10,000 Pinoys expected to find employment in Iraq by mid-2014

At least 10,000 Filipinos are expected to be deployed to Iraq by mid-2014, following the lifting of the ban on sending overseas Filipino workers to the country in July.

“The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) together with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is now on the final stage to finish important details for a bilateral labor agreement expected to be signed by both governments by this year,” said labor recruitment consultant Emmanuel Geslani.

The jobs to be filled by these workers are in the construction, medical, port, and telecommunications sectors, with construction and medicine having the biggest need for new personnel.

“In addition to building millions of new homes and repairing existing buildings, huge infrastructure renewal is needed, it also needs workers in the treatment and distribution of water, new sewer systems, roads, airports, rail systems and ports. In 2012, Iraq's construction industry expanded by 4.4 percent, worth US$ 5.6 billion, and is forecast to grow by an annual 6.18 percent until 2016,” said Geslani.

Medical personnel, on the other hand, are needed because many of the country's own medical professionals have migrated to other countries.

Workers are allowed to work anywhere in the region, except in "no go zones", which include the provinces of Anbar, Ninewah/Nineveh, Kirkuk/Tamim, and Salahuddin/Salahaddin.

Despite this, the POEA board still excludes Filipino household service workers from finding work in Iraq.

“Household service workers are still not allowed because they are vulnerable and we are also trying to limit their hiring,” said Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz.

The POEA imposed a total deployment ban to Iraq in February 2012 on the recommendation of the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) amid violence in the country.

But last February, the Philippine embassy in Baghdad certified Iraq as compliant with the provisions of the Amended Migrants Workers Act.

The POEA warned jobseekers of illegal recruiters and advised prospective workers to deal only with government-accredited recruitment agencies. — RT/BM, GMA News

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