January 01, 2011: MANILA, Philippines - The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) reported yesterday that employment prospects abroad remained bright for construction workers and other highly skilled Filipino workers in the coming year.
Labor Undersecretary Danny Cruz said at least 10,000 jobs await Filipino construction and other skilled workers in Guam in the next five years with the planned construction of new US military facilities there.
“The construction of huge US military facilities is expected to open job opportunities for Filipinos in the third quarter of this year, but the hiring of workers may start earlier because there are other buildings to be constructed aside from the military facilities,” Cruz disclosed.
Cruz noted that the construction of military facilities suffered a minor setback due to financial difficulties, but he said the project would definitely start this year.
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) chief Jennifer Manalili also reported that Saudi Arabia and other Middle East countries are also expected to hire more Filipino construction and other workers this year.
“There are a lot of job opportunities for Filipino workers in the Middle East because of the construction boom which is expected to continue until 2020,” Manalili pointed out.
Manalili said new hospitals are also set to open in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and thus expected to generate more employment for Filipino health workers in 2011.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz also reported that employers from Malta have expressed their desire to hire more Filipino caregivers.
Citing reports from the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO), Baldoz said many overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) now working in Malta are getting high salaries.
“Malta’s minimum wage is 620 euro ($820) and Filipino workers there receive not less than this minimum wage amount. Besides, Filipino workers in Malta are allowed to do part-time jobs after eight hours of regular work,” Baldoz said.
Baldoz, however, warned jobseekers desiring to work abroad to check their prospective employers, as well as their recruitment agencies, with the POEA to ensure that there are valid job orders and that they would undergo legal application and deployment processes.
John Leonard Monterona, Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator, said new employment policies in the UAE and other countries in the Middle East could slow down hiring of OFWs in 2011.
Monterona said that the UAE government is implementing 20 percent job reservation for its nationals as part of its labor market reforms.
“This week, the UAE labor ministry has been cited in various local news reports that it will require all companies to have at least one-fifth of their staff as Emirate citizens,” Monterona disclosed.
He added that the UAE labor ministry is also expected to implement a quota system in hiring expatriate workers in line with its aim boosting employment of its citizens over foreign workers.
Monterona said UAE has been hard hit by the global crisis, thus it is opting to enforce labor market reforms that would lessen the impact on its citizens.
He said that Saudi Arabia is also implementing a “Saudization” program requiring private companies to hire its citizens up to about five percent of total staff.
“If Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been in the 1st and 2nd place, respectively, of the top ten destinations of OFWs from 2003 to 2009, since these countries are now introducing labor market reforms geared towards more restrictions, then we are seeing a dim prospect of OFW deployment by 2011,” Monterona said.
OFW legal fund
Foreign Affairs Undersecretary Esteban Conejos Jr. said the department’s legal assistance fund could now be used to prosecute erring and abusive employers of OFWs.
Conejos said the utilization of the legal assistance fund was specified for payment of certain fees but it can now be used to go after employers of OFWs.
“We can now use it to prosecute erring and abusive employers not only as defense, bail bonds or litigation funds,” Conejos said.
He said that the balance of the funds in the previous year will not revert to the National Treasury but will be added to the budget for the present year.
“According to DBM (Department of Budget and Management) we will implement that so it will have the minimum of P30 million appropriation from Congress plus balances from the previous year so we should be okay,” he added.
Conejos admitted a reduced budget after the DFA agreed to the slashing of the legal assistance fund despite increasing cases of distressed OFWs.
“But the important thing is we gave them the assurance that even with a reduced budget we can continue to provide sufficient, adequate service to our OFWs,” he said
The United Filipinos in Hong Kong said cutting the legal assistance fund for OFWs from P50 million to P27 million showed the Aquino government is willing to leave OFWs rotting in prison.
The Migrant Workers’ Act requires a P100-million revolving legal assistance fund for distressed workers under the DFA.
The Blas F. Ople Center said Republic Act No. 10022 that amended the Migrant Workers’ Act of 1995 mandates the DFA to use its legal assistance fund to file charges against foreign employers and agencies abroad in behalf of aggrieved Filipino workers.
Meanwhile, the labor department is coming out with a new “anti-contractualization” policy this year in an apparent effort to stop massive job losses.
Nicon Fameronag, Labor Communication Office director, said the department plans to issue a new regulation replacing DOLE Order No. 18-02.
“Consultation in the different regions are already being undertaken with the end goal of revising DO 1082,” Fameronag said.
Under the Arroyo presidency, the department issued Order No. 1082 allowing contractualization of jobs, except in the so-called “labor only contracting” category.
Labor groups opposed the contractualization, claiming it equates security of tenure to having a definite contract instead of the regular and permanent status previously enjoyed by workers.
Even the influential Catholic Church objected to the continuing mass termination of workers as more employers nationwide preferred to hire contractual workers to save on operational cost.
For the past years, trade unions have called on the government to seriously look at what they described as violation of trade union and human rights.
Fameronag said Labor Secretary Baldoz hopes to come out with a new policy to address the issue of contractualization.
“DOLE wants a policy that is more relevant, but definitely the new measure would not allow contractualization,” Fameronag disclosed.
Fameronag said the policies would be compliant with the International Labor Organization Conventions on the Freedom of Association and the Right to Collective Bargaining.
With the resumption of the inspections next week, Fameronag said, DOLE would also intensify monitoring of establishments to prevent employers from practicing contractualization.
He said DOLE has expanded the labor inspection program, which now includes occupational health and contractualization practices to ensure workers’ health and rights are properly protected. – Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star), With Pia Lee-Brago
Showing posts with label Jobs Abroad. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Jobs Abroad. Show all posts
Saturday, January 1, 2011
Sunday, November 21, 2010
20,000 Filipino workers eyed for South Korea
September 24, 2009: LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines - Some 20,000 Filipinos are needed to work at the newly established Integrated Free Export Zone (IFEZ) Incheon, South Korea, according to presidential economic adviser and Albay governor Joey Salceda.
Salceda said a memorandum of agreement with the Ifez was being finalized to formally implement the hiring of 20,000 workers from the Philippines, especially from Albay province.
Salceda was recently installed as economic adviser of the South Korea Incheon Metropolitan Authority, which is implementing the US$178-billion Ifez project.
Incheon is a highly industrial metropolitan area in South Korea.
“The export zone is the biggest integrated development project whose cost is 35 times the annual infrastructure budget in the Philippines,” Salceda said.
His investiture as adviser of the South Korean authority was held a week ago at Incheon where the ceremony was witnessed by the mayors of Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Honolulu, Brisbane and Beijing.
Witnesses also included Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim and representatives from 150 major cities in the Asia Pacific.
Salceda was accompanied by four Philippine governors and 14 of the 18 Albay mayors led by Polangui town Mayor Jesus Salceda, the province's League of Municipalities president and father of the governor.
The Philippines sent the biggest delegation, he added.
Salceda said that his economic advice had been frequently sought by Incheon Mayor Sang Soo who, he said, is widely expected to become president of South Korea.
Also in Incheon, the Asia Pacific Cities Summit organizers and participants hailed Albay during its plenary session for having the most unique and creative strategies for development, citing its program on climate change and disaster risk reduction.
The summit moderator specifically highlighted the institutionalization of the Albay Public Safety Emergency Management Office and the Center for Initiatives for Researches in Climate Adaptation. - Rey M. Nasol
Salceda said a memorandum of agreement with the Ifez was being finalized to formally implement the hiring of 20,000 workers from the Philippines, especially from Albay province.
Salceda was recently installed as economic adviser of the South Korea Incheon Metropolitan Authority, which is implementing the US$178-billion Ifez project.
Incheon is a highly industrial metropolitan area in South Korea.
“The export zone is the biggest integrated development project whose cost is 35 times the annual infrastructure budget in the Philippines,” Salceda said.
His investiture as adviser of the South Korean authority was held a week ago at Incheon where the ceremony was witnessed by the mayors of Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Honolulu, Brisbane and Beijing.
Witnesses also included Manila Mayor Alfredo Lim and representatives from 150 major cities in the Asia Pacific.
Salceda was accompanied by four Philippine governors and 14 of the 18 Albay mayors led by Polangui town Mayor Jesus Salceda, the province's League of Municipalities president and father of the governor.
The Philippines sent the biggest delegation, he added.
Salceda said that his economic advice had been frequently sought by Incheon Mayor Sang Soo who, he said, is widely expected to become president of South Korea.
Also in Incheon, the Asia Pacific Cities Summit organizers and participants hailed Albay during its plenary session for having the most unique and creative strategies for development, citing its program on climate change and disaster risk reduction.
The summit moderator specifically highlighted the institutionalization of the Albay Public Safety Emergency Management Office and the Center for Initiatives for Researches in Climate Adaptation. - Rey M. Nasol
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
30,000 jobs await Pinoy workers in Taiwan
May 03, 2010 -- MANILA, Philippines - At least 30,000 jobs still await Filipino workers in Taiwan, local recruiters reported yesterday.
Jackson Gan, Pilipino Manpower Association of Taiwan Inc. (PILMAT) president, said factories in Taiwan are still in dire need of Filipinos and other foreign workers.
“Companies in Taiwan continue to hire workers and we have thousands of job orders that are yet to be filled up until this time,” Gan said.
He said Taiwan has bounced back from last year’s financial crisis and is hiring more workers than in past years.
However, Gan said local recruiters are having difficulty recruiting skilled workers to fill up the vacancies because of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) secretary-general’s warning that the forging of an economic cooperation agreement between Taiwan and China would adversely affect the employment of OFWs.
Gan stressed that NEDA’s fear is baseless since Taiwanese employers still prefer Filipinos compared to other workers from other countries.
He said Taiwan hires an average of 40,000 Filipino workers, including factory workers and caregivers annually.
“Although Taiwan companies hire Vietnamese and Indonesians, OFWs still have the advantage because they can speak the English language unlike other nationalities,” he said.
Gan emphasized that Taiwanese electronics manufacturing companies are not warm to the idea of hiring Chinese mainlanders.
“NEDA is sounding an alarm without basis that could jeopardize the country’s economic stability. Its warning that thousands of OFWs may lose jobs is far-fetched,” he stressed.
While the investment climate in China is now more liberal, Gan said there is little indication that the electronic manufacturing sector will transfer to China due to national security concerns.
He said the electronics sector is not among the 99 industries and business lines that Taiwan would like to liberalize. - Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)
Jackson Gan, Pilipino Manpower Association of Taiwan Inc. (PILMAT) president, said factories in Taiwan are still in dire need of Filipinos and other foreign workers.
“Companies in Taiwan continue to hire workers and we have thousands of job orders that are yet to be filled up until this time,” Gan said.
He said Taiwan has bounced back from last year’s financial crisis and is hiring more workers than in past years.
However, Gan said local recruiters are having difficulty recruiting skilled workers to fill up the vacancies because of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) secretary-general’s warning that the forging of an economic cooperation agreement between Taiwan and China would adversely affect the employment of OFWs.
Gan stressed that NEDA’s fear is baseless since Taiwanese employers still prefer Filipinos compared to other workers from other countries.
He said Taiwan hires an average of 40,000 Filipino workers, including factory workers and caregivers annually.
“Although Taiwan companies hire Vietnamese and Indonesians, OFWs still have the advantage because they can speak the English language unlike other nationalities,” he said.
Gan emphasized that Taiwanese electronics manufacturing companies are not warm to the idea of hiring Chinese mainlanders.
“NEDA is sounding an alarm without basis that could jeopardize the country’s economic stability. Its warning that thousands of OFWs may lose jobs is far-fetched,” he stressed.
While the investment climate in China is now more liberal, Gan said there is little indication that the electronic manufacturing sector will transfer to China due to national security concerns.
He said the electronics sector is not among the 99 industries and business lines that Taiwan would like to liberalize. - Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)
Sunday, November 14, 2010
Taiwanese employers threaten to stop hiring OFWs
MANILA, Philippines – Taiwanese employers are threatening to stop hiring Filipino workers next year to protest the Philippine government’s mandatory insurance regulation.
Jackson Gan, Pilipino Manpower Agencies Accredited to Taiwan (PILMAT) president, said employers from Taiwan have expressed their intention to cancel 50,000 job orders for Filipino workers in 2011.
“Taiwan principals have sent a letter of their opposition to the mandatory insurance coverage with the warning that if our government will insist on implementing the double coverage for Filipino workers to be deployed to Taiwan they will cancel all the 50,000 job orders for 2011 and just get workers from Indonesia or Vietnam,” Gan said.
He said every contract worker in Taiwan is covered by two types of insurance, one for personal and the other is group insurance. Each overseas Filipino worker (OFW) is given a personal insurance coverage worth NT$800,000 equivalent to more than P1.2 million, and at the worksite a group insurance covers all workers at the factory.
“This is definitely more superior to the insurance coverage under the law which only provides $15,000 for accidental death and $10,000 for natural death,” he said.
There are about 100,000 OFWs employed in Taiwan, most of them employed as factory workers or caregivers.
Earlier, employers and Filipino workers in Hong Kong also expressed their opposition to the mandatory insurance coverage, which the Philippine government started implementing last week.
But Philippine labor officials said they are obliged to enforce the requirement since is it provided under the newly amended Migrant Workers Act.
Labor officials further stressed that the mandatory insurance coverage would provide additional protection for OFWs. - Mayen Jaymalin, The Philippine Star, November 14, 2010
Saturday, September 25, 2010
20,000 workers needed yearly in Manitoba by 2016 -- labor chief
MANILA, Philippines—In need of workers from plumbers to carpenters to engineers, the provincial government of Manitoba, Canada on Tuesday morning signed an agreement with the labor department to deploy overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in the province.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger signed the agreement at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel which provides a framework of partnership in the recruitment of skilled OFWs to Manitoba, as well as in their protection and their skills development.
"For us, it's an equal partnership. Nobody's better than the other," Selinger said.
Due to its low birth rate and aging population, Manitoba will need around 20,000 new workers annually by 2016, according to Baldoz.
"In the next thee years, the number of retirements is expected to increase by 30 percent and the need for more workers, including the transfer of work-based knowledge, will be very critical to Manitoba's labor force stability," Baldoz said.
"Also, I understand that Manitoba has low birth and unemployment rates and the province looks at annual immigration targets (of) around 20,000 by 2016 to shore up its manpower banks. Current arrivals number only a little half of the yearly target," she added.
Baldoz said that, of the 613,593 Filipinos in Canada as of 2008, around 50,000 to 60,000 were in Manitoba.
"As Secretary Baldoz said, many of our existing labor forces are five to 10 years away from retirement. (This is) the baby boomer generation. (So) this opens up opportunities all across the board—in the trades like carpentry, plumbing, electricians," Selinger said.
"This also opens up opportunities in the professions—engineers, accountants, medical professionals, nurses and doctors. We believe we'll have opportunities all across the labor spectrum in Manitoba," he added.
Selinger said skilled OFWs in Manitoba could opt for Candian citizenship six months after their arrival there. - Philip Tubeza, Philippine Daily Inquirer, September 21, 2010
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and Manitoba Premier Greg Selinger signed the agreement at the Makati Shangri-La Hotel which provides a framework of partnership in the recruitment of skilled OFWs to Manitoba, as well as in their protection and their skills development.
"For us, it's an equal partnership. Nobody's better than the other," Selinger said.
Due to its low birth rate and aging population, Manitoba will need around 20,000 new workers annually by 2016, according to Baldoz.
"In the next thee years, the number of retirements is expected to increase by 30 percent and the need for more workers, including the transfer of work-based knowledge, will be very critical to Manitoba's labor force stability," Baldoz said.
"Also, I understand that Manitoba has low birth and unemployment rates and the province looks at annual immigration targets (of) around 20,000 by 2016 to shore up its manpower banks. Current arrivals number only a little half of the yearly target," she added.
Baldoz said that, of the 613,593 Filipinos in Canada as of 2008, around 50,000 to 60,000 were in Manitoba.
"As Secretary Baldoz said, many of our existing labor forces are five to 10 years away from retirement. (This is) the baby boomer generation. (So) this opens up opportunities all across the board—in the trades like carpentry, plumbing, electricians," Selinger said.
"This also opens up opportunities in the professions—engineers, accountants, medical professionals, nurses and doctors. We believe we'll have opportunities all across the labor spectrum in Manitoba," he added.
Selinger said skilled OFWs in Manitoba could opt for Candian citizenship six months after their arrival there. - Philip Tubeza, Philippine Daily Inquirer, September 21, 2010
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Manpower pool, website set up for Guam jobs
MANILA, Philippines—To prepare for the expected 15,000 jobs that would soon be available in Guam, Filipino recruiters have started “manpower pooling” and have put up a website for job applicants.
Licensed recruitment agencies have set up Work Abroad (Philippines), an online overseas job portal for Filipinos, as preparations begin for the construction of a major US military base on the Pacific island, according to recruitment industry consultant Emmanuel Geslani.
“Hundreds of positions from professionals like mechanical and electrical engineers, skilled positions from heavy duty and auto mechanics to plumbers, carpenters, electricians and many more can be sourced through Work Abroad,” Geslani said in a statement.
“It is also a Philippine manpower pooling site for the top domestic recruitment agencies accredited by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). We are doing this because there are many illegal recruiters offering jobs for Guam,” he said.
Geslani said “manpower pooling” simply means compiling the resumés of workers for particular job openings in Guam that are accepted online for future job orders expected to be approved by early 2011.
He said the Guam-bound workers would not have to pay placement fees to their recruiters because both the POEA and the US government have banned the collection of such fees for temporary workers going to the island.
By Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: August 24, 2010
Licensed recruitment agencies have set up Work Abroad (Philippines), an online overseas job portal for Filipinos, as preparations begin for the construction of a major US military base on the Pacific island, according to recruitment industry consultant Emmanuel Geslani.
“Hundreds of positions from professionals like mechanical and electrical engineers, skilled positions from heavy duty and auto mechanics to plumbers, carpenters, electricians and many more can be sourced through Work Abroad,” Geslani said in a statement.
“It is also a Philippine manpower pooling site for the top domestic recruitment agencies accredited by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA). We are doing this because there are many illegal recruiters offering jobs for Guam,” he said.
Geslani said “manpower pooling” simply means compiling the resumés of workers for particular job openings in Guam that are accepted online for future job orders expected to be approved by early 2011.
He said the Guam-bound workers would not have to pay placement fees to their recruiters because both the POEA and the US government have banned the collection of such fees for temporary workers going to the island.
By Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: August 24, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
No OFW deployment to Guam in 2010—recruiter
MANILA, Philippines—The anticipated deployment of about 20,000 Filipino construction workers to Guam is unlikely this year, a recruitment consultant said Sunday.
Emmanuel Geslani said Japan’s review of the plan to relocate the United States military base from Okinawa to Guam will delay the planned OFW deployment to next year at the earliest.
“Until US President Barrack Obama and Japan’s Prime Minister agree on the Futenma issue all bets are off on Guam at the moment,” he said in a news release.
In the 2006 realignment pact, Washington and Tokyo agreed to move the Futenma Marina Corps Air Station from downtown Futenma in Okinawa to an airfield to be built at Camp Schwab, a more rural part of the island. Once that airfield is built, Futenma would be closed and 8,600 of the 17,000 US Marines stationed on Okinawa would be moved to Guam by 2014, with Japan shouldering more than $6 billion of the estimated $10 billion expense for building accommodations for the US troops.
Geslani said this US-Japan agreement has been the basis of the meetings between the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration and Guam legislators and businessmen over the past three years for the hiring of OFWs.
Recruitment agencies have been pooling manpower for the anticipated variety of construction activities that the Guam move of 35,000 Marines and their dependents would entail. New headquarters, new runways, barracks, hospitals, and housing for dependents were in the drawing board.
However, in late 2009, newly elected Japanese Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama stopped the plan, called for a review of the 2006 pact, and assembled a committee to look at all possible alternative locations for Futenma’s operations.
In reaction, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said any changes to the 2006 agreement were unacceptable. Even US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said in a January speech in Hawaii, “We look to our Japanese allies and friends to follow through on their commitments, including on Futenma.”
“Our OFWs are raring to work in Guam because of the higher wages and benefits that US and Japanese contractors provide. However, they may have to wait until next year after this yawning rift between Tokyo and Washington is patched up,” Geslani said. - INQUIRER.net, March 07, 2010
Sunday, December 6, 2009
Skippers may have to stop recruiting Filipino crew
TWO-THIRDS OF WEST COAST FISHING BOATS FACED HARDSHIP AFTER LAST CRACKDOWN
Fresh fears have emerged that Scottish fishing skippers are to be forced to stop recruiting crew from the Philippines.
Emergency measures agreed by the Home Office in July allowed breathing space for Scotland’s fishing fleet amid a crisis which had threatened to leave it with severe crew shortages.
Two-thirds of fishing boats on Scotland’s west coast faced hardship after the UK Border Agency (UKBA) ordered all Filipino crew on inshore vessels to go home.
But the emergency measures and further steps taken by the industry in September, when fishing leaders secured an agreement on visas for Filipino crewmen, allowed recruitment from the south-east Asian country to continue.
Now, it is feared the situation could be about to change – leaving skippers at risk of losing existing crew members as well as an important source of industry-ready workers.
According to Mallaig and North West Fishermen’s Association secretary John Hermse, there are about 900 Filipinos currently working on Scottish boats.
Mr Hermse said they were making a huge contribution to the industry, bringing skills which were difficult to find in Scotland.
He highlighted the recent case of a west coast skipper who advertised locally for crewmen, only to be let down badly by all three people who took up jobs.
Two of the recruits lasted just a few days and the third just wanted the work to satisfy benefit requirements, said Mr Hermse, adding that none of the trio were suited for work at sea.
Mr Hermse said: “If recruitment from the Philippines is stopped, then a lot of boats will not have enough crew to go to sea.
“They will find it extremely difficult to attract and retain other workers.”
The latest fears are based on reports from recruitment agents in the Philippines who have allegedly been told that a UKBA crackdown is on its way.
But the UKBA insisted talks aimed at resolving the matter were still ongoing.
Jonathan Sedgwick, the agency’s chief executive, said: “We have been holding discussions with those involved in the fishing industry and devolved governments about how the health, safety and welfare of foreign nationals working in the fishing fleet can be protected and how we can ensure that they are not being exploited.”
“The viability of the UK’s fishing fleet cannot be delivered on the back of exploitation.”
Mr Sedgwick said it was “inappropriate to import unskilled labour”, especially while restrictions remained on some EU nationals.
He added: “The agency will enforce our laws and ensure that those who are in the UK illegally, leave.
“This tough action works alongside the points-based immigration system to safeguard the interests of local workers.”
Western Isles SNP MP Angus MacNeil urged the UK Government to put any planned changes on hold until the results of a submission to the migration advisory committee – making the case for fishing crewmen to be added to the Scottish shortage occupation list – are known. - KEITH FINDLAY, The Press and Journal, 18/11/2009
Fresh fears have emerged that Scottish fishing skippers are to be forced to stop recruiting crew from the Philippines.
Emergency measures agreed by the Home Office in July allowed breathing space for Scotland’s fishing fleet amid a crisis which had threatened to leave it with severe crew shortages.
Two-thirds of fishing boats on Scotland’s west coast faced hardship after the UK Border Agency (UKBA) ordered all Filipino crew on inshore vessels to go home.
But the emergency measures and further steps taken by the industry in September, when fishing leaders secured an agreement on visas for Filipino crewmen, allowed recruitment from the south-east Asian country to continue.
Now, it is feared the situation could be about to change – leaving skippers at risk of losing existing crew members as well as an important source of industry-ready workers.
According to Mallaig and North West Fishermen’s Association secretary John Hermse, there are about 900 Filipinos currently working on Scottish boats.
Mr Hermse said they were making a huge contribution to the industry, bringing skills which were difficult to find in Scotland.
He highlighted the recent case of a west coast skipper who advertised locally for crewmen, only to be let down badly by all three people who took up jobs.
Two of the recruits lasted just a few days and the third just wanted the work to satisfy benefit requirements, said Mr Hermse, adding that none of the trio were suited for work at sea.
Mr Hermse said: “If recruitment from the Philippines is stopped, then a lot of boats will not have enough crew to go to sea.
“They will find it extremely difficult to attract and retain other workers.”
The latest fears are based on reports from recruitment agents in the Philippines who have allegedly been told that a UKBA crackdown is on its way.
But the UKBA insisted talks aimed at resolving the matter were still ongoing.
Jonathan Sedgwick, the agency’s chief executive, said: “We have been holding discussions with those involved in the fishing industry and devolved governments about how the health, safety and welfare of foreign nationals working in the fishing fleet can be protected and how we can ensure that they are not being exploited.”
“The viability of the UK’s fishing fleet cannot be delivered on the back of exploitation.”
Mr Sedgwick said it was “inappropriate to import unskilled labour”, especially while restrictions remained on some EU nationals.
He added: “The agency will enforce our laws and ensure that those who are in the UK illegally, leave.
“This tough action works alongside the points-based immigration system to safeguard the interests of local workers.”
Western Isles SNP MP Angus MacNeil urged the UK Government to put any planned changes on hold until the results of a submission to the migration advisory committee – making the case for fishing crewmen to be added to the Scottish shortage occupation list – are known. - KEITH FINDLAY, The Press and Journal, 18/11/2009
Saturday, December 5, 2009
More Filipino 'au pairs' going to Europe
OSLO - Filipino au pairs from Denmark and Norway are set to arrive here in Oslo this week for a conference to discuss their situation and come up with recommendations for problems they confront as au pairs.
More and more Filipinas are coming to Scandinavia and Europe to work as au pairs, a cultural exchange arrangement that allows cultural visits of young people from all over the world in host families in exchange for light work such as babysitting and some housework.
In Norway, the number of au pairs that have entered the country has jumped from 78 in 2000 to 2,090 in 2008 according to reports from the Norwegian Immigration Department (UDI). This means that 7 out of 10 au pair permits issued by the department are given to Filipinos despite the ban on au pair deployment by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) since 1997.
In her 2009 FAFO research study, "On Equal terms? An evaluation of the Norwegian au pair scheme", Cecile Oeien attributed the high demand for Filipino au pairs in Norway to the global reputation of Filipinos as professional, hardworking houseworkers.
Exploitative?
However, the au pair arrangement has been widely criticized in Norwegian media as exploitative of young people who are being made to work as underpaid and overworked househelps in Norwegian households. Au pairs in Norway generally receive up to 4000 kroners a month (about P32,000) in allowance instead of a salary. The host usually shoulders travel and lodging costs, and language course tuition.
In another study, "Global workers in the Norwegian Welfare State", Ragnhild Sollund of the Norwegian Social Science Center (NOVA) found that Filipino au pairs in the country are generally contented with their situation but the arrangement, as it exists today, leaves room for exploitation and compares the au pair's situation to that of a "lottery" where one can either end up either with a good or bad employer.
This situation, Sollund says, is due to the unclear rules in the au pair scheme in Norway that does not allow compensation for more work done over that is stipulated in the scheme. The UDI rules specify that the au pair should only do light work, babysitting and care of animals but cannot perform work of a househelp or a full-time nanny. The distinction lies in the number of hours worked and not of the type of work performed.
Au pair protection
The FAFO study also shared Sollund's findings and recommended that the present structural framework of the au pair arrangement be redefined to reflect the changes in the actual work performed by the au pair, their relations to their employers in order to prevent possible exploitation. It also called for an establishment of an independent organization to protect the au pairs from exploitation by providing help to navigate the Norwegian bureaucracy, information on au pair regulations and the different public services that can be availed of.
Filipino au pairs who have encountered problems with their employers have often turned to social networks such as the church, Filipino organizations and even families and friends to seek help. There is, however, a growing need for a support mechanism for the au pairs such that initiatives to bring them together culminated in the holding of a conference.
The conference to be held on November 20, dubbed "Daughters of Globalization: A Conference about Filipino Au pairs in Denmark and Norway", is being organized by the Babaylan-Denmark, the Philippine Women's Network in Europe in cooperation with local Filipino organizations in Norway. - Macel Ingles, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau | 11/18/2009 12:14 PM
Monday, November 23, 2009
RP to lift ban on au pair deployment to Norway
NORWAY - The Philippine and Norwegian governments will forge a bilateral agreement soon to lift the ban on au pair deployment to Norway.
This was announced by Philippine ambassador to Oslo, Elizabeth Buensuceso, at an au pair conference dubbed, "Daughter of Globalization: An au pair conference", held in this city.
She said the move was long expected after a series of negotiations and consultations among relevant Norwegian authorities, the Philippine embassy, and the Filipino community.
"We have gotten very positive responses from the Norwegian government and on the part of the Philippine government. We are certain that we can already give the recommendation to lift the ban," Buensuceso said.
She also announced that the implementing guidelines for this are already being drafted and the Philippine government will be submitting its own suggestions to reflect the changes it wants to be included.
The lifting of the ban however will only cover au pairs traveling to Norway and not to other European countries like Denmark, although negotiations with the Danish government are also underway.
Buensuceso explained: "The reason we chose to do it in Norway is because we are convinced that they have the capacity to police their ranks. Also, because Norway has opened itself to us and sat down with us to discuss the solutions to the problem."
Babaylan Denmark founder Filomenita Hoegsholm welcomed the move to lift the ban, but he said the bilateral agreement must ensure that Nordic countries police themselves since "there is so much to be done in terms of policing among the host families, and the au pair agencies who speculate on the families and earn double fees from the host families and the au pairs."
The Philippine government has banned the deployment of female migrant workers under the au pair program since 1998 due to reports of abuse, discrimination and prostitution of Filipino women.
But despite the ban, a dramatic rise in the number of Filipino au pairs in Nordic countries like Norway and Denmark has been recorded.
In Norway, the number of Filipino au pairs grew to 2,060 in 2008 from only 78 in 2000. Similarly, Filipino au pairs in Denmark rose to 2,163 last year from only 21 in 1999.
New agreement, new opportunities
In her study, FAFO Researcher Cecile Oeien Oeien discussed how the deployment of au pairs became an explosive political issue in Norway.
She said that while a global migrant scheme for au pairs is favorable, "this is not politically viable in an environment where the ruling Arbeiderpartiet (Labor party) do not want migration of low skilled labor to Norway."
She said that new guidelines for au pair deployment should have increased focus on cultural exchange that would allow au pairs to enjoy less hours of work, opportunity to study, mandatory language courses paid for by host families, and the right to holiday pay and free board and lodging.
Asked about what they think the new au pair scheme should provide, Filipina au pairs in Norway cited the same things.
"There should be opportunity to study, join organizations, learn Norsk (Norwegian language)...you should have a chance to study here longer and find a job," said Herma Rodriguez, who came to Norway four months ago to work as an au pair after working in Denmark.
For her part, Sandra Bunda, who flew to Norway two months ago, would like to have a longer contract period.
"Sa akin lang, ang dapat baguhin sana ay kontrata. Dapat maging matagal 'di gaya ng ganito na palipat-lipat tayo. Katatapos mo lang sa isang bansa, lipat ka na naman sa ibang bansa (For me, what they should change is our contract period. It should be longer so we won't have to hop from one country to another all the time)," she said.
Norway only allows au pairs to work for two years, forcing some Filipino au pairs to seek employment in Denmark after their stint in the country or to apply as caregivers in Canada.- By Macel Ingles, ABS-CBN Europe News Bureau | 11/23/2009 12:03 PM
Sunday, September 20, 2009
Hiring of OFWs to UK slows down -- expert
Due to migration from EU countries
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: June 26, 2007
MANILA, Philippines -- The hiring of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to the United Kingdom has slowed down due to the increase of migrants from new member-countries of the European Union, a recruitment expert said Monday.
However, Emmanuel Geslani, a consultant to various recruitment agencies and organizations, said Filipinos, particularly nurses and caregivers, are still preferred by UK employers.
“The employment outlook for Filipino health care workers in the United Kingdom still remains upbeat despite the slow issuance of work permit visas these past months,” Geslani said.
Citing records of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, he said OFW deployment to the UK went down by eight percent from 18,347 in 2004 to 16,799 in 2005.
From 8,000 nurses and “senior carers” (usually midwives and nurses who have not yet taken or passed the board) deployed in 2004, he said, the deployment dropped to 6,000 in 2005 and 4,000 in 2006.
Mark Date, entry clearance manager of the UK embassy in Manila, confirmed both of Geslani’s observations.
Date said with the expansion of the European Economic Area to include Estonia, Latvia, and other developing east European countries, more qualified workers from these countries are entering the UK.
He said this effectively reduces the hiring of workers from non-EU countries, including the Philippines. “This affects all the nationals of non-EU countries, not just the Philippines,” he pointed out.
The UK official also confirmed the preference for Filipino workers, noting this is manifest in the UK’s recognition of the Philippine government’s nurse’s license.
At the same time, Date said a new point-based system (PBS) on immigration, similar to the one used in Australia and Canada, will start to be implemented starting early 2008. He said it is part of the overhaul of UK’s immigration policy “to service the needs of the British public.”
Date clarified, however, that the PBS does not include quotas for the hiring of working. “There is nothing currently with regards to quotas (in PBS),” he said, adding that quotas are only for those in the hospitality industry.
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: June 26, 2007
MANILA, Philippines -- The hiring of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to the United Kingdom has slowed down due to the increase of migrants from new member-countries of the European Union, a recruitment expert said Monday.
However, Emmanuel Geslani, a consultant to various recruitment agencies and organizations, said Filipinos, particularly nurses and caregivers, are still preferred by UK employers.
“The employment outlook for Filipino health care workers in the United Kingdom still remains upbeat despite the slow issuance of work permit visas these past months,” Geslani said.
Citing records of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, he said OFW deployment to the UK went down by eight percent from 18,347 in 2004 to 16,799 in 2005.
From 8,000 nurses and “senior carers” (usually midwives and nurses who have not yet taken or passed the board) deployed in 2004, he said, the deployment dropped to 6,000 in 2005 and 4,000 in 2006.
Mark Date, entry clearance manager of the UK embassy in Manila, confirmed both of Geslani’s observations.
Date said with the expansion of the European Economic Area to include Estonia, Latvia, and other developing east European countries, more qualified workers from these countries are entering the UK.
He said this effectively reduces the hiring of workers from non-EU countries, including the Philippines. “This affects all the nationals of non-EU countries, not just the Philippines,” he pointed out.
The UK official also confirmed the preference for Filipino workers, noting this is manifest in the UK’s recognition of the Philippine government’s nurse’s license.
At the same time, Date said a new point-based system (PBS) on immigration, similar to the one used in Australia and Canada, will start to be implemented starting early 2008. He said it is part of the overhaul of UK’s immigration policy “to service the needs of the British public.”
Date clarified, however, that the PBS does not include quotas for the hiring of working. “There is nothing currently with regards to quotas (in PBS),” he said, adding that quotas are only for those in the hospitality industry.
More Filipino teachers off to jobs abroad
By Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: June 26, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—The exodus of Filipino teachers to other countries is expected to continue in the coming years, according to a labor group.
The Public Services Labor Independent Confederation (PSLINK) said on Wednesday two places were the likely magnets for Filipino teachers—the United States, which would need two million teachers in the coming decade, and Arab countries, which would need at least 450,000 teachers.
The group said teacher shortages, growing populations, and expanding educational systems in many other countries coupled with the dismal work conditions and salaries at home could push local teachers to go abroad.
“Demand for teachers across the United States continues to remain high even if the North American country’s economy is in a deep recession,” said Annie Enriquez-Geron, PSLINK general secretary.
“There are estimates that the United States will need to employ an additional two million teachers in the coming decade to maintain its current educational standards and closer to three million if it strives to improve them in order to stay globally competitive," she added.
Geron said more than 10,000 foreign teachers are recruited by the United States every year to fill its demand.
“There is also very high demand for new science and math teachers in the US with estimates by the Business-Higher Education Forum in Washington putting the figure at 200,000 at the least," she added.
In the last 10 years, around 4,000 Filipino teachers—mostly math, science, English, and special education teachers—left the country. This figure included only new hires for teaching jobs and did not include those who left the country for work other than teaching, the paper said.
The top destinations were the United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, the paper added.
According to a UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (Unesco) study, Geron said, the Arab states will face “the greatest teacher shortage in the drive to provide every child with a primary education by 2015 as the region will need to raise the current stock by 26 percent and create another 450,000 teaching posts in less than a decade.”
“As more developed countries face a graying workforce, they are increasingly resorting to the recruitment of skilled teachers from less developed countries. This phenomenon had already been foreseen by (European) countries since the ’90s, warning that aging teaching forces may eventually lead to shortages,” Geron said.
“For instance, more than 60 percent of all primary teachers are over 40 years of age in Canada, Italy, and the Netherlands; and more than 40 percent are over 50 years old in Germany and Sweden,” she said.
Geron said another factor contributing to teacher shortages in more developed countries was the declining interest of their nationals in entering the teaching profession.
According to a survey conducted by the temporary staffing agency Manpower Inc., teaching is the second hardest job to fill in the US. Many of their nationals, the study said, would rather pursue other more financially rewarding careers than become a teacher. Low salary and unattractive working conditions were often cited as reasons not to enter the teaching profession, Geron said. (But for a teacher from a developing nation, salaries would still be significantly more than what they earn at home.)
“Unfortunately, instead of addressing employment conditions of the teaching sector, governments of more developed countries are finding it more convenient and economical to recruit migrant workers, many of whom are offered lower pay and contractual jobs that deprived them of their due benefits,” she added.
Geron said the dependence on migrant skilled teachers in developed countries was leading to aggressive recruitment strategies by their governments, recruitment agencies, and the private schools themselves.
“There have even been governments which have created special agencies just to recruit teachers from other countries. Private teacher recruitment agencies in the United Kingdom have mushroomed to more than 100 while there are more or less 70 in the United States,” she added.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: June 26, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—The exodus of Filipino teachers to other countries is expected to continue in the coming years, according to a labor group.
The Public Services Labor Independent Confederation (PSLINK) said on Wednesday two places were the likely magnets for Filipino teachers—the United States, which would need two million teachers in the coming decade, and Arab countries, which would need at least 450,000 teachers.
The group said teacher shortages, growing populations, and expanding educational systems in many other countries coupled with the dismal work conditions and salaries at home could push local teachers to go abroad.
“Demand for teachers across the United States continues to remain high even if the North American country’s economy is in a deep recession,” said Annie Enriquez-Geron, PSLINK general secretary.
“There are estimates that the United States will need to employ an additional two million teachers in the coming decade to maintain its current educational standards and closer to three million if it strives to improve them in order to stay globally competitive," she added.
Geron said more than 10,000 foreign teachers are recruited by the United States every year to fill its demand.
“There is also very high demand for new science and math teachers in the US with estimates by the Business-Higher Education Forum in Washington putting the figure at 200,000 at the least," she added.
In the last 10 years, around 4,000 Filipino teachers—mostly math, science, English, and special education teachers—left the country. This figure included only new hires for teaching jobs and did not include those who left the country for work other than teaching, the paper said.
The top destinations were the United States, Saudi Arabia, Japan, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, the paper added.
According to a UN Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (Unesco) study, Geron said, the Arab states will face “the greatest teacher shortage in the drive to provide every child with a primary education by 2015 as the region will need to raise the current stock by 26 percent and create another 450,000 teaching posts in less than a decade.”
“As more developed countries face a graying workforce, they are increasingly resorting to the recruitment of skilled teachers from less developed countries. This phenomenon had already been foreseen by (European) countries since the ’90s, warning that aging teaching forces may eventually lead to shortages,” Geron said.
“For instance, more than 60 percent of all primary teachers are over 40 years of age in Canada, Italy, and the Netherlands; and more than 40 percent are over 50 years old in Germany and Sweden,” she said.
Geron said another factor contributing to teacher shortages in more developed countries was the declining interest of their nationals in entering the teaching profession.
According to a survey conducted by the temporary staffing agency Manpower Inc., teaching is the second hardest job to fill in the US. Many of their nationals, the study said, would rather pursue other more financially rewarding careers than become a teacher. Low salary and unattractive working conditions were often cited as reasons not to enter the teaching profession, Geron said. (But for a teacher from a developing nation, salaries would still be significantly more than what they earn at home.)
“Unfortunately, instead of addressing employment conditions of the teaching sector, governments of more developed countries are finding it more convenient and economical to recruit migrant workers, many of whom are offered lower pay and contractual jobs that deprived them of their due benefits,” she added.
Geron said the dependence on migrant skilled teachers in developed countries was leading to aggressive recruitment strategies by their governments, recruitment agencies, and the private schools themselves.
“There have even been governments which have created special agencies just to recruit teachers from other countries. Private teacher recruitment agencies in the United Kingdom have mushroomed to more than 100 while there are more or less 70 in the United States,” she added.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Better jobs for Filipinos in Taiwan seen
WITH TOURISM BOOM
By Jocelyn Uy
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: September 06, 2009
TAIPEI—With the thawing of once icy relations between China and Taiwan, new opportunities might just open up for Filipinos who want to work overseas but are not happy with just scrubbing floors and toiling in sweatshops.
For over a year now, this island-nation of 23 million has drawn countless visitors from mainland China through direct tourist flights, blurring hostile lines that once divided the two.
Taiwan has started building new hotels and improving other lodgings as the number of regular flights from the mainland reached an average of 20 per week, said Antonio Basilio, managing director and resident representative of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco) here.
“This means a lot of opportunities for Filipino workers,” Basilio told reporters during a visit to his office on Tuesday.
Of the roughly 80,000 Filipino workers in Taiwan, about 53,000 or 67 percent have landed jobs in electronic or manufacturing factories, he said. The rest work either as domestic help or caregivers.
Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) pegged the number of overseas Filipino workers here at 68,000, with 21,000 employed as caregivers and 47,000 in factories.
Early last year, Taiwan took a bold step towards warmer relations with China, which regards the island as part of its territory, by opening air traffic to the mainland. Travel routes between the two countries had been halted after the outbreak of a civil war in 1949.
English required
With Taiwan opening its doors to its big next-door neighbor, Basilio said Taiwan would have to be more “international” in its outlook, hence, “English is a number one requirement.”
He said Filipino workers would find it easy to land jobs in the flourishing tourism industry here because they speak English better than their Asian counterparts. “Besides, the Philippines is very near Taiwan,” Basilio added.
Taiwan officials said there was a need for the country to push for more development projects to accommodate the surging number of visitors now pegged at about three million yearly.
Infrastructure important
“Infrastructure is very important, and this includes the transportation system, hotels and resorts, for which we will spend a lot of effort,” said Chung-Hwa Tuo, commissioner of the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism, in an interview.
Dr. Pan Shih-Wei, CLA political deputy minister, predicted that roughly 200,000 jobs can be created in Taiwan if trade agreements the country was trying to seal with China would push through.
Most of these jobs would come from the manufacturing and tourism industries, he added. Whether this would immediately benefit Filipino workers would have to depend on labor policies between the Philippines and Taiwan, he said.
“When the Taiwanese economy grows, we will benefit because we supply the workers and some electronic goods also,” Basilio pointed out. Meco, he said, was also looking for jobs for Filipino engineers, scientists and teachers.
The Philippines continues to be Taiwan’s top source of electronic workers, despite the recent global financial crunch that forced major companies to lay off at least 5,000 Filipino workers from August 2009 up to March this year.
Taiwan, however, has started receiving additional electronic product demands from the mainland with improved relations between the two, said Meco Labor Affairs Director Rodolfo Sabulao. “And the companies have started requesting more Filipino workers from us,” he added.
Priority rehiring
Sabulao said Meco was also making arrangements with these companies to make sure that recently repatriated Filipino employees were on the priority list for rehiring.
He said that Meco and the CLA were also working together to implement a direct-hiring policy among employers in the country so OFWs would not have to pay exorbitant placement fees to domestic and foreign brokers.
This year, the CLA expanded the program to cover all kinds of workers and new hires.
By Jocelyn Uy
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: September 06, 2009
TAIPEI—With the thawing of once icy relations between China and Taiwan, new opportunities might just open up for Filipinos who want to work overseas but are not happy with just scrubbing floors and toiling in sweatshops.
For over a year now, this island-nation of 23 million has drawn countless visitors from mainland China through direct tourist flights, blurring hostile lines that once divided the two.
Taiwan has started building new hotels and improving other lodgings as the number of regular flights from the mainland reached an average of 20 per week, said Antonio Basilio, managing director and resident representative of the Manila Economic and Cultural Office (Meco) here.
“This means a lot of opportunities for Filipino workers,” Basilio told reporters during a visit to his office on Tuesday.
Of the roughly 80,000 Filipino workers in Taiwan, about 53,000 or 67 percent have landed jobs in electronic or manufacturing factories, he said. The rest work either as domestic help or caregivers.
Taiwan’s Council of Labor Affairs (CLA) pegged the number of overseas Filipino workers here at 68,000, with 21,000 employed as caregivers and 47,000 in factories.
Early last year, Taiwan took a bold step towards warmer relations with China, which regards the island as part of its territory, by opening air traffic to the mainland. Travel routes between the two countries had been halted after the outbreak of a civil war in 1949.
English required
With Taiwan opening its doors to its big next-door neighbor, Basilio said Taiwan would have to be more “international” in its outlook, hence, “English is a number one requirement.”
He said Filipino workers would find it easy to land jobs in the flourishing tourism industry here because they speak English better than their Asian counterparts. “Besides, the Philippines is very near Taiwan,” Basilio added.
Taiwan officials said there was a need for the country to push for more development projects to accommodate the surging number of visitors now pegged at about three million yearly.
Infrastructure important
“Infrastructure is very important, and this includes the transportation system, hotels and resorts, for which we will spend a lot of effort,” said Chung-Hwa Tuo, commissioner of the Taipei Department of Information and Tourism, in an interview.
Dr. Pan Shih-Wei, CLA political deputy minister, predicted that roughly 200,000 jobs can be created in Taiwan if trade agreements the country was trying to seal with China would push through.
Most of these jobs would come from the manufacturing and tourism industries, he added. Whether this would immediately benefit Filipino workers would have to depend on labor policies between the Philippines and Taiwan, he said.
“When the Taiwanese economy grows, we will benefit because we supply the workers and some electronic goods also,” Basilio pointed out. Meco, he said, was also looking for jobs for Filipino engineers, scientists and teachers.
The Philippines continues to be Taiwan’s top source of electronic workers, despite the recent global financial crunch that forced major companies to lay off at least 5,000 Filipino workers from August 2009 up to March this year.
Taiwan, however, has started receiving additional electronic product demands from the mainland with improved relations between the two, said Meco Labor Affairs Director Rodolfo Sabulao. “And the companies have started requesting more Filipino workers from us,” he added.
Priority rehiring
Sabulao said Meco was also making arrangements with these companies to make sure that recently repatriated Filipino employees were on the priority list for rehiring.
He said that Meco and the CLA were also working together to implement a direct-hiring policy among employers in the country so OFWs would not have to pay exorbitant placement fees to domestic and foreign brokers.
This year, the CLA expanded the program to cover all kinds of workers and new hires.
Saturday, July 18, 2009
MOU with RP seen as 300,000 new jobs open in South Australia
By Tarra Quismundo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:51:00 07/11/2008
MANILA -- The Philippines and the state of South Australiahave started talks to forge a pact aiming to provide a “structured and well-crafted arrangement” for the employment and immigration of Filipinos in the region's bustling industries, a state official said Friday.
Kevin Foley, South Australia Deputy Premier and Trade Minister, said that his state and the Philippines' Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) have agreed to forge a memorandum of understanding (MOU) within 12 months to strengthen ties between the country and one of Australia's most robust trade hubs.
“I had a discussion with Secretary of Labor (Marianito Roque) and we're considering an MOU between the state of South Australia and the government of the Philippines where we would put a structure, a well-crafted arrangement for Filipinos who wish to seek a career in South Australia where there's a growing, dynamic economy,” said Foley, who is on a trade mission in the country.
The official said South Australian officials see “whether Australia's strict immigration requirements can be met through cooperative arrangements around appropriate skills training and mutual recognition of accreditation.”
The prospect of high-level cooperation between Manila and Adelaide may well come at a good time as South Australia would need manpower to fill some 300,000 new jobs expected to be created by the state's bustling mining industry in the coming decade, said Foley.
Some 28 new mining companies, currently at the stage of exploration there, are expected to open in the next 10 years, said Foley, as the state continues to experiene a mining boom.
“Australia will need 300,000 more [people] to provide support for our mining sector. We don't have the potential to fill all those jobs out of Australians, we have to, as we've always done throughout the history of our nation, embrace the world,” said Foley following a luncheon meeting with Philippine business leaders in Makati City Friday.
The Australian Embassy said the Philippines represents South Australia's “six largest source” of imported workers, “many of whom are helping to ease demand for trade skills at a time South Australia is experiencing historic low levels of unemployment.”
A Filipino community of around 5,000 is now based in the South Australian capital city Adelaide, a city of some 1.6 million people.
“My primary objective is to promote and strengthen cooperation between South Australia and the Philippines on labor, employment and human resource development,” said Foley.
The official is expected to return to the Philippines in February with a trade mission of some 20 private sector companies, including education, food, manufacturing and wine firms.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:51:00 07/11/2008
MANILA -- The Philippines and the state of South Australiahave started talks to forge a pact aiming to provide a “structured and well-crafted arrangement” for the employment and immigration of Filipinos in the region's bustling industries, a state official said Friday.
Kevin Foley, South Australia Deputy Premier and Trade Minister, said that his state and the Philippines' Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) have agreed to forge a memorandum of understanding (MOU) within 12 months to strengthen ties between the country and one of Australia's most robust trade hubs.
“I had a discussion with Secretary of Labor (Marianito Roque) and we're considering an MOU between the state of South Australia and the government of the Philippines where we would put a structure, a well-crafted arrangement for Filipinos who wish to seek a career in South Australia where there's a growing, dynamic economy,” said Foley, who is on a trade mission in the country.
The official said South Australian officials see “whether Australia's strict immigration requirements can be met through cooperative arrangements around appropriate skills training and mutual recognition of accreditation.”
The prospect of high-level cooperation between Manila and Adelaide may well come at a good time as South Australia would need manpower to fill some 300,000 new jobs expected to be created by the state's bustling mining industry in the coming decade, said Foley.
Some 28 new mining companies, currently at the stage of exploration there, are expected to open in the next 10 years, said Foley, as the state continues to experiene a mining boom.
“Australia will need 300,000 more [people] to provide support for our mining sector. We don't have the potential to fill all those jobs out of Australians, we have to, as we've always done throughout the history of our nation, embrace the world,” said Foley following a luncheon meeting with Philippine business leaders in Makati City Friday.
The Australian Embassy said the Philippines represents South Australia's “six largest source” of imported workers, “many of whom are helping to ease demand for trade skills at a time South Australia is experiencing historic low levels of unemployment.”
A Filipino community of around 5,000 is now based in the South Australian capital city Adelaide, a city of some 1.6 million people.
“My primary objective is to promote and strengthen cooperation between South Australia and the Philippines on labor, employment and human resource development,” said Foley.
The official is expected to return to the Philippines in February with a trade mission of some 20 private sector companies, including education, food, manufacturing and wine firms.
RP to set up labor office in Sydney--official
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 12:10:00 08/20/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- Following the projected influx of Filipinos seeking work in Australia, the labor department is preparing to set up a Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Sydney in two or three months’ time, said an official who has been tasked to head the office as labor attaché.
Victor Ablan said that aside from facilitating job, the office would also attend to those with problems with their employment.
“We don’t want to be reactive. We want to be proactive, foreseeing and preparing for possible problems before they crop up,” he said.
In a press conference last week, Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said the Department of Foreign Affairs has communicated to his office that the former did not have an objection to the setting up of such an office.
Ablan denied that the plan was in response to Senate Pro Tempore Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada’s call for the appointment of one labor attaché each in the Australian Capital Territory and in the Northern Territory.
“We have prepared for this since a couple of months ago. [Estrada] must know about the situation there too,” he said.
Estrada retained his chairmanship of the Senate labor committee.
Australia has opened its doors to foreign professionals and skilled workers. Recently, a partnership between an employers’ group in Australia and a recruitment agency in the Philippines has offered to subsidize the deployment of skilled overseas Filipino workers and professionals to the continent.
According to recruitment agency MAB International Services Inc., Australia is in need of various professionals and skilled workers.
The professionals needed are nurses, pharmacists, various information technology jobs (systems managers, software designers, systems designers, systems programmers, applications and analyst programmers), accountants, auditors, landscape architects, engineers (civil, mechanical, electrical, and electronic), and interior decorators.
The skilled workers needed are carpenters, metal fabricators, welders, motor mechanics, vehicle painters, vehicle trimmers, vehicle body makers, butchers, cabinetmakers, tailors, furniture finishers, hairdressers, dressmakers, apparel cutters, aircraft maintenance engineers, refrigeration and air conditioning technicians, petroleum and gas plant operators, power generation plant operators, heavy equipment mechanics, drillers and other mining workers.
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 12:10:00 08/20/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- Following the projected influx of Filipinos seeking work in Australia, the labor department is preparing to set up a Philippine Overseas Labor Office in Sydney in two or three months’ time, said an official who has been tasked to head the office as labor attaché.
Victor Ablan said that aside from facilitating job, the office would also attend to those with problems with their employment.
“We don’t want to be reactive. We want to be proactive, foreseeing and preparing for possible problems before they crop up,” he said.
In a press conference last week, Labor Secretary Arturo Brion said the Department of Foreign Affairs has communicated to his office that the former did not have an objection to the setting up of such an office.
Ablan denied that the plan was in response to Senate Pro Tempore Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada’s call for the appointment of one labor attaché each in the Australian Capital Territory and in the Northern Territory.
“We have prepared for this since a couple of months ago. [Estrada] must know about the situation there too,” he said.
Estrada retained his chairmanship of the Senate labor committee.
Australia has opened its doors to foreign professionals and skilled workers. Recently, a partnership between an employers’ group in Australia and a recruitment agency in the Philippines has offered to subsidize the deployment of skilled overseas Filipino workers and professionals to the continent.
According to recruitment agency MAB International Services Inc., Australia is in need of various professionals and skilled workers.
The professionals needed are nurses, pharmacists, various information technology jobs (systems managers, software designers, systems designers, systems programmers, applications and analyst programmers), accountants, auditors, landscape architects, engineers (civil, mechanical, electrical, and electronic), and interior decorators.
The skilled workers needed are carpenters, metal fabricators, welders, motor mechanics, vehicle painters, vehicle trimmers, vehicle body makers, butchers, cabinetmakers, tailors, furniture finishers, hairdressers, dressmakers, apparel cutters, aircraft maintenance engineers, refrigeration and air conditioning technicians, petroleum and gas plant operators, power generation plant operators, heavy equipment mechanics, drillers and other mining workers.
‘No cutback in demand for RP workers’
LABOR CHIEF SAYS
By TJ Burgonio, Edson C. Tandoc Jr., Alcuin Papa
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 08:53:00 10/15/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Despite the gloomy forecasts, Filipinos should not fret about job losses or possible cutbacks in opportunities in the United States, the Middle East and elsewhere, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said Tuesday.
Roque said the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had not received any reports from its 37 labor officers posted abroad about cutbacks in the demand for Filipino workers in the face of the global economic crunch.
“So the situation remains stable and we do not expect any reduction in the demand for overseas Filipinos especially in the Middle East,” he said at a press briefing.
The Building and Wood Workers’ International had warned that the number of jobs in the badly hit construction industry in the United States could further shrink, increasing the number of undocumented Filipinos there.
It said it had monitored some overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who had flown back to Manila after losing their jobs, adding that their “families will have a sad Christmas.”
Over the years, OFWs have managed to keep the economy afloat, sending home some $14.4 billion last year, nearly a tenth of the gross domestic product.
Roque said it was inaccurate to assume that the OFWs coming home were laid off as a result of the global economic slowdown.
“This is the normal trend after their contracts have been terminated,” he said.
Jobs in Canada, Australia, Europe
Contrary to fears of a contracting job market abroad, there are many jobs awaiting Filipinos in Canada, Australia and European countries, Roque said.
“We have signed up with four provinces in Canada,” he said. “The pay rates are relatively higher compared with what the Filipinos are enjoying in other countries.”
Another DOLE team is leaving for Australia to start negotiations on the possible employment of Filipinos there, Roque said.
“When the option comes for Filipinos to go overseas, and entertain a job offer from Australia, we have ample potential mechanisms that are already in place,” he said.
Both Canada and Australia are offering jobs for nurses, IT personnel, truckers and hotel workers, among others, Roque said.
Worst-case scenario
“We are also looking at France, Norway and New Zealand as new markets that would be needing the services of Filipinos,” he said.
Roque said that the DOLE had drawn up a contingency plan for overseas workers in case the United States slides into a recession.
“We have assumed the worst-case scenario; and we are prepared for it. We have the mechanics to assist our workers and we will provide them with the necessary assistance,” he said, but declined to go into specific details.
Hurricane Ike
In some parts of the United States, the aftermath of nature’s wrath is cushioning the impact of the global financial crisis on Filipino construction workers.
Some labor groups fear that the economic slump would hurt the construction business in the United States, which employs many Filipino workers.
But 50-year-old Jerry, a private contractor in Texas, said the construction business is booming now in states recently pummeled by Hurricane “Ike.”
“The business is booming now because of the damage brought by “Ike.” Many homes and buildings have to be repaired,” Jerry told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone.
Hurricane Ike hit Texas and nearby states in early September, shutting down oil production in the area as well as damaging residential areas.
But Jerry acknowledged that a few of his friends from other states, like New Jersey and California, had already lost their jobs.
He also said that prices of basic commodities had gone up.
International labor groups with Filipino members said the other day that the financial slump was also threatening the jobs of more than eight million Filipinos overseas.
They said those in the service sector, like construction workers and nurses, are the most vulnerable. If they lose jobs, they are likely to stay as undocumented migrants instead of coming home, since no work awaits them in the Philippines, said the Building and Wood Workers’ International
Overseas Filipino workers are also likely to reduce the amount of their remittances this holiday season, the group also said.
Filipinos in the United States are not giving up hope, however. “There are many jobs here that the Americans do not want to take. So we are optimistic we can survive the crisis,” Jerry said.
Second or third jobs
Aside from the looming threat of losing their jobs, Filipino domestic helpers will have to learn to cope with cuts in their salaries due to the global financial crisis.
Connie Bragas-Regalado, chair of Migrante International, said Filipino maids would have to cope with the crisis by taking on other jobs, borrowing money or participating in the underground economies in their respective countries.
“To ensure that they can send money home, they will have to find ways to cope. Our maids will have to look for a second or even a third job or sell goods in the underground economy,” Regalado said.
By TJ Burgonio, Edson C. Tandoc Jr., Alcuin Papa
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 08:53:00 10/15/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Despite the gloomy forecasts, Filipinos should not fret about job losses or possible cutbacks in opportunities in the United States, the Middle East and elsewhere, Labor Secretary Marianito Roque said Tuesday.
Roque said the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had not received any reports from its 37 labor officers posted abroad about cutbacks in the demand for Filipino workers in the face of the global economic crunch.
“So the situation remains stable and we do not expect any reduction in the demand for overseas Filipinos especially in the Middle East,” he said at a press briefing.
The Building and Wood Workers’ International had warned that the number of jobs in the badly hit construction industry in the United States could further shrink, increasing the number of undocumented Filipinos there.
It said it had monitored some overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who had flown back to Manila after losing their jobs, adding that their “families will have a sad Christmas.”
Over the years, OFWs have managed to keep the economy afloat, sending home some $14.4 billion last year, nearly a tenth of the gross domestic product.
Roque said it was inaccurate to assume that the OFWs coming home were laid off as a result of the global economic slowdown.
“This is the normal trend after their contracts have been terminated,” he said.
Jobs in Canada, Australia, Europe
Contrary to fears of a contracting job market abroad, there are many jobs awaiting Filipinos in Canada, Australia and European countries, Roque said.
“We have signed up with four provinces in Canada,” he said. “The pay rates are relatively higher compared with what the Filipinos are enjoying in other countries.”
Another DOLE team is leaving for Australia to start negotiations on the possible employment of Filipinos there, Roque said.
“When the option comes for Filipinos to go overseas, and entertain a job offer from Australia, we have ample potential mechanisms that are already in place,” he said.
Both Canada and Australia are offering jobs for nurses, IT personnel, truckers and hotel workers, among others, Roque said.
Worst-case scenario
“We are also looking at France, Norway and New Zealand as new markets that would be needing the services of Filipinos,” he said.
Roque said that the DOLE had drawn up a contingency plan for overseas workers in case the United States slides into a recession.
“We have assumed the worst-case scenario; and we are prepared for it. We have the mechanics to assist our workers and we will provide them with the necessary assistance,” he said, but declined to go into specific details.
Hurricane Ike
In some parts of the United States, the aftermath of nature’s wrath is cushioning the impact of the global financial crisis on Filipino construction workers.
Some labor groups fear that the economic slump would hurt the construction business in the United States, which employs many Filipino workers.
But 50-year-old Jerry, a private contractor in Texas, said the construction business is booming now in states recently pummeled by Hurricane “Ike.”
“The business is booming now because of the damage brought by “Ike.” Many homes and buildings have to be repaired,” Jerry told the Philippine Daily Inquirer by phone.
Hurricane Ike hit Texas and nearby states in early September, shutting down oil production in the area as well as damaging residential areas.
But Jerry acknowledged that a few of his friends from other states, like New Jersey and California, had already lost their jobs.
He also said that prices of basic commodities had gone up.
International labor groups with Filipino members said the other day that the financial slump was also threatening the jobs of more than eight million Filipinos overseas.
They said those in the service sector, like construction workers and nurses, are the most vulnerable. If they lose jobs, they are likely to stay as undocumented migrants instead of coming home, since no work awaits them in the Philippines, said the Building and Wood Workers’ International
Overseas Filipino workers are also likely to reduce the amount of their remittances this holiday season, the group also said.
Filipinos in the United States are not giving up hope, however. “There are many jobs here that the Americans do not want to take. So we are optimistic we can survive the crisis,” Jerry said.
Second or third jobs
Aside from the looming threat of losing their jobs, Filipino domestic helpers will have to learn to cope with cuts in their salaries due to the global financial crisis.
Connie Bragas-Regalado, chair of Migrante International, said Filipino maids would have to cope with the crisis by taking on other jobs, borrowing money or participating in the underground economies in their respective countries.
“To ensure that they can send money home, they will have to find ways to cope. Our maids will have to look for a second or even a third job or sell goods in the underground economy,” Regalado said.
Australia needs engineers, workers
By Amy R. Remo
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 22:09:00 10/17/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Filipino engineers and other skilled workers who may be displaced due to the global financial crisisneed not look far for overseas job prospects.
Due to the continuous boom in the mining sector, the Australian government wants to hire more foreign workers, particularly for its Australasia Pacific minerals sector, where there are skills and manpower shortages, said John Corbett, managing partner of Migration Lawyers Australia.
In a discussion on manpower issues at the 8th Asia Pacific Mining Conference and Exhibition, Corbett explained that while the United States has begun cutting jobs across industries as an offshoot of the global financial meltdown, Australian and Asean mineral producers like Indonesia and the Philippines were fortunate to be riding the "crest of the boom in mining and resources industry."
According to Corbett, this may be the "biggest and most sustained boom in living memory, based on demand from China, India and other emerging markets."
But even as the number of large-scale mining projects has been steadily increasing, Australia faces one major problem: manpower shortage.
"The problem is that there is not enough skilled labor, even for the major projects costing billions of dollars. The shortage is so acute that it is driving wages and project costs higher," he said.
He pointed out that in Australia, only 5,000 engineers graduate every year.
"The major impediment to the Australian mining industry is the global shortage of engineers, geologists, trades people," he noted.
Aside from engineers, Corbett said Australia also has a big demand for other personnel such as geologists, metallurgists, truck operators and, surprisingly, hairdressers.
Corbett added that the labor shortage in Australia has also opened more business opportunities for mining contractors from Asean countries.
He explained that some mining projects have now decided to break down the construction of facilities into modular units that contractors can build offshore. These prefabricated units are shipped to Australia and assembled at the mining sites.
For those interested in migrating, Corbett said that the "fly in, fly out" scheme was becoming a more popular solution. For instance, a company may have employees living in New Zealand but working in Australia, he explained.
Corbett lamented that most mining projects are usually located in remote and isolated areas, making it difficult to attract and keep skilled workers.
Labor requirements in the mining sector are also cyclic as they depend on the stage of the project, thus making the "fly in, fly out" operations more feasible.
Corbett said applicants who are under 45 years of age, speak English competently and are willing to migrate to isolated areas (virtually anywhere outside Sydney) can easily land a job in the country.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 22:09:00 10/17/2008
MANILA, Philippines—Filipino engineers and other skilled workers who may be displaced due to the global financial crisisneed not look far for overseas job prospects.
Due to the continuous boom in the mining sector, the Australian government wants to hire more foreign workers, particularly for its Australasia Pacific minerals sector, where there are skills and manpower shortages, said John Corbett, managing partner of Migration Lawyers Australia.
In a discussion on manpower issues at the 8th Asia Pacific Mining Conference and Exhibition, Corbett explained that while the United States has begun cutting jobs across industries as an offshoot of the global financial meltdown, Australian and Asean mineral producers like Indonesia and the Philippines were fortunate to be riding the "crest of the boom in mining and resources industry."
According to Corbett, this may be the "biggest and most sustained boom in living memory, based on demand from China, India and other emerging markets."
But even as the number of large-scale mining projects has been steadily increasing, Australia faces one major problem: manpower shortage.
"The problem is that there is not enough skilled labor, even for the major projects costing billions of dollars. The shortage is so acute that it is driving wages and project costs higher," he said.
He pointed out that in Australia, only 5,000 engineers graduate every year.
"The major impediment to the Australian mining industry is the global shortage of engineers, geologists, trades people," he noted.
Aside from engineers, Corbett said Australia also has a big demand for other personnel such as geologists, metallurgists, truck operators and, surprisingly, hairdressers.
Corbett added that the labor shortage in Australia has also opened more business opportunities for mining contractors from Asean countries.
He explained that some mining projects have now decided to break down the construction of facilities into modular units that contractors can build offshore. These prefabricated units are shipped to Australia and assembled at the mining sites.
For those interested in migrating, Corbett said that the "fly in, fly out" scheme was becoming a more popular solution. For instance, a company may have employees living in New Zealand but working in Australia, he explained.
Corbett lamented that most mining projects are usually located in remote and isolated areas, making it difficult to attract and keep skilled workers.
Labor requirements in the mining sector are also cyclic as they depend on the stage of the project, thus making the "fly in, fly out" operations more feasible.
Corbett said applicants who are under 45 years of age, speak English competently and are willing to migrate to isolated areas (virtually anywhere outside Sydney) can easily land a job in the country.
Australia relaxes rules for foreign-trained medical doctors
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: July 06, 2007
MANILA, Philippines -- Australia has relaxed its rules for foreign medical doctors -- both general practitioners and specialists -- who want to migrate and practice there, a registered migration agent told INQUIRER.net.
“The rules are becoming easier for doctors to be allowed to work and live in Australia…There are big changes in 2007,” Howard Neil Donkin, vice president of MAB International Services Inc., said, adding that changes to Australian migration rules to make this possible are being implemented in phases. Donkin was in the country for a conference.
The first phase is from July 1, when the English Language Proficiency (ELP) requirement will no longer be required of overseas-trained medical doctors who want to start the examination process of the Australian Medical Council (AMC) under the multiple choice examination (MCQ).
Donkin said that although ELP is a formal requirement for the registration of foreign medical professionals in Australia, “any candidate who undertakes MCQ after July 1 is not required to fulfill ELP requirements for eligibility to sit in the examination.”
He said the AMC examinations consist of two sections: the MCQ and the clinical examinations.
Made up of 125 questions, the computer-administered MCQ is a test on the principles and practice of medicine in the field being tested for. Some questions on general practice are also included in the test, which is administered in two three-hour sessions, one in the morning and another in the afternoon.
The examination focuses on essential medical knowledge involving understanding of the disease process, clinical examination, diagnosis, investigation, therapy, and management, as well as on the candidate's ability to exercise discrimination, judgment, and reasoning in distinguishing between the correct diagnosis and plausible alternatives, he explained.
On the other hand, the clinical examinations evaluate clinical competence in terms of medical knowledge, clinical skills, and professional attitudes for the safe and effective clinical practice of medicine in the Australian community. They consist of a multi-station structured clinical assessment of clinical skills.
Donkin added that the clinical examination also assesses the candidate's capacity to communicate with patients, their families and other health workers.
According to Donkin, the examinations are designed as a comprehensive test of medical knowledge, clinical competency and performance. Both MCQ and clinical assessments are multidisciplinary and integrated.
By September 1, the Competence Authority Pathway is going to be introduced. Although the Australian government has not released the details of this new rule, Donkin said it is believed that his government will look at the universities around the world and choose from “competent authorities” among these.
He said graduates of these chosen universities will “get advanced standing” and may no longer need to take the multiple choice examination and the clinical examination. Instead, they will take a “workplace-based assessment.”
“Now, where this assessment will take place, here or in Australia, is not known yet,” he said.
Asked how many foreign medical doctors Australia is willing to take in, Donkin said: “The rules don’t work that way. We don’t have numbers. We just have a list of jobs that are in demand. For doctors, these include general practitioners and those with specialties in surgery, radiology, pathology, psychiatry pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology.”
Mabis is authorized by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to deploy registered nurses, medical practitioners, and hospital/retail pharmacists to Australia.
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: July 06, 2007
MANILA, Philippines -- Australia has relaxed its rules for foreign medical doctors -- both general practitioners and specialists -- who want to migrate and practice there, a registered migration agent told INQUIRER.net.
“The rules are becoming easier for doctors to be allowed to work and live in Australia…There are big changes in 2007,” Howard Neil Donkin, vice president of MAB International Services Inc., said, adding that changes to Australian migration rules to make this possible are being implemented in phases. Donkin was in the country for a conference.
The first phase is from July 1, when the English Language Proficiency (ELP) requirement will no longer be required of overseas-trained medical doctors who want to start the examination process of the Australian Medical Council (AMC) under the multiple choice examination (MCQ).
Donkin said that although ELP is a formal requirement for the registration of foreign medical professionals in Australia, “any candidate who undertakes MCQ after July 1 is not required to fulfill ELP requirements for eligibility to sit in the examination.”
He said the AMC examinations consist of two sections: the MCQ and the clinical examinations.
Made up of 125 questions, the computer-administered MCQ is a test on the principles and practice of medicine in the field being tested for. Some questions on general practice are also included in the test, which is administered in two three-hour sessions, one in the morning and another in the afternoon.
The examination focuses on essential medical knowledge involving understanding of the disease process, clinical examination, diagnosis, investigation, therapy, and management, as well as on the candidate's ability to exercise discrimination, judgment, and reasoning in distinguishing between the correct diagnosis and plausible alternatives, he explained.
On the other hand, the clinical examinations evaluate clinical competence in terms of medical knowledge, clinical skills, and professional attitudes for the safe and effective clinical practice of medicine in the Australian community. They consist of a multi-station structured clinical assessment of clinical skills.
Donkin added that the clinical examination also assesses the candidate's capacity to communicate with patients, their families and other health workers.
According to Donkin, the examinations are designed as a comprehensive test of medical knowledge, clinical competency and performance. Both MCQ and clinical assessments are multidisciplinary and integrated.
By September 1, the Competence Authority Pathway is going to be introduced. Although the Australian government has not released the details of this new rule, Donkin said it is believed that his government will look at the universities around the world and choose from “competent authorities” among these.
He said graduates of these chosen universities will “get advanced standing” and may no longer need to take the multiple choice examination and the clinical examination. Instead, they will take a “workplace-based assessment.”
“Now, where this assessment will take place, here or in Australia, is not known yet,” he said.
Asked how many foreign medical doctors Australia is willing to take in, Donkin said: “The rules don’t work that way. We don’t have numbers. We just have a list of jobs that are in demand. For doctors, these include general practitioners and those with specialties in surgery, radiology, pathology, psychiatry pediatrics, and obstetrics and gynecology.”
Mabis is authorized by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to deploy registered nurses, medical practitioners, and hospital/retail pharmacists to Australia.
Skilled workers needed in Australia
By Cris Evert Lato
Cebu Daily News
First Posted 13:35:00 12/16/2008
Cebu City, Philippines - Despite the expected layoff of overseas contract workers brought about by the global economic crisis, there are still work opportunities for Filipinos abroad.
One country with job opportunities for Filipinos is Australia.
Queensland, a province of Australia, needs at least 120,000 skilled laborers by 2010 to fill up the jobs left by the he country's aging population, said Linda Brown, institute director of the Metropolitan South Institute of Technical and Further Education.
“Our community is getting older. We have an aging population. In 2015, there will be more people over 50 (years old) than those under 25 years old,” she told reporters in a recent press conference held at the Laguna Garden cafe.
Brown was among the members of the Queensland, Australia Vocational Education and Training (VET) delegation, who visited Cebu last month to orient government and academe representatives about work and career opportunities available in Australia.
VET export office director Katherine Marnane said various jobs will be available as the Queensland economy has $170 billion worth of investments over the next 18 years.
These projects include transport and freighting, information and communication technology, and industry development.
Marnane also noted workers are needed in the sectors of tourism and hospitality, business, accounting, hairdressing, and health and community services.
To get the necessary workforce, the VET export office has built partnerships with Australia-based education provider and agency, Charlton Brown.
Charlton Brown, in turn, partnered with Integrated Learning (IL) Institute Philippines to provide the necessary training to Filipinos, who are interested to pursue a career in Australia, and later on, reside permanently in the country.
IL Institute president Jerry Perez de Tagle said Filipino students can enroll in three-month long training courses such as elderly care and community services in the Philippines.
“While they are studying, our partner, Charlton Brown, will help process their visa requirements. It will also help place students in jobs once they arrive in Australia,” said de Tagle.
“They will come in with a student visa. In Australia, Filipinos can still continue their studies for two years while earning income from working,” he added.
After two years study, de Tagle said a student will be given a Diploma in Community Service and will be given a professional work visa and can work for another 18 months.
“By then, you will then be eligible for permanent residency. This process could even be done within the fastest period of three and a half years.”
Brown of Metropolitan South TAFE said Australia has a stable economy which shelters them from the effects of the financial crisis.
She noted the proximity of Australia and the Philippines is a factor that should encourage Filipinos to work in Australia aside from the Filipinos fluency in the English language.
Cebu Daily News
First Posted 13:35:00 12/16/2008
Cebu City, Philippines - Despite the expected layoff of overseas contract workers brought about by the global economic crisis, there are still work opportunities for Filipinos abroad.
One country with job opportunities for Filipinos is Australia.
Queensland, a province of Australia, needs at least 120,000 skilled laborers by 2010 to fill up the jobs left by the he country's aging population, said Linda Brown, institute director of the Metropolitan South Institute of Technical and Further Education.
“Our community is getting older. We have an aging population. In 2015, there will be more people over 50 (years old) than those under 25 years old,” she told reporters in a recent press conference held at the Laguna Garden cafe.
Brown was among the members of the Queensland, Australia Vocational Education and Training (VET) delegation, who visited Cebu last month to orient government and academe representatives about work and career opportunities available in Australia.
VET export office director Katherine Marnane said various jobs will be available as the Queensland economy has $170 billion worth of investments over the next 18 years.
These projects include transport and freighting, information and communication technology, and industry development.
Marnane also noted workers are needed in the sectors of tourism and hospitality, business, accounting, hairdressing, and health and community services.
To get the necessary workforce, the VET export office has built partnerships with Australia-based education provider and agency, Charlton Brown.
Charlton Brown, in turn, partnered with Integrated Learning (IL) Institute Philippines to provide the necessary training to Filipinos, who are interested to pursue a career in Australia, and later on, reside permanently in the country.
IL Institute president Jerry Perez de Tagle said Filipino students can enroll in three-month long training courses such as elderly care and community services in the Philippines.
“While they are studying, our partner, Charlton Brown, will help process their visa requirements. It will also help place students in jobs once they arrive in Australia,” said de Tagle.
“They will come in with a student visa. In Australia, Filipinos can still continue their studies for two years while earning income from working,” he added.
After two years study, de Tagle said a student will be given a Diploma in Community Service and will be given a professional work visa and can work for another 18 months.
“By then, you will then be eligible for permanent residency. This process could even be done within the fastest period of three and a half years.”
Brown of Metropolitan South TAFE said Australia has a stable economy which shelters them from the effects of the financial crisis.
She noted the proximity of Australia and the Philippines is a factor that should encourage Filipinos to work in Australia aside from the Filipinos fluency in the English language.
Australian employers offer to subsidize deployment of OFWs
Estrada wants 2 more labor attachés Down Under
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 16:19:00 08/16/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- A partnership between an employers’ group in Australia and a recruitment agency in the Philippines is offering to subsidize the deployment of skilled overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and professionals to that country.
In a related development, Senate president pro tempore Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada is proposing the assignment of two more labor attachés to Australia “to maximize the vast work opportunities there for our own labor force, as well as ensure protection of our OFWs in that country.”
Estrada, who retained his chairmanship of the Senate labor committee, said a labor attaché each should be posted to the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.
Citing Australia’s 2001census, he said 103,990 Philippine-born residents are distributed in the two areas. He added that more and more Filipinos work and live in Australia.
In an interview, Eduardo Burgos, former information attaché of the Philippine embassy to Australia, said MAB Int'l. Services Inc. and its new Australian partners have agreed not to collect any fees from OFWs to be deployed to Australia.
“The good thing here is that the selected Filipino workers will have the privilege to bring their family [spouse and children] to Australia,” he said, adding that OFWs will enjoy the same benefits as those given to Australian workers.
Burgos said his wife, Vilma Burgos, MABIS president and chief executive officer, met Barbara Anne Merrigan of M&M Health Power and Ray Hollis in Australia “to discuss their strategic alliance in recruiting and deploying appropriately qualified and experienced Filipino workers to Australia.”
Hollis is a former speaker of the Queensland Parliament.
Burgos said MABIS is the first recruitment agency in the Philippines authorized by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to deploy Filipino workers to Australia.
He said Australia is in need of various professionals and skilled workers.
The professionals needed are nurses, pharmacists, various information technology jobs [systems managers, software designers, systems designers, systems programmers, applications and analyst programmers], accountants, auditors, landscape architects, engineers [civil, mechanical, electrical, and electronic], and interior decorators.
The skilled workers needed are carpenters, metal fabricators, welders, motor mechanics, vehicle painters, vehicle trimmers, vehicle body makers, butchers, cabinetmakers, tailors, furniture finishers, hairdressers, dressmakers, apparel cutters, aircraft maintenance engineers, refrigeration and air conditioning technicians, petroleum and gas plant operators, power generation plant operators, heavy equipment mechanics, drillers and other mining workers.
By Veronica Uy
INQUIRER.net
First Posted 16:19:00 08/16/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- A partnership between an employers’ group in Australia and a recruitment agency in the Philippines is offering to subsidize the deployment of skilled overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) and professionals to that country.
In a related development, Senate president pro tempore Jose “Jinggoy” Estrada is proposing the assignment of two more labor attachés to Australia “to maximize the vast work opportunities there for our own labor force, as well as ensure protection of our OFWs in that country.”
Estrada, who retained his chairmanship of the Senate labor committee, said a labor attaché each should be posted to the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory.
Citing Australia’s 2001census, he said 103,990 Philippine-born residents are distributed in the two areas. He added that more and more Filipinos work and live in Australia.
In an interview, Eduardo Burgos, former information attaché of the Philippine embassy to Australia, said MAB Int'l. Services Inc. and its new Australian partners have agreed not to collect any fees from OFWs to be deployed to Australia.
“The good thing here is that the selected Filipino workers will have the privilege to bring their family [spouse and children] to Australia,” he said, adding that OFWs will enjoy the same benefits as those given to Australian workers.
Burgos said his wife, Vilma Burgos, MABIS president and chief executive officer, met Barbara Anne Merrigan of M&M Health Power and Ray Hollis in Australia “to discuss their strategic alliance in recruiting and deploying appropriately qualified and experienced Filipino workers to Australia.”
Hollis is a former speaker of the Queensland Parliament.
Burgos said MABIS is the first recruitment agency in the Philippines authorized by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) to deploy Filipino workers to Australia.
He said Australia is in need of various professionals and skilled workers.
The professionals needed are nurses, pharmacists, various information technology jobs [systems managers, software designers, systems designers, systems programmers, applications and analyst programmers], accountants, auditors, landscape architects, engineers [civil, mechanical, electrical, and electronic], and interior decorators.
The skilled workers needed are carpenters, metal fabricators, welders, motor mechanics, vehicle painters, vehicle trimmers, vehicle body makers, butchers, cabinetmakers, tailors, furniture finishers, hairdressers, dressmakers, apparel cutters, aircraft maintenance engineers, refrigeration and air conditioning technicians, petroleum and gas plant operators, power generation plant operators, heavy equipment mechanics, drillers and other mining workers.
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