MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Embassy in Guam reiterates the "no recruitment fee" policy of the United States for foreign workers as it continues to receive reports that Filipino applicants paid manpower agencies substantial amounts for placement or recruitment fees.
Philippine Consul General Bayani Mercado, in a report to the Department of Foreign Affairs, said he met with US State Department Acting Fraud Prevention Manager Clay Allen to discuss joint measures to inform the general public about the US' no recruitment policy for workers under the H2-B classification bound for the United States and its territories.
Allen was accompanied by Reynaldo Beltran, Consular Investigations Assistant at the US embassy in Manila, and Douglas Carter of the Consular Security Service.
During the meeting, Allen reiterated that his office continues to process applicants bound for Guam who admit that they are paying manpower agencies placement or recruitment fees.
He added that Topline Manpower Services, a Philippine-based manpower agency, continues to operate as a labor recruitment agency despite the US embassy in Manila's notification to the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration.
Allen expressed his willingness to meet with Philippine government officials, including the Philippine media, for an information campaign on the US policy. He added that his office is looking closely at applications for H2-B workers.
The US Embassy's Anti-Fraud division has been working closely with the Guam Department of Labor and other federal agencies in Guam to ascertain that workers coming from the Philippines are employed in the jobs they were hired for, and at the salary scales stated in their applications.
INQUIRER.net
Posted date: August 22, 2010
Showing posts with label Guam. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Guam. Show all posts
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
Monday, July 6, 2009
Bad news, good news on Guam jobs
Veronica Uy, INQUIRER.net
First Posted 14:33:00 07/05/2009
MANILA, Philippines—The bad news: As next year’s scheduled relocation of the United States military base from Okinawa, Japan to Guam gives Filipinos seeking overseas employment hope, they may not get priority for construction jobs, a recruitment specialist said Sunday.
Although Filipinos are preferred in Guam, the huge unemployment situation in the US, particularly mainland-based construction workers, may get in the way of getting Filipinos hired for jobs created by the planned construction of various buildings and infrastructure in the new site of the US Marine and Air Force units, said Emmanuel Geslani.
Quoting Guam Governor Felix Camacho, he said construction workers in the US may compete with the prospective Filipino workers.
Among those that will be built are new barracks, dependents’ housing, new roads, and infrastructure like electrical power, water facilities, waste treatment, commissary and other buildings necessary to accommodate the transfer and relocation of the additional 23,000 persons, he said.
He said the demand for construction workers for the Guam build-up will start by the first quarter of 2010, when the bids for the new US Marines headquarters will be awarded. Actual construction will start in July 2010 after all bids have been awarded. The 18-month project is scheduled for completion by 2012 for the total relocation of US military personnel from Okinawa by 2014.
At the same time, there are no still job orders approved by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, said Geslani.
He said the employment contract acceptable to both Guam labor officials and the POEA is still being finalized, although the basic issues have already been agreed on—the hourly wages start at $12 and US labor laws will be followed.
Camacho was in the country last week and met with members and officials of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce, the Philippine Association of Service Exporters Inc. (Pasei), and the Philippine Construction Association.
The good news
But once Guam is transformed into a major US military base in the Pacific, Filipino health care personnel will be in demand, the Guam governor said.
“Guam is substantially underserved in health care services. Filipino nurses who have passed the requisite US licensure examinations and Filipino doctors that have US board certifications are qualified to apply,” the Guam official said.
Guam, which is only three hours away from the Philippines, will become home to 8,000 more US Marines and 15,000 more dependents starting 2012.
Actual demand for healthcare workers will start in 2012 when the relocation of the US Marines and their dependents will start so aspiring Filipino nurses and doctors can now prepare by taking the necessary US exams like NCLEX, CGFNS, IELTS, and US Board
certifications, Geslani said.
Medical technicians in radiology, cardio laboratories, and CT scan; occupational and physical therapists, as well as medical transcriptionists and medical administrative personnel will be needed to staff the expanded naval hospital in Guam, he said.
The US Department of Defense anticipates that the transfer would double the total patient capacity of the US Naval Hospital, now the primary medical provider for the 14,000 military members and their dependents in Guam.
The US Naval Hospital offers a broad band of medical services that include family practice, OB-GYN, pediatrics, general surgery, internal medicine, occupational health and preventive medicine, physical therapy, health promotions, and social work services.
Japan will fund $8 billion of the $12-billion move, the rest by the US.
Altogether, Geslani said, the relocation of the US military base is expected to generate 20,000 jobs.
First Posted 14:33:00 07/05/2009
MANILA, Philippines—The bad news: As next year’s scheduled relocation of the United States military base from Okinawa, Japan to Guam gives Filipinos seeking overseas employment hope, they may not get priority for construction jobs, a recruitment specialist said Sunday.
Although Filipinos are preferred in Guam, the huge unemployment situation in the US, particularly mainland-based construction workers, may get in the way of getting Filipinos hired for jobs created by the planned construction of various buildings and infrastructure in the new site of the US Marine and Air Force units, said Emmanuel Geslani.
Quoting Guam Governor Felix Camacho, he said construction workers in the US may compete with the prospective Filipino workers.
Among those that will be built are new barracks, dependents’ housing, new roads, and infrastructure like electrical power, water facilities, waste treatment, commissary and other buildings necessary to accommodate the transfer and relocation of the additional 23,000 persons, he said.
He said the demand for construction workers for the Guam build-up will start by the first quarter of 2010, when the bids for the new US Marines headquarters will be awarded. Actual construction will start in July 2010 after all bids have been awarded. The 18-month project is scheduled for completion by 2012 for the total relocation of US military personnel from Okinawa by 2014.
At the same time, there are no still job orders approved by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration, said Geslani.
He said the employment contract acceptable to both Guam labor officials and the POEA is still being finalized, although the basic issues have already been agreed on—the hourly wages start at $12 and US labor laws will be followed.
Camacho was in the country last week and met with members and officials of the Philippine Chamber of Commerce, the Philippine Association of Service Exporters Inc. (Pasei), and the Philippine Construction Association.
The good news
But once Guam is transformed into a major US military base in the Pacific, Filipino health care personnel will be in demand, the Guam governor said.
“Guam is substantially underserved in health care services. Filipino nurses who have passed the requisite US licensure examinations and Filipino doctors that have US board certifications are qualified to apply,” the Guam official said.
Guam, which is only three hours away from the Philippines, will become home to 8,000 more US Marines and 15,000 more dependents starting 2012.
Actual demand for healthcare workers will start in 2012 when the relocation of the US Marines and their dependents will start so aspiring Filipino nurses and doctors can now prepare by taking the necessary US exams like NCLEX, CGFNS, IELTS, and US Board
certifications, Geslani said.
Medical technicians in radiology, cardio laboratories, and CT scan; occupational and physical therapists, as well as medical transcriptionists and medical administrative personnel will be needed to staff the expanded naval hospital in Guam, he said.
The US Department of Defense anticipates that the transfer would double the total patient capacity of the US Naval Hospital, now the primary medical provider for the 14,000 military members and their dependents in Guam.
The US Naval Hospital offers a broad band of medical services that include family practice, OB-GYN, pediatrics, general surgery, internal medicine, occupational health and preventive medicine, physical therapy, health promotions, and social work services.
Japan will fund $8 billion of the $12-billion move, the rest by the US.
Altogether, Geslani said, the relocation of the US military base is expected to generate 20,000 jobs.
Thursday, July 2, 2009
Jobs await Filipinos in Guam, Japan
Philippine Daily Inquirer
Posted date: July 02, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—Thousands of Filipino workers could be hired in the construction of new military bases on the US territory of Guam, the island’s governor said during a visit to the Philippines.
Jobs also beckon in Japan, which is looking not only for Filipino health workers but also engineers, information technology
experts and other professionals, according to an official of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica).
Guam will be hiring between 10,000 and 15,000 workers to support the US military buildup, including the relocation of 8,000 Marines and their families from Okinawa over the next few years, Gov. Felix Camacho told reporters in Manila on Tuesday.
No to Chinese workers
He said he expected skilled Filipino workers to fill job demands that could not be met by local labor alone.
“It is not exclusive but the likelihood is that most will be from the Philippines,” Camacho said. Chinese workers will not be hired because of security concerns related to work on military bases, Camacho said.
Several years ago, Filipinos were also tapped to build facilities in Guantanamo in Cuba where suspected al-Qaida members linked to 9-11 were detained.
Minimum wage
The US House armed services committee last week passed a bill saying foreign workers won’t be allowed to do more than 30 percent of the work on the Guam projects.
The 2010 National Defense Authorization Act would require that the minimum wage for all Guam construction projects be at the prevailing wage level for similar work in Hawaii, said US Rep. Neil Abercrombie from Hawaii.
The buildup in Guam will cost at least $15 billion. Japan is covering $6 billion of the bill.
Tip of iceberg
Filipino engineers, information technology experts and other professionals are welcome to work in Japan especially since the Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa) has already taken effect, said Togo Hiroshi, principal Jica senior representative to the Philippines.
“[Jobs for] caregivers and nurses are just the tip of the iceberg,” Togo said yesterday.
He said the same message was reiterated to President Macapagal-Arroyo during her most recent state visit to Japan.
First batch
Some 270 Filipinos were deployed to Japan in May, comprising the first batch of nurses and caregivers to be allowed to work in the land of the rising sun following the ratification of Jpepa.
Under Jpepa that the Senate ratified in October last year, Japan and the Philippines agreed to improve business ties, such as easier access to each other’s markets. The agreement also allows more Filipinos to work in Japan.
Aging population
Togo said Japan’s aging population made it necessary for the Japanese economy to allow the entry of foreign workers to fill in current and future job vacancies.
Since many Filipinos seek employment and better opportunities offshore, Jpepa is a win-win solution for both countries, he said.
More than 200,000 Filipinos are based in Japan, according to government estimates.
In the first quarter of the year, they remitted $185 million to the Philippines, accounting for 4.6 percent of the total remittances from overseas Filipinos during the period.
Arroyo administration officials said the availability of more jobs in Japan for Filipinos was a welcome development for the Philippines, whose economy is partly dependent on remittances to spur household consumption.
Japanese language
For Filipinos to more easily find jobs in Japan, they must study the Japanese language, said Matsuda Norio, Jica representative to the Philippines.
While most Filipino workers know how to speak English, some Japanese firms prefer applicants who can speak Japanese, he said.
“Many Filipino workers think that learning English is enough. They don’t realize that learning Japanese is important as well,” he also told the Inquirer.
Matsuda said it would benefit Filipinos seeking to work in Japan to undergo enhanced training, as most of Japanese firms’ labor requirements are stricter than average.
Robust remittance
The further opening of the Japanese labor market to Filipinos was one reason the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) cited for projecting that remittances would remain robust this year.
Contrary to forecasts by some economists that remittances would shrink, the BSP said the worst would be a flat growth. The country recorded a total of $16.4 billion in remittances last year.
The BSP said robust remittances, which fuel household consumption, would help prevent the Philippine economy from slipping into recession.
Posted date: July 02, 2009
MANILA, Philippines—Thousands of Filipino workers could be hired in the construction of new military bases on the US territory of Guam, the island’s governor said during a visit to the Philippines.
Jobs also beckon in Japan, which is looking not only for Filipino health workers but also engineers, information technology
experts and other professionals, according to an official of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (Jica).
Guam will be hiring between 10,000 and 15,000 workers to support the US military buildup, including the relocation of 8,000 Marines and their families from Okinawa over the next few years, Gov. Felix Camacho told reporters in Manila on Tuesday.
No to Chinese workers
He said he expected skilled Filipino workers to fill job demands that could not be met by local labor alone.
“It is not exclusive but the likelihood is that most will be from the Philippines,” Camacho said. Chinese workers will not be hired because of security concerns related to work on military bases, Camacho said.
Several years ago, Filipinos were also tapped to build facilities in Guantanamo in Cuba where suspected al-Qaida members linked to 9-11 were detained.
Minimum wage
The US House armed services committee last week passed a bill saying foreign workers won’t be allowed to do more than 30 percent of the work on the Guam projects.
The 2010 National Defense Authorization Act would require that the minimum wage for all Guam construction projects be at the prevailing wage level for similar work in Hawaii, said US Rep. Neil Abercrombie from Hawaii.
The buildup in Guam will cost at least $15 billion. Japan is covering $6 billion of the bill.
Tip of iceberg
Filipino engineers, information technology experts and other professionals are welcome to work in Japan especially since the Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (Jpepa) has already taken effect, said Togo Hiroshi, principal Jica senior representative to the Philippines.
“[Jobs for] caregivers and nurses are just the tip of the iceberg,” Togo said yesterday.
He said the same message was reiterated to President Macapagal-Arroyo during her most recent state visit to Japan.
First batch
Some 270 Filipinos were deployed to Japan in May, comprising the first batch of nurses and caregivers to be allowed to work in the land of the rising sun following the ratification of Jpepa.
Under Jpepa that the Senate ratified in October last year, Japan and the Philippines agreed to improve business ties, such as easier access to each other’s markets. The agreement also allows more Filipinos to work in Japan.
Aging population
Togo said Japan’s aging population made it necessary for the Japanese economy to allow the entry of foreign workers to fill in current and future job vacancies.
Since many Filipinos seek employment and better opportunities offshore, Jpepa is a win-win solution for both countries, he said.
More than 200,000 Filipinos are based in Japan, according to government estimates.
In the first quarter of the year, they remitted $185 million to the Philippines, accounting for 4.6 percent of the total remittances from overseas Filipinos during the period.
Arroyo administration officials said the availability of more jobs in Japan for Filipinos was a welcome development for the Philippines, whose economy is partly dependent on remittances to spur household consumption.
Japanese language
For Filipinos to more easily find jobs in Japan, they must study the Japanese language, said Matsuda Norio, Jica representative to the Philippines.
While most Filipino workers know how to speak English, some Japanese firms prefer applicants who can speak Japanese, he said.
“Many Filipino workers think that learning English is enough. They don’t realize that learning Japanese is important as well,” he also told the Inquirer.
Matsuda said it would benefit Filipinos seeking to work in Japan to undergo enhanced training, as most of Japanese firms’ labor requirements are stricter than average.
Robust remittance
The further opening of the Japanese labor market to Filipinos was one reason the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) cited for projecting that remittances would remain robust this year.
Contrary to forecasts by some economists that remittances would shrink, the BSP said the worst would be a flat growth. The country recorded a total of $16.4 billion in remittances last year.
The BSP said robust remittances, which fuel household consumption, would help prevent the Philippine economy from slipping into recession.
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