SAYS RECRUITER: Saudi, Qatar, Libya still hiring Filipinos

MANILA, Philippines—As the world economy shrinks, so does the need for migrant workers.

But recruiter Loreto Soriano, executive director of the Federated Associations of Manpower Exporters Inc., said the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Libya are still hiring overseas Filipino workers.

Soriano, who also owns the LBS E-Recruitment Agency, said these three countries in the Middle East can provide sustained OFW employment, but not enough to counter the job cuts around the world.

Moreover, the viability of OFW deployment in these countries depends largely on the price of oil.

“These are promising markets because they have proven their resilience and their ability to maintain their current [infrastructure] projects,” he said.

Aside from construction workers and engineers, these three countries also need nurses and other health-related professionals.

He said Libya, which had suffered an economic embargo until 2007, is more than able to overcome the difficulties of this crisis.

Soriano said the average price of oil must not fall below $45 per barrel for more than six months, “as this appears to be the minimum price to ensure continuation of their development projects.”

“If it stays below that figure a marked contraction could occur with high OFW lay-offs,” he said. - Veronica Uy, INQUIRER.net, March 06, 2009