Labor Migration - Politics and Governance

Labor Migration

Politics and Governance

By:

Julius Mark Ibañez

Labor migration has always been an issue. In the Philippines, more and more workers are leaving. And these workers are not just ordinary workers. Most of these are professionals and technical workers.

Filipinos leave the country because they want to earn more. However, in the long run, the Philippines is on the losing end, because skills and talents are becoming scarce. Eventually, the Philippines will be left with mostly unskilled and untrained workers. Only the receiving countries and migrants gain. Hence, the labor migration phenomenon creates an inequality among trading nations. Nevertheless, the government cannot force its labor force to stay because the Philippines simply does not have enough money to satisfy them. Therefore, measures should be taken in order to maximize the benefits that are gained from the exchange of migrant labor. If laborers are going to leave anyway, the Philippines might as well make sure that it gets something out of the trade, both in the short and in the long term.

I. History

2,500 Filipinos per day. That is the average number of Filipinos who leave the country to seek employment abroad (DOLE, 2002). It illustrates the immense labor exodus that has been happening in the Philippines. “Wages in Manila are barely enough to answer for my family’s needs. I must go abroad to better my chances,” as one Filipino puts it (Takaki, 1995).

Filipinos who earn minimal income could no longer keep up with the country’s high-priced commodities. The situation is even worsened by inflation that further decreases the purchasing power of the Peso. As a Filipino accountant in the United States explains, “It is common [in the Philippines] for middle-class Filipinos to work at two or even three jobs because of the high cost of living…. In the United States, hard work is rewarded. In the Philippines, it is part of the struggle to survive” (Takaki, 1995).

Unemployment in the country has also been a major problem. Job openings have been scarce in relation to the number of those seeking employment. A major cause of this phenomenon is the low investment of firms in the nation. Businessmen have been reluctant due to the lack of stability of the economy and political governance.

Going back in history, monetary benefits and the promise of a better life are the same considerations that prompted the departure of yesterday’s Filipino workers. The first large-scale contractual emigration occurred in the early 1900s. Filipinos were recruited to work in the sugar plantations of Guam and Hawaii. The latter experienced a persistent decline in population due to a disease brought by foreigners and the entry of Chinese and Japanese workers. The Philippines, being a U.S. colony and requiring a relatively low pay, became a target for labor importation.

Initially, Hawaii was not able to recruit as many Filipino laborers as they hoped to. But in 1909, the Hawaiian Sugar Planters Association amplified its financial contribution, thus increasing the number of Filipino employees.

In the 1940s and 1950s, discrimination in the U.S. mainland re-directed the destination of Filipino workers to the countries of Asia, Europe and Africa. At the same time period, a considerable number of Filipinos were being hired in international ships.

Due to the destruction after the war, the Filipinos were hired for re-construction in the islands of Wake, Guam and Okinawa. Locally, employers were already expressing their grievances about the great outflow of laborers. Meanwhile, the government became busy in managing the remittances of overseas workers.

Towards the end of the 1950s, Filipinos began working as barbers, musicians and contract personnel for British North Borneo. Eventually, the Philippines signed an agreement between the United Kingdom on the employment of 25,000 Filipinos over five years and a pledge for worker protection.

Thailand and Malaysia demanded Filipino laborers starting in the 1960s, while some were employed in Indonesia as loggers in the area of Kalimantan. On the Western hemisphere, specifically in Canada, immigration policies were liberated. This prompted for a more permanent migration. It was mostly doctors, nurses, science technicians and engineers who moved.

In the 1970s, the Middle East experienced increase in profits due to the oil price hike. They then invested in industrial and welfare programs that required manpower. Local labor supply was inadequate, thus opening the doors for Filipino employment.

The early 1990s was still plagued by lack of employment opportunities and financial instability for most workers. Migration to Hong Kong for two-year contractual domestic work then became very popular at that time. The volume of the departing workers was so immense that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration had a pre-departure training solely for them (Tumbaga 1993).

To the more recent past, the late 1990s was a witness to the migration of the health sector. From year 1998 to 2000: 16,240 professional nurses were deployed to foreign countries. (California Examiner, 2002) This was a response to health attention needed by ...

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In 2001, overseas recruitment of health professionals (namely nurses, dentists, doctors, pharmacists, midwives and medical technicians) amounted to 16,472 (California Examiner, 2002). This was a 69.3% increase from the preceding year. Currently, the World Health Organization has named the Philippines as the largest exporter of nurses, and these nurses can commonly be found in the U.S., Great Britain, Saudi Arabia and Australia (Smith, 2000).

II. Government Efforts

After having gone through the roots of labor migration, we have to ask ourselves, “Is our government doing anything about the problems attached to working overseas?” While former President Marcos admitted that labor migration was a solution to the employment problems of our country during that time, and while we presently consider working overseas as nurses, domestic helpers, information technology experts, or seamen, our government realizes the importance to pursue the needs of those affected by the labor migration situation.

It being a recurring concern with the public, the government has shown its efforts to control and regulate people who can legally work abroad. The government agency that is in-charge of labor migration is the Department of Labor and Employment or, more commonly known as, DOLE. It is mandated to formulate policies, implement programs and serve as the policy-coordinating arm of the Executive Branch in the field of labor and employment (DOLE, 2001).

The International Labor Affairs Service is responsible for monitoring the observance and implementation of all obligations, courtesies and facilities required by international labor affairs, particularly the International Labor Organization, the Conference of Asian Pacific Labor Ministries, the ASEAN Labor Ministers Meeting of which the Philippines is a member and related international labor standards and agreements reached in various international labor fora, treaties and other multilateral, bilateral or multi-bilateral agreements in the area of labor and employment. It provides staff support and policy guidelines to the Secretary in the supervision, monitoring and reporting of the activities of the Philippine overseas labor officers assigned in different countries. It serves as the instrumentality of the Department for technical cooperation, programs and activities with other countries and international institutions. (DOLE, 2001)

DOLE has two attached agencies: the POEA and the OWWA. The POEA, Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, is the agency that is responsible for formulating and implementing a systemic program of promotion and monitoring overseas employment of Filipino workers (POEA, 2000-2002). This agency aims to provide all migrant laborers their right of fair and equal employment practices while they work abroad. Also, they control the participation of the private sector in recruiting overseas placement workers by giving out and setting up a licensing and registration system. The agency promotes the development of workers to be able to uphold a skillful batch of workers ready for overseas placement. They also intend to secure, promote and protect the well-being of Filipinos working overseas.

Another agency of DOLE is the OWWA, otherwise known as Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration. They provide the workers as well as their families, who are left behind, benefits while the family member is working abroad. They provide social and welfare services including insurance coverage, legal assistance, placement assistance and remittance services, among others (DOLE, 2001).

Another agency of the government is the Philippine Migrants Rights Watch. It is a registered civil society network that was established in 1995 to encourage the recognition, protection and fulfillment of Filipino migrants’ rights—both in the Philippines and abroad during the entire migration process. PMRW is also concerned with monitoring the welfare of the Filipino workers. They make sure that abuses towards the overseas workers are not overlooked and that justice is fully given (PMRW, 2004).

Lastly, the Department of Foreign Affairs, or DFA, is the agency of the government whose goal is to establish the country’s foreign policies. The DFA is also in-charge of Foreign Service worthy of the trust and pride of every Filipino worker, and associates itself with private sectors to provide workers with their interests as well. In addition, the DFA protects and promotes the welfare of the Filipino workers abroad and considers these workers as partners in national development (DFA, 2000).

III. Private Sector Efforts

Not only are the government organizations working on the issues concerning labor migration, but private sectors are also doing their share in helping their countrymen abroad, in one way or another. The following groups of people are examples of those sectors that wish to improve the lives of migrant workers.

The first non-government organization is the Center for Migrant Advocacy—Philippines (CMA-Phils). This advocacy groups promotes the rights of overseas Filipinos and their families. Moreover, this center works to help improve the economic, social, and political conditions of migrant Filipino families everywhere through policy advocacy, information dissemination, networking, capability-building, and direct assistance (CMA).

After having an interview with CMA’s Executive Director, Ms. Ellene Sana, the group was enlightened on the missions of CMA. One of their recent projects tackled the Absentee Voting, which they claimed, was what made them different from the other private sectors. Since elections were just around the corner, they insisted on the pushing of the Absentee Voting Bill. Through persistence, they succeeded. Now, all Filipinos worldwide can exercise their right to vote. Another concern of theirs was of that regarding the family. Based on their experience, they observed a rather obvious irony in the circumstances of labor migration. They saw that many families were being split or broken because of parents leaving their families for work abroad, something that had an initial goal of working for the family and keeping it together. And CMA is open to those who ask for direct help. Usually, ‘victims’ would communicate with them through e-mail or snail mail, and CMA would readily help their fellowmen—both abroad and in the country. Aside from those issues, CMA also recognizes the magnitude of disseminating important information to Filipinos worldwide regarding news in the Philippines or other government and legal matters (Sana, 2004).

The second group is the Episcopal Mission of Pastoral Care of Migrants and Itinerant People of the Catholic Bishop Conference of the Philippines (ECMI of the CBCP). Since the Philippines is presently the third largest Catholic country in the world, and that there are around 8 million Filipino overseas workers, the Catholic Church makes it a point to be involved in the lives of those concerned with labor migration. Aside from aiding the migrants, it also addresses the needs of the families left behind by the OFWs. The ECMI appeals to the clergy and religious to assist in giving total spiritual guidance both to the overseas Filipinos and their dependents back home. It undertakes formation and awareness programs for teachers and students on the advantages and disadvantages of migration. It also seeks contact and collaboration with the local churches in countries of destination to provide chaplains and erect chaplaincies for Filipinos overseas. In fact, the ECMI programs both in chaplaincies abroad and among families back home include education and formation, leadership training, pastoral and social services, linkages and networking, apostolate coordination, structure building for economic advancement, policy making, para-legal assistance, etc. Furthermore, since more Filipino migrants leave each year, the bishops in the Philippines are gradually recognizing the importance of caring for the families of migrants and responding positively to ECMI’s insistence to establish Diocesan and Parochial Migration Desks. Although ECMI is aware that “man has the right to leave his native land for various reasons … and also the right to return … in order to seek better conditions of life in another country”, it sees in the presence of Filipinos in so many nations worldwide as an evangelical potential (Arguelles, 2001).

IV. Resolutions

As mentioned above, both the Philippine government and non-government organizations currently have many programs and services to cater to the needs of the Filipino migrant workers. With the POEA having services that include pre-employment, welfare, licensing and regulation, adjudication, and general administrative and support services (POEA 2000-2002), the OWWA incorporating benefits in life insurance, healthcare, educational and training, loan guarantee funds, as well as social services and family welfare assistance, and workers’ assistance and on-site services (OWWA), and the granting of the Migrant Worker and Overseas Employment Act after the execution of Flor Contemplacion (POEA, 2000-2002), the Philippine migrant situation seems to have everything covered.

However, even with the steps that have been taken, it has been inadequate to maximize the benefits that can be taken from labor migration. There are several recommendations that the group feels the Philippine government should consider and adopt in order to maximize the benefits that can be gained from labor migration. We must keep in mind that these benefits are not only for the Philippines but for the migrant laborers as well.

First, the Philippines should see migrants abroad as economic resources, maintaining links with them and encouraging them to remit savings and act as bridges for foreign investment and trade. Migrant hometown and similar associations provide a point of contact for the government to stay in touch with our nationals abroad. The government should use them to discuss issues on mutual interest including dual nationality. Maintaining contact with migrants abroad can facilitate remittances, investments and the return of talent as economic development proceeds, as in Taiwan, South Korea, China and Ireland.

Secondly, many of the benefits of labor migration accrue to the already richer receiving countries. If the government does nothing, labor migration can increase inequality between developing and developed countries. To avoid increased inequality, labor recruitment countries should replenish the human capital they accept via immigration. Replenishment means that countries accepting migrants should establish Human Capital Replenishment Assistance (HCRA) programs that channel funds to the basic educational systems of sending countries, perhaps 5 to 10 percent of the first year’s earnings of the labor migrant abroad. Under such a program, a country accepting 1,000 nurses or engineers earning an average $40,000 a year or a total $40 million would provide an additional $2 to $4 million in targeted HCRA to the Philippines. The Philippines should appeal to receiving countries and push for such a program.

Lastly, the Philippines and receiving countries should have mutual interests in protecting migrants during recruitment and while employed abroad, and this cooperation can extend to trust and support that can improve migration management. Bilateral agreements can lead to regional agreements on best practices for managing labor migration, and perhaps global understandings to facilitate the labor migration that often accompanies trade in services (Martin 2003).

Since the emigration of labor migrants is a potential loss to sending countries, and since efforts by sending countries to restrict or prevent emigration are not likely to be effective and may violate fundamental human rights, the Philippines should (1) allow emigration, and (2) receive replenishment compensation for their loss of labor migrants from industrial countries that have per capita incomes substantially higher than our own.

Most migrants leave the country to maximize their incomes and opportunities, and their migration increases the size of the global economy since they have higher incomes in their destinations. However, the loss of human capital may slow down development in the Philippines and increase global inequality. If labor migration is motivated only by the considerations of individual migrants and employers, the result may be increased economic inequality that leaves our country on a labor exporting treadmill.

The emigration countries hold most of the keys to our economic futures, and their policies on issues ranging from providing economic opportunities to graduates to adherence to human rights are usually the major factors that determine whether labor migrants emigrate, remit, and return. The Philippines may have only limited abilities to offer the educational and research opportunities needed to keep laborers at home in the short- to medium-term, and industrial countries that accept highly skilled migrants from the Philippines should agree to replenish the human capital they acquired via migration.

In conclusion, the labor migration issue facing the Philippine society today can only be confronted if we are equipped with the knowledge of its history, causes, and effects. Understanding its background will lead us to a more efficient means of resolving the issues, like eliminating the inequality between the sending and receiving countries as well as maximizing benefits for the Philippines. Along with that, putting government and private sector efforts side by side will help us be aware of our current situation and realize what can still be done.

The recommendations the group presented were very general and have a very broad scope. In order that these recommendations might be implemented, specific and concrete programs and efforts must be planned and done. These suggestions are not exclusively addressed towards the Philippine government but to all of the stakeholders in the labor migration phenomenon. If everyone helps, the elimination of inequality created by labor migration is very much possible. If everyone helps, the benefits of labor migration may be maximized. If everyone helps, everyone could win.

Works Cited

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