Number of OFWs in HK drops amid levy mix-up
Hong Kong - More than 500 Filipino domestic helpers lost their jobs in July, amid the confusion spawned by the announcement of a two-year levy suspension.
But the number of Indonesian maids continued to rise, despite earlier fears that they were more susceptible to losing their jobs as employers rushed to take advantage of the impending levy cut.
Figures obtained from the Immigration Department show that the number of Filipino domestic helpers dropped from 124,840 in June to just 124,322 in July.
The drop nearly wiped out the big gain posted between April and June this year, when more than 600 additional Filipinos entered HK.
However, the total figure is still a far cry from the all-time high of about 155,000 Filipino DHs recorded before the SARS-induced economic downturn in 2003.
In contrast, Indonesians continue to take a bigger slice of the ever-growing foreign domestic helpers' market in the territory. Their total population of 120,537 as of the end of July is now less than 4,000 shy of equaling the number of Filipinos here.
Compared to previous months, the growth of the Indonesian population slowed down a bit between June and July, but still rose by nearly 300.
Dolores Balladares, chairperson of United Filipinos in HK, says the drop is worrying because it shows Filipinos are the first to be affected by badly conceived policies of the HK government.
"We have always maintained that the drop in the number of Filipinos here is because of the underpayment of Indonesian helpers, to which HK authorities continue to turn a blind eye," she says. "Now it seems that in the rush to take advantage of the levy suspension, the Filipinos were again the first to be sacrificed."
Still, Balladares says migrant organizations see the levy suspension as a victory.
"Na-force natin ang gobyerno kahit paano, so ang gagawin na lang natin ngayon ay pilitin na huwag na itong ibalik (We were able to somehow force the government, what we should do now is to prevent its re-imposition)," Balladares says.
Given that the government has been at pains to iron out initial kinks in the levy suspension--to the extent of introducing advanced contract renewal--Balladares concedes that it could be difficult to dissuade it from re-imposing the levy.
"Noon pa man sinabi na ni Labor Secretary (Matthew) Cheung na mahalaga ang levy kaya wala silang balak na tanggalin ito. Pero, tuloy pa rin ang oposisyon (Labor Secretary Cheung said a long time ago that the levy was important, thus they don’t have plans to suspend it. But the opposition continues)," she says.
"Mahihirapan din naman silang ibalik ang isang polisiya na hindi tanggap ng marami (They will find it difficult to bring back a policy that is being opposed by many people)" she added.
Meanwhile, Vice Consul Val Roque of the assistance to nationals section of the Consulate says that the number of people queuing up for advanced contract renewal has petered out.
At its peak, the rush to take advantage of the levy suspension saw an average of 1,000 contracts being submitted to the Consulate for processing.
The number reportedly shot up to as many as 1,600 on Aug. 19, a day after the Consulate was closed for four days because of a holiday.
Still, Roque says the Consulate still advises the public to apply for contract processing in the afternoons, when the lines are shorter.
He also says applicants should allot enough time to complete the transaction, instead of trying to rush things because they need to be back home at a certain time. - The Sun
But the number of Indonesian maids continued to rise, despite earlier fears that they were more susceptible to losing their jobs as employers rushed to take advantage of the impending levy cut.
Figures obtained from the Immigration Department show that the number of Filipino domestic helpers dropped from 124,840 in June to just 124,322 in July.
The drop nearly wiped out the big gain posted between April and June this year, when more than 600 additional Filipinos entered HK.
However, the total figure is still a far cry from the all-time high of about 155,000 Filipino DHs recorded before the SARS-induced economic downturn in 2003.
In contrast, Indonesians continue to take a bigger slice of the ever-growing foreign domestic helpers' market in the territory. Their total population of 120,537 as of the end of July is now less than 4,000 shy of equaling the number of Filipinos here.
Compared to previous months, the growth of the Indonesian population slowed down a bit between June and July, but still rose by nearly 300.
Dolores Balladares, chairperson of United Filipinos in HK, says the drop is worrying because it shows Filipinos are the first to be affected by badly conceived policies of the HK government.
"We have always maintained that the drop in the number of Filipinos here is because of the underpayment of Indonesian helpers, to which HK authorities continue to turn a blind eye," she says. "Now it seems that in the rush to take advantage of the levy suspension, the Filipinos were again the first to be sacrificed."
Still, Balladares says migrant organizations see the levy suspension as a victory.
"Na-force natin ang gobyerno kahit paano, so ang gagawin na lang natin ngayon ay pilitin na huwag na itong ibalik (We were able to somehow force the government, what we should do now is to prevent its re-imposition)," Balladares says.
Given that the government has been at pains to iron out initial kinks in the levy suspension--to the extent of introducing advanced contract renewal--Balladares concedes that it could be difficult to dissuade it from re-imposing the levy.
"Noon pa man sinabi na ni Labor Secretary (Matthew) Cheung na mahalaga ang levy kaya wala silang balak na tanggalin ito. Pero, tuloy pa rin ang oposisyon (Labor Secretary Cheung said a long time ago that the levy was important, thus they don’t have plans to suspend it. But the opposition continues)," she says.
"Mahihirapan din naman silang ibalik ang isang polisiya na hindi tanggap ng marami (They will find it difficult to bring back a policy that is being opposed by many people)" she added.
Meanwhile, Vice Consul Val Roque of the assistance to nationals section of the Consulate says that the number of people queuing up for advanced contract renewal has petered out.
At its peak, the rush to take advantage of the levy suspension saw an average of 1,000 contracts being submitted to the Consulate for processing.
The number reportedly shot up to as many as 1,600 on Aug. 19, a day after the Consulate was closed for four days because of a holiday.
Still, Roque says the Consulate still advises the public to apply for contract processing in the afternoons, when the lines are shorter.
He also says applicants should allot enough time to complete the transaction, instead of trying to rush things because they need to be back home at a certain time. - The Sun
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