renee Boylan of the Tarrytown Area Office and an Industrial
Hygiene specialist provided consular clients with information materials on Worker’s
Rights as well as occupational safety and health issues in the workplace.
Ms. Boylan likewise interacted with the Consulate’s clients in securing feedback on
any issues they may have regarding occupational health and safety issues in the
workplace particularly in vulnerable professions like those in the construction and
health sectors.
Assistance to Nationals Officer Arturo Romua, Ms.
Renee Boylan of OSHA, Consul General Theresa OSHA likewise sends resource persons from its staff to meet clients during
Dizon-de Vega and OSHA Representative the Consulate General’s outreach missions in the US Northeast.

Hurt OFW Grateful for Government Assistance

ATN Officers from the Philippine Consulate General in New York delivered a
check worth US$1,400 for the family of OFW Marianne Baun on Monday, 06
February 2017.

Ms. Baun, a Physical Therapist working in one of the hospitals in the US
state of Connecticut, was seriously injured in a vehicular accident that occurred last
January 10, 2017. She was comatose for several weeks, and remains confined to the
Intensive Care Unit, although she is gradually recovering.

The check was handed over to Mr. Gumersindo Baun, Ms. Baun’s husband. Consul Kerwin Tate hands over the check to Mr.
Gumersindo himself is also recovering from the effects of emergency surgery, as he Gumersindo Baun.
was also in the car that was involved in the accident. Mr. Baun was also seriously injured, but to a lesser extent than his wife.

Ms. Baun entered the United States as an H1-B (temporary skilled worker) in 2014. The couple have three very young
children who are living with them in the United States. As the sole breadwinner of the family, Marianne’s inability to work has
put a severe strain on the family’s resources. Her husband appealed to the Philippine government for any assistance they
could get.

The Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) quickly
authorized assistance for the subsistence of the Baun family, noting that aside from the spouses, there were also three very
young children that needed support.

PGCNY & DFA help bring home paralyzed Filipina

ATN Officers from the Philippine Consulate General in New York
delivered a check worth US$10,000 for the repatriation of Filipina Mary Ann
Coniega last Wednesday, 29 March 2017.

Ms. Coniega came to the United States in 2016, and had been working
in the New York area, when she suffered a massive stroke last 28 January
2017. The stroke left her in a condition known as “locked in syndrome”. Locked-
Consul Kerwin Tate is handing the $10,000.00 check to Ms. in syndrome (LIS) is a condition in which a patient is aware but cannot move or
Cathy Coniega as PhilGovt share for the medical repatriation communicate verbally due to complete paralysis of nearly all voluntary muscles
of Mary Ann Coniega. York in the body except for vertical eye movements and blinking.

Assistance-to-Nationals (ATN) representatives from the Consulate were informed by Mt. Sinai hospital about Ms.
Coniega’s situation. The ATN section quickly informed the DFA of Ms. Coniega’s condition, and the necessity of bringing her
home, since she has no family in the US. The check was handed over to Ms. Cathy Coniega, Mary Ann’s sister, who flew in
from the Philippines to assist her sister and work for her repatriation to the Philippines.

The Department of Foreign Affairs’ Office of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers Affairs (OUMWA) quickly
authorized assistance to help pay for Mary Ann’s repatriation, in cooperation with Mt. Sinai hospital. The family of Mary Ann
Coniega expressed their appreciation to the Philippine Consulate, as well as the Department of Foreign Affairs for the
assistance in getting her home. Ms. Coniega was repatriated in the morning of 31 March 2017.