En Route to the Desert Sun

OVERSEAS FILIPINO WORKER

The Wikipedia Definition

An Overseas Filipino is a person of Philippine origin who lives outside of the Philippines. This term applies both to people of Filipino ancestry who are citizens or residents of a different country and to those Filipino citizens abroad on a more temporary status.

The lack of well-paying jobs in the Philippines combined with a widespread knowledge of English (a result of having been a colony of the United States) have made Filipinos one of the most internationally mobile nationalities.

Many Filipinos go abroad to support their families back at home through remittances, and as a result, many countries have a substantial Filipino community. Often, these Filipinos are referred to as Overseas Filipino Workers or OFWs.

The term Global Filipino is another term of more recent vintage but less widely used. President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo recently coined the term Overseas Filipino Investor or OFI for Filipino expatriates who contribute to the economy through remittances, buying property and creating businesses.

There are more than 11 million overseas Filipinos worldwide, equivalent to about 11% of the total population of the Philippines. Each year, more than a million Filipinos leave to work abroad through overseas employment agencies and other programs, including government sponsored ones. Others emigrate and become permanent residents of other countries.

Overseas Filipinos often work as doctors, nurses, accountants, IT professionals, engineers, architects, entertainers, technicians, teachers, military servicemen, students, caregivers, domestic helpers and household maids.

The exodus includes an increasing number of skilled workers taking on unskilled work overseas, resulting in what has been referred to as brain drain, particularly in the health and education sectors.

Also, the exodus can result in underemployment, for example, in cases where doctors undergo retraining to become nurses. Economic Impact Money sent by OFWs back to the Philippines is a major factor in the country's economy, amounting to more than US$10 billion in 2005.

This makes the country the fourth largest recipient of foreign remittances behind India, China, and Mexico. The amount represents 13.5% of the Philippines' GDP, the largest in proportion to the domestic economy among the four countries mentioned.

Overseas Filipinos sent back $14.4 billion in remittances to the Philippines in 2007, up from the $13 billion in 2006. The Philippines has estimated an inflow of $15.9 billion worth of remittances in 2008.

Nations with large Filipino constituencies United States. Despite race relations problems of the late 19th and early 20th centuries in the American Northwest, most Filipino Americans today find it easy to integrate into American society, with a majority belonging to the upper middle class. When compared to other East and Southeast Asian-American groups, Filipino Americans have the second highest median household income, exceeding that of the U.S. general population, surpassed only by Asian Indians.

United States Median Household Income: 2004. Ethnicity Household Income Asian Indians $68,771 Filipinos $65,700 Chinese $57,433 Japanese $53,763 Koreans $43,195 Total US Population $44,684 Filipinos are as the second-largest Asian American group in the country; Tagalog is the fifth most spoken language in the U.S.

Filipinas comprise a large portion of the roughly 4,000-6,000 women who annually come to the U.S. via international marriage agencies. The US State Department estimated that there are 4 million Filipinos in the US as of 2007. United Kingdom Nurses and caregivers have begun flocking to the United Kingdom in recent years. The island-nation has welcomed about 20,000 nurses and other Filipinos of various employment and lifestyle during the past 5 years. According to news reports, the United Kingdom is home to around 200,000 OFWs.

In spite of the Philippine government ban on OFWs working in Iraq, an estimated 1,000-3,000 Filipinos work there. Most work on US Military bases around the country as cooks and laundry service, sometimes as third-country national security guards. This is the only foreign nation in which Filipino men outnumber Filipino women. Canada. Only a small population of Filipinos resided in Canada until the late 20th century. The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration has estimated that as of 2006 there were over 400,000 Canadians of Filipino origin.

Due to Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between Western Canada and the Philippines; contracts in Atlantic Canada; consistent hiring of workers in Central Canada; and increased activity in Northern Canada, it is estimated that there will be some 500,000 Filipinos in Canada as of 2010. As of December 2008, Filipinos overtook China as Canada's leading source of immigrants.

In Spain. With around 50,000 citizens in 2008, the Filipinos form the second largest East Asian community in Spain behind the Chinese. Although many Filipinos did immigrate or ran away to Spain after the United States took over the islands in 1898, most of the Filipinos moved to the old metropolis during the 1960s and 1970s seeking jobs, which in many cases were related to housekeeping, health care or industrial activities.

There's also a significant group of Spaniards of Filipino origins (some of whom are from 3rd and 4th generations) including some famous people like Isabel Preysler, mother of famous singer Enrique Iglesias, which is estimated in at least up 250,000people.

In Ireland. As of 2008, the Philippine embassy in London reported that there are 11,500 Filipinos in Ireland. In Hong Kong. There are approximately 140,000 Filipinos in Hong Kong, of whom most are domestic helpers (30,000 of them being members of the Filipino Migrant Workers Union). Filipino maids are known by the locals as amahs, or more often feiyungs (less politely bun mui or bun bun). A Hong Kong work visa requires some amount of higher education; and in some cases Filipino women with college degrees and perfect command of English are willing to work as maids and nannies for a salary higher than they could make at home in professions.

In Singapore. Over 150,000 Overseas Filipinos work and reside in the nation-state of Singapore. Moreover, about 240,000 Filipinos visit the country annually, making them one of the biggest foreign tourists of Singapore. In Taiwan. According to the 2006 data of the government of Taiwan, there are 96,000 Filipinos currently living in Taiwan. Of these, 58,704 are in manufacturing industries and 34,602 are in social or personal services (e.g. maids). However, according to 2004 data by the Philippine Government, there are 2,037 Filipinos living in Taiwan permanently, 154,135 are in Taiwan for work contracts, and 4,500 go to Taiwan irregularly, which make a total of 160,672. It is not known why there is such a big difference between these two numbers (96,000 vs. 160,672).

Middle East. Many Filipinos work in the Middle East (mostly Saudi Arabia and UAE) as engineers, nurses or hospital workers, accountants, office workers, construction workers, restaurant workers and maids. It is estimated that more than 2 million Filipinos have made the Middle East their home.

In Japan Some 250,000 Filipinos are listed to be living within Japan's geographic confines. However, this number is speculated to be larger, surpassing the one million mark, in relation to many unlisted and illegal Filipino nationals in the Land of the Rising Sun.

South Korea According to the Commission on Filipinos Overseas, as of December 2006, some 70,000 Filipinos work and live in Korea. Of this number, some 6,000 are permanent residents, some 50,000 work legally, and some 14,000 are "irregular" or do not have the proper documents.

Lebanon As many as 30,000 OFWs are working in the nation of Lebanon. Due to the recent turmoil between Lebanon and Israel, however, many have been repatriated back to the Philippines, while others have been relocated to Cyprus, a part of the Philippine evacuation plan.

In 2000, Australia recorded about 127,000 Filipinos and/or Filipino Australians and in Greece The Philippine Embassy has reported an estimated of 40,000 Filipinos in Greece. Malaysia As Sabah is very close to the Philippines, there are many Filipino residents, as well as illegal immigrants there. Filipinos make up about 30% of the entire population of Sabah and they enumerate up to 900,000.

Many Filipinos in Malaysia residents come to work in construction industries, fisheries, and other labor intensive sectors in hopes of a better living. Most live in stilt slums scattered behind cities or on offshore islands. The Philippine government also has promised to establish a consulate provide any necessary help to its nationals. Historically, The Philippines has a dormant claim on the territory. Native Sabahans themselves are closely related to southern Filipinos.

In New Zealand There are about 17,000 Filipino residents and citizens in New Zealand called Kiwi-Pino's, Filipino-New Zealanders. New Zealand, as in the past, are currently recruiting Filipino qualified nurses. Filipinos in New Zealand, as well as prospective immigrants, often lean towards information technology, nursing and, more recently, telecommunications for careers.[citation needed] Norway People with Filipino background in Norway is estimated to about 9,000, most of them living in the Oslo urban area. Most of the Filipino immigrants to Norway are females, representing 76 % of the total of 9,000.
The Issues Overseas Filipino workers, both blue collar and white collar, can face significant obstacles, including illegal recruitment, mysterious death, racial profiling and discrimination, and kidnapping.

In some countries, such as in Hong Kong, China and Singapore, and in Middle Eastern countries, including Iraq, and Saudi Arabia OFWs have reported that their pay was withheld, while others have had their documents confiscated or hidden. Furthermore, some, who are mostly domestic helpers, are physically and sexually abused, even murdered.

Action by the government on these cases have had mixed results with some OFWs returning to the country happy while others return either injured or dead. Other problems faced by OFWs include the risk of involvement in a conflict and the risk of being kidnapped, such as those in Lebanon, Iraq, and Nigeria.

Another issue is Filipino women becoming sex slaves in countries such as Japan or other countries. Thousands of women travel abroad for domestic work only to be tricked into sex work. Sex traffickers take their passports, withholds wages or physically abuse them.

MY OFW D-DAY

The day of my leaving and sojourn to the middle east has come...I am leaving for DOHA, Qatar through ETIHAD Airways and my flight will be from manila to Abu Dhabi with a connecting flight to DOHA, Qatar...I went to the last briefing at the recruitment agency office wherein our contract was explained to us, the documents that we need to bring, the explanation we needed to explain to the visa reader because the position on our visas were different from those that were in our poea applications...it was explained to us that the position mentioned in the visa was for visa entry only and that the position in our labor contract was our real positions and that we should tell the visa reader about these...after the briefing I went home to paranaque to prepare my bags because we agreed as a group...there was 8 of us and that we will meet in the OFW Lounge...at the NAIA airport...although our flight was still at 1 am of Feb. 26, 2009 we rushed to the airport at around 8 pm...I met the liason officer at the entrance because all my papers was with him and after receiving it from Kuya Andy the first hurdle was at the entrance gate...where the guards looked busy as if trying to read my etickets, passport and other documents then we were waved in...to the first x-ray inspection...I had to take off my jacket, shoes and cell phone...after going through that...we headed to the visa reader line...these visa readers were moslems or Maranaws or tausogs...and...we had a short run-in with them because of our visa entries but was eventually a-okyed after we tried to looked for a xeroxed machine at the airport lounge and we eyed an OWWA extention office and when we asked 'Pwede bang magpa xeroxed? The OWWA guy said hindi po pwede dahil hindi po pang commercial eto po??? again as expected you have another gov't employee paid by our OWWA dues who refuse to help an OFW just to have a document xeroxed???(As expected pinahihirapan ka para medyo magbigay ka ng pera for them to help you??? a very dissapointing experience but expected from a government paid employee pretending to be a bureaucrat...hay OWWA...nanaman you are there to help OFWs like us not to make life difficult for us so that we just have to cough up a few hundred pesos for a photocopy..., after which we headed to the checkin counter...as I feared for my belonging to exceed their weight I was told that they had no weight restrictions for my baggage which was pegged at 30.33 kilos...I was saved....I took the boarding passess issues tro us and we were off to the terminal entrance...being ofws we just had to show our OECs and passports and were exempted to pay the 750 terminal fee this is more like it...then off to immigration na kami...we did not have any hitches in immigration ...so we trooped to the last passenger security and baggage inspection...so tangal nanaman ang sapatos, jacket, cellphone, barya, sinturon...and after that yehey off to duty free kami pero wala naman kaming pera.kendi meron pa at skyflakes...so what's an OFW to do in these trying times after the stressful queing and unqueing at NAIA?...maupo ka na lang sa tabi at mag text-text ka na sa loved once at ka berks mo dahil this is the last time na mag tetext ka ng piso...kasi pag abroad mo na...naka roaming kana... pag announce ng paging...announcing ETIHAD airways bound for ABU Dhabi...please proceed to gate no. 6 because you will be boarding soon...you get the feel na paalis kana talaga... pagpasok mo na sa tube...eto nas...eto na...wahhhhhhh dobidobido sa DOHA KO...wahhhhh!!!boarding na tol!!! THis is the start of a 5 hour flight to Abu Dhabi...ang daming pasahero...boeing 777-300 pa kamo...sus andaming OFWs ...you can just turn your head around and you can see the whole supply chain business of grinding out OFWS from the Philippines ever present bumper to bumper...this is the moment...after seating down the airplane seats and taxing to the runway...the deafening silence of everybody as you all prepare for the take off was immiment...and as I have been training time and time again...I did the sign of the cross and envoked a silent prayer as the rolls royce engines of the plane were shrieking and the thuds of the landing gears was making the plane bounce I said my Our Fathers, My Hail Marys, and my Glory Be's.."Lord watch over me and specially with my family...Give me the strength to face my challenges and fears...guide me through this life changing experience of becoming an OFW...a strager in a strange land but deep down inside I know that I am no stranger at all because I have more than 11 million filipino brothers and sisters spread throught the world...and may God Bless us All!!!!

Darating and ARAW Magbabayad Ka din...

I went to my recruitment agency to pay for my placement fee...talagang this point has arrived...barely a day before I will leave...I have to settle this dreaded day that I had to part away from the cash that I have gathered and scrounded, accrue, accumulate, agglomerate, aggregate, amass, collect, cumulate, garner, hive, pile up, roll up...from all sources of my life...from close family friends, to brothers and sister-in laws, to sympathetic neighbors, to who ever I can make a loan...i will do anything to come up with the placement fee...All the while I had tried to postpone this day because of my doubts with these recruitment agencies...once binigay mo na ang pera mo mahirap na yan bawiin which is why you must ensure that you are properly processed with tickets and your working visa... I have carefully went over all the docs back and forth and finding no other reason not to give the placement...I dejectively relented and parted with the money...( as the cashier was counting the crisp 1,000 peso bills...I whispered in silence...sa lahat nang pinagkakautangan ko...babayaran ko din kayo Bullet day...(Balang araw)...pagdating ng panahon...sa lahat ng tumulong sa akin at pinautang ako ng pang placement...pagpalain kayo ng Diyos...at sa hirap ng global financial crisis...lumabas din ang mga pera ninyo...at sana hindi ako mabibigo sa paghanap ng pambayad utang sa inyo...buti na lang hindi ko kailangang mag OFW loan...sus Ginoo...katakot takot na interest ang pinapataw sa iyo...kayong mga walanghiyang mangagantsong lending, 5-6, atpb na nagpahiram...sana malugi kayo para wala na rin kaming babayaran...buti nga...hay...natapos ang cashier nagbilang...mga 3 times ior 4 times ata yun...to all those I am dearlly indebted ...I shall return...at sana huwag akong matangal sa trabaho...

Placement Fee

Every OFW may he be a 1st timer or returning OFW is trying his best to avoid the dreaded 'Placement Fee" although as I have experienced it first hand these are the following categories of placement fees:

1. No Placement Fees -

- either you are direct hired (not going through any agency) or
- your employer has agreed to shoulder the fees (most seafarers are in this category)
- Canada bound OFWs
- HSW (household service workers)
- some austrailia bound ofws

2. With Placement Fees

- Direct cash out payment of
- through salary deduction payments (fly now pay later plans)s

Placement fees are basically the sources of migrant debts and Filipino OFW workers arive in their job sites with debts and loans taken out in the Philippines to finance the cost of migrant workers with a two-year work contract. The first few months of a worker's salary often are sent home to pay back the debt and this loan can be paid back if the worker manages to keep her job for at least six months

Normally they charge you with a one month's salary for the recruitment agencies services and are collected before you can leave the country...I too had to suffer this heavy burden...of a person who presently has no job seeking employment overseas because his own country could not provide him his own needs for a decent job...where an economy controlled by mostly unscrupolous businessmen who would rather see people like you and me suffer in poverty least they loose their grip on their businessess as these low income families may earn their keep and start becoming economically empowered that these businessmen will lose poverty stricken people for cheap labor...

The OFW supply chain management has even become a big business which involves business men in the recruitment agencies, travel agencies, airlines, money lending business, medical certification gamca business with ties to doctors and hospitals and clinics, shipping, remittance banks and financial institutions which does not include the variouis underground economy funded activities just to get an OFW off to his job site...

I hope that this placement fee be eradicated from the list of so many OFW woes, social problems brought upon his life by becoming a displace worker at home, with the onslaught of the unnecessary chance of possibly being broken away from familial ties and be ominously separated from wives and children and love ones...what a burden that he must carry along with him that such crippling migrant debts that goes with working abroad is just too much tjat it will break a camels back...(This is a pun intended for those who are in the middle east)

The government should alliviate the plight of the "Bayaning OFW" and make life easier for those who had to prostitute themselves overseas just to earn a decent living. What kind of a hero will that be...we should help these workers by making their transition to migrant workers less financially disabling to the family he leaves behind...you can see them all around the airports of the world...with their baseball caps, abayas, backpacks, and the evver present ofw cry of "Kabayan"...o bayan ko ...bakit kami pinabayaang nagkakaganito...

NBI Clearance Day

Today is Feb. 17, 2009 this is my day to get my NBI certificate so that my Qatar Visa will be process and I could basically be back in the loop of my quest for an Overseas Job Assignment...anyway I arrived at the unusually lotsa people NBI clearance center after I went down to from the carriedo LRT Station to the bustling overflowing people streets of manila...a little similar to the overflowing street vendors and hawkers of Baclaran...at last at the realeasing station I was able to get my NBI and off to paco I went to my recruitment agency...bit bit ko ang mga docx ko again...I finally arrived at my agency and talked with marie the Agency staff assigned to my employer and as usual the line na "Kuya May pang Placement ka na ba???"...was brought straight to my face...and I said wala pa po...paki exeros mo nga ang mga docs ko dahil I need to get an OFW Loan...and so she photocopied some of my papers and gave me a copy of the following: Employment contract, OEC Certificate, Passport, plane ticket, working Visa...(I actually already have money for the placement fee (this deserves another rant in my blog) ...this was just a ruse to get my agency to provide me with copies of my documents because I just wanted to go over them as I am sure that over 95% of OFW applicants are very weary of these land based recruitment agencies...we have this fear that we are never quite too sure of believing what our agencies says "approved na po and visa niyo pakihanda lang ang placement) unless we see our documents...this strategy I learned from reading the POEA Forums...this is also one of the best advices I can give to those OFW Job Seekers...the POEA forums have a mountain of information, insights, tips, and many other relevant information a first timer or returning ofw for that matter should not miss out....) hahay! Buhay!!!OFW!!!

In Manila

I just arrived in Manila this morning...I am on my way to take a PDOS Seminar because I was due to fly to Qatar for my overseas job....but as soon as I arrived the agency called me to let me know that here is a new requirement for the Qatar Embassy wherein they don't accept the VISA printed on line anymore at the airport...there should be a visa stockir attached to your passport... and this would take five days for processing...and before this I also had to get my NBI clerance for travel abroad which I had applied for in the afternoon of Feb. 11, 2006...and when I got to the NBI Clearance Centerit was being run lile a big NBI business similar to a diploma mill...although I was able to apply in less than 2 hours...I hit a snag...I Had a hitlist (I had some person with a similar name ) which means I could get my NBI in Feb. 17, 2009...what a drag...another delay for my trip...

My Plan to get myself Overseas in 2009

This is the developments with regards to my present plan to work overseas for 2009 and I'm just going to give a run down of the events that have occurred in the past few weeks as an update to its progress. Here's a chronology of events:

Jan. 11 -

Wanted For Overseas Employment AD for HR Administrators was posted in Sunstar for DOHA, Qatar (I took notice of the ads and prepared my documents for the interview. The Ad was posted by Jones International Manpower Services, Inc. I went and submitted my paperds in their office on Jan. 12. I met Wilgen, the Office staff at their Cebu Office. Their website: www.jonesinternationalmanpower.com.ph their Cebu Branch 3rd floor Gemini Bldg, 719 M.J. Cuenco Avenue Cebu City, Tel. 232-10-12/Cell No. 09293688109))

Jan. 14

Final Interview schedules dates for the employer (Arab) in Cebu ( I attended the job interview and was accepted by the employer. The name of the company is Shutdown Maintenance Services, W.L.L. in DOHA, Qatar, i tried to look at the internet and got this info, it seems to be a legitimate company witha POEA Job Order Registration No. 10131002 which I have also confirmed with POEA)

Shutdown Maintenance Services WLL

International Private company

PO Box 5871, Manama, , Bahrain

()973 17742961, 973 17713691 fax,

Primary SIC: Special Trade Contractors, Not Elsewhere Classified, Primary NAICS: Other Specialty Trade Contractors

Description: Construction: Refinery maintenance including gritblasting coatings, refactory lining, anti corrosion treatments, industrial painting, fibreglass applications, commercial cleaning and security; aluminium industry services

After the interview, I was asked to sign a 2 year provisional contract and I was requested to submit my passport for the working visa processing which I did. I was advised to wait for further instruction for the medical examination)

(Standard benefits include a yearly annual paid leave of 1 month with paid airline fare tickets, accomodation and food is provided by the employer, working visa, poea, owwa fees, and travel tickets also paid by the employer)

Jan. 22

Upon my follow-up on Jan. 20, the agency told me to wait for their call which I received on Jan. 22, and I was advised to process my pre-employment medical examination.

Jan. 23

I took my whole-day physical/pre-employment medical examination at Physician's Diagnostic Services Center, Inc.in Ramos St., Cebu City. The exams were

The focus of the physical exam might include an evaluation of:

* Height and weight

* Vision: Acuity and color test

* Blood pressure & Pulse

* Head and neck

* Heart

* Lungs

* Abdomen

* Genitals and anus

* Laboratory Examinations:

* Chest X-Ray

* ECG for 40 years of age and with Cardiovascular findings

* Psychometrics

* Complete Blood count

* Blood typing

* Urinalysis & Fecalysis

* Special Tests: Hepatitis-B (Screening Test ); VDRL; HIV; Drug Test:

They also advised me to make a follow-up on Jan. 28 for the results.

Jan. 28

I made a follow-up with my medical and the findings were good and I was certified as "FIT TO WORK" and the medical certification will be forwarded to my recruitment agency as part of my working visa processing.

Feb. 2

My recruitment agency called and advised me that my working vIsa has been approved and that they will advised me as soon as my flight details and ticket are ready. They have also advised me to prepare my placement fee.

With regards to the placement fee, I know that there are recruitment agencies who do not collect placement fees because the employer pays for it and there are those that are legal that you have to put up a placement fee and unfortunately my agency has one.

Anyway I'm just trying my best to be positive with all of these developments and despite of the great hardships and difficulties I and my family am experiencing and will be enduring for the next months. God Willing if all of these plans pushes through, I'll be in DOHA, Qatar before February 2009 ends.

Feb. 3

Unexpectedly I receive a call from my prospective employer from Qatar while I was doing some maintenance works at home, He was making a follow-up about me whether I remember him or what we agreed upon still holds (about the salary we negotiated), and I told him I was very thankful for his acceptance of me as an employee...He said that he will facilitate the processing of my tickets so that I can leave for Qatar as soon as possible...I was swept off my head...I just couldn't believe it...He really wants me to work for their company...so i said OK I'll call the agency to make a follow-up...which I promptly did...i maybe in DOHA sooner than I thought...