Maravillo, Gianne M.

1JRN2

With the overwhelming dip in the Philippine economy, the citizens' pockets are hurt and
holed down. Given our situation, it is no longer "more fun in the Philippines." Now, we often hear
jokes (or not) about fleeing the country, and any will do as long we are away. Many believe that there
may be no future in our country and that moving to any other would be a better option. This idea has
been instilled in most people's thoughts that students like me set their minds to pursuing their
careers overseas. As disappointing as it may sound, this is our sad reality. Our society has become
conditioned to an unbalanced society where the line between the privileged and the disadvantaged
is clear. With that, one can probably spot Filipinos worldwide, as the Philippines is a major supplier
of labor migrants to over 100 countries (Santos, 2014).

According to the 2018 National Migration Survey, 40% of Filipinos are lifetime migrants
motivated by employment reasons. Moreover, the Philippines is the world's third leading recipient
of remittances (around 10% of GDP by World Bank estimates). The need to migrate and seek labor
opportunities overseas is usually due to insufficient work opportunities at home, which are scarce
and unsatisfactory (OECD, 2017). Given the difficulty most Filipinos have in securing a job locally, it
has been found that the common motivation for migration is economic inequalities along with
employment opportunities (Ozel et al., 2017). As job opportunities are not usually open to the
underprivileged, they must constantly move to secure one. According to OECD (2017), "poverty in
the Philippines is not primarily a matter of joblessness, but of lack of opportunities for gainful
employment."

While choosing to work overseas appears unpatriotic, we cannot blame those who decide to
do so, given the slim chance of getting a sufficient job that covers both needs and wants. In 2019,
there were 169 million international migrant workers in the world, and they constituted 4.9 percent
of the global labor force in the destination countries (ILO, 2021). Labor migration may be a social
issue and an indicator of poor local economic performance; migrant workers have become one of the
major contributors to their home countries' GDP through remittances. According to Albert et al.
(2023), remittances sent home by OFWs represented around 10 percent of gross domestic product,
being one of the major contributors.
 Working overseas is a huge sacrifice and challenge as it would cost being away from family.
This then made OFWs (Overseas Filipino Workers) become our 'new heroes.' While labor migrants
start to bring the world together, their complex situation constrains them as their rights are denied,
and some are forced to work in the absence of union representation. They struggle to remain
connected to families and friends back home while simultaneously building their new foundation in
another country (Boris et al., 2023). Labor migrants are providers and send remittances over their
families back home. However, we have developed a society that has become too dependent on
remittance, which made leaving the country even more tempting and inevitable as there's more
money overseas. For some, this has been their motivation in spite of being away from their loved
ones. However, according to Boris et al. (2023), "labor migration has led to divided families and
complex transnational relationships between OFWs and their families in the Philippines. While
remittances support loved ones, being miles away from loved ones can cause psychic pains."

As the number of migrant workers in the Philippines has relatively increased over the years,
our government has been challenged to produce and improve work opportunities locally, but
eventually, they have developed programs that would support OFWs. Former president Duterte
signed passed a bill creating a department for the welfare of overseas Filipino workers, to be formally
called Department of Migrant Workers. The new law turns the Philippine Overseas Employment
Administration into the Department of Migrant Workers, which would be mandated to oversee all
policies protecting the welfare of OFWs. Currently, we have the following offices under DMW:
National Reintegration Center under the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA), All
Philippine overseas labor offices under the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE),
International Labor Affairs Bureau under DOLE, National Maritime Polytechnic under DOLE, Office
of the Undersecretary for Migrant Workers’ Affairs under the Department of Foreign Affairs,
International Social Services Office under the Department of Social Welfare and Development,
Commission on Filipino Overseas under the Office of the President.

After watching Vilma Santos' film "Anak", I was able to understand the sacrifice of OFWs and
how they cannot take the risk of not going back to their job as it is the only way for them to attend to
their families' needs. At the same time, I was able to grasp how difficult it is for their family to be
supportive as despite the sufficiency of remittance, being away from their loved ones costs the
integrity of their relationship. This sums up the incompetence of the Philippine government as they
fail to provide opportunities that can then promote economic equality. As our economy continues to
go down, I see that even the coming generations would see migrating as an optimal option in rooting
for a better life.

References:

Albert, J. R., Habitan, M. T., Tabuga, A., Vizmanos, J. F., Munoz, M., & Hernandez, A. (2023, December

14). Long-Term effects of labor migration in the Philippines: “Napakasakit, kuya Eddie!”
Philippine Institute for Development Studies. Retrieved April 20, 2024, from
https://pids.gov.ph/publication/discussion-papers/long-term-effects-of-labor-migration-
in-the-philippines-napakasakit-kuya-eddie

Boris, E., Gottfried, H., Greene, J., & Tham, J.-C. (2023). Introduction: Historical and Contemporary

Perspectives on Global Labor Migration. In E. Boris, H. Gottfried, J. Greene, & J.-C. Tham (Eds.),
Global Labor Migration: New Directions (pp. 1–22). University of Illinois Press.
http://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5406/jj.6142268.4

Dmw, P. B. I. I. B. (n.d.). DMW | Department of Migrant Workers. https://dmw.gov.ph/

Labour migration. (2022, February 18). Migration Data Portal.

https://www.migrationdataportal.org/themes/labour-migration

Labour Migration | IOM the Philippines, UN Migration | IOM Philippines. (2021, June 4).

https://philippines.iom.int/labour-migration

Maggay, V. J. (2022, February 16). [OPINION] How and when can this ‘Filipino Dream’ of labor

migration come to its end? RAPPLER. https://www.rappler.com/voices/new-school/opinion-

Development in the Philippines, OECD Development Pathways, OECD Publishing, Paris,

Overseas Workers Welfare Administration. (n.d.). https://owwa.gov.ph/

Ozel, M. H., et al. (2017). Labour Markets. In: Handbook for Improving the Production and Use of

Migration Data for Development (Global Migration Group (GMG)). Global Knowledge
Partnership for Migration and Development (KNOMAD), World Bank, Washington, DC, p. 79-
90.

POEA Jobs - Find Jobs abroad, Employment and Career Opportunities. (2024, March 5). POEA Jobs

Abroad. https://poeajobs.ph/

Santos, A. P. (2014, June 17). INFOGRAPHIC: Where in the world are the Filipinos? RAPPLER.

https://www.rappler.com/moveph/60705-filipinos-ofws-world-infographic/