DOLE cites most affected segments among OFWs
MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said that temporary visa holders in the United States, as well as factory workers, shipping and some domestic services would be the first to be affected by the global financial crisis.
Speaking in a forum organized by the Asian Institute of Management Policy Center, DOLE Assistant Secretary Ma. Teresa Soriano said that some temporary workers holding seasonal working visas like the H-2B to the United States may be affected by the crisis.
"Based on the intelligence of our [Philippine Overseas Labor Offices] there are OFWs that may be affected by the crisis, especially those who work in the United States in the hotels and casinos and holders of seasonal visas or H-2B," said Ms. Soriano.
There are 128,910 estimated temporary Filipino workers in the United States, latest data of the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) show.
H-2B visas are temporary work visas given by the United States to workers in fields that are seasonal, intermittent, of peak load need, or of one-time occurrence.
She added that Filipinos working in cruise ships may be affected as well. Earlier, Labor secretary Marianito D. Roque said that seafarers working in the cargo shipping industry will be affected because of the smaller number of products being shipped.
There are 47,782 Filipinos in cruise ships and 10,754 in general cargo ships.
More factory workers in South Korea and Taiwan could also be affected. Lately, there had been 1,000 OFWs who lost their jobs in Taiwan and have returned home.
Ms. Soriano noted that there are about 268,000 workers in the manufacturing industry in Taiwan, South Korea and Macau.
Some are safe
While some domestic helpers would be safe, those in certain countries may be affected. "Filipino household service workers in Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong whose employers are active players in the financial industry [may be also be affected]," Ms. Soriano said.
About 48,000 OFWs in this industry face challenges due to the financial crisis.
Ms. Soriano, however, noted that despite the number of OFWs who would be affected by the financial crisis, 500,000 workers in Europe are safe because their jobs are considered essential work. This segment especially consists of nurses and caregivers.
New markets in France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Guam may be countries where displaced OFWs may be redeployed.
There are an estimated 8.76 million-10 million OFWs around the world.
An estimated 4.5 million of these are temporary workers.
Meanwhile, displaced OFWs can be reintegrated into the local economy by starting businesses or participating in four sunrise industries according to some business leaders.
These are agribusiness; business process outsourcing, mining and ecotourism were cited as four sunrise industries where displaced OFWs can reintegrate to the local economy.
These OFWs can start businesses in those industries or share their expertise as managers.
Gillian Joyce G. Virata, executive director for Information and Research of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines, said that OFWs who can speak foreign languages are in high demand.
"Anyone who wants to apply can apply; it’s possible that some of those displaced are engineering graduates, we welcome them. There are entertainers coming back from Japan — we ask if they can speak Japanese. We have a very big demand for multi-language [sic] work and they can be paid highly," said Ms. Virata.
She added that OFWs who worked abroad as managers are needed as middle managers in local BPO companies.
The Labor department has set up programs for displaced local and overseas Filipino workers. These programs include retraining, emergency redeployment, job search assistance and livelihood programs. — Emilia Narni J. David, BusinessWorld
Speaking in a forum organized by the Asian Institute of Management Policy Center, DOLE Assistant Secretary Ma. Teresa Soriano said that some temporary workers holding seasonal working visas like the H-2B to the United States may be affected by the crisis.
"Based on the intelligence of our [Philippine Overseas Labor Offices] there are OFWs that may be affected by the crisis, especially those who work in the United States in the hotels and casinos and holders of seasonal visas or H-2B," said Ms. Soriano.
There are 128,910 estimated temporary Filipino workers in the United States, latest data of the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA) show.
H-2B visas are temporary work visas given by the United States to workers in fields that are seasonal, intermittent, of peak load need, or of one-time occurrence.
She added that Filipinos working in cruise ships may be affected as well. Earlier, Labor secretary Marianito D. Roque said that seafarers working in the cargo shipping industry will be affected because of the smaller number of products being shipped.
There are 47,782 Filipinos in cruise ships and 10,754 in general cargo ships.
More factory workers in South Korea and Taiwan could also be affected. Lately, there had been 1,000 OFWs who lost their jobs in Taiwan and have returned home.
Ms. Soriano noted that there are about 268,000 workers in the manufacturing industry in Taiwan, South Korea and Macau.
Some are safe
While some domestic helpers would be safe, those in certain countries may be affected. "Filipino household service workers in Singapore, Macau and Hong Kong whose employers are active players in the financial industry [may be also be affected]," Ms. Soriano said.
About 48,000 OFWs in this industry face challenges due to the financial crisis.
Ms. Soriano, however, noted that despite the number of OFWs who would be affected by the financial crisis, 500,000 workers in Europe are safe because their jobs are considered essential work. This segment especially consists of nurses and caregivers.
New markets in France, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and Guam may be countries where displaced OFWs may be redeployed.
There are an estimated 8.76 million-10 million OFWs around the world.
An estimated 4.5 million of these are temporary workers.
Meanwhile, displaced OFWs can be reintegrated into the local economy by starting businesses or participating in four sunrise industries according to some business leaders.
These are agribusiness; business process outsourcing, mining and ecotourism were cited as four sunrise industries where displaced OFWs can reintegrate to the local economy.
These OFWs can start businesses in those industries or share their expertise as managers.
Gillian Joyce G. Virata, executive director for Information and Research of the Business Processing Association of the Philippines, said that OFWs who can speak foreign languages are in high demand.
"Anyone who wants to apply can apply; it’s possible that some of those displaced are engineering graduates, we welcome them. There are entertainers coming back from Japan — we ask if they can speak Japanese. We have a very big demand for multi-language [sic] work and they can be paid highly," said Ms. Virata.
She added that OFWs who worked abroad as managers are needed as middle managers in local BPO companies.
The Labor department has set up programs for displaced local and overseas Filipino workers. These programs include retraining, emergency redeployment, job search assistance and livelihood programs. — Emilia Narni J. David, BusinessWorld
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