Cartoon by: Arashel Mei Cinco
Published by: John Kurt Gabriel Reyes
Date Published: November 11, 2024
Time Published: 1:54 PM
Not everyone has the opportunity to work overseas, and for many Filipinos, making ends meet is a daily struggle. The reality is that the country’s minimum wage is insufficient. As a result, numerous Filipinos go international to earn more and provide for their families. We take pride in our Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) for taking the courage to step into an unfamiliar place for them just to give their families a better life. But with the newly re-elected president leading the nation, implementing mass deportation leaves many OFWs without a job to support their families back in their home country. What does it take to remove these privileges of these hard labor jobs for our fellow Filipinos to lose everything they have?
As Election Day descends in the United States, millions of Filipino families are watching closely, with many concerned about how a potential Donald Trump victory might impact their hopes of reuniting with loved ones still in the Philippines. During his campaign, Trump has doubled down on promises to reform immigration, a key part of his “America First” agenda. His platform echoed the strict immigration policies he pursued during his first term, which aimed to curb both illegal and legal immigration. Now, this will not only keep many Filipinos in debt if they lose their job, they will also lose their benefits along with their savings and investments for retiring in the Philippines. With the face of racism many workers suffer already inside the United States from backlash and stereotypes against them. With a strong sense of discrimination it is not new that Trump deporting OFWs is a huge problem.
This agenda will only bring conflict to our citizens as they will only be punished more by going back with no income that will lead a harder life. Most OFWs are undergraduates, meaning they’ll have a hard time sustaining a decent job, especially considering this is one of the factors why they even go to work abroad.
2.33 million registered overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) in 2023, 58 percent were female workers, while the remaining percentage represented male OFWs. The largest share of migrant workers were between the ages of 30 and 34, followed by those 45 years of age and older. That is the reality of how many Filipinos work abroad. One can imagine witnessing a mass deportation making millions of people lose their work. Finding work in the Philippines will only be hard because of how strict they hire their people. Even a fast food chain requires credentials that most 1st world countries would not mind even if it's a student who has no experience prior working to any jobs. That is why the economic growth of the Philippines will only lead to more downfall as many Filipinos will be poor going back to how demanding the work environment is here.
The minimum daily wage for non-domestic workers in the National Capital Region (NCR) is USD 11 per day or about USD 1.37 per hour. In comparison, the national minimum wage in the U.S. is USD 7.25 per hour, with many states requiring a minimum wage that is higher than federally mandated. The highest minimum wage is USD 11.50 per hour in Washington. And they expect OFWs to take this lightly, losing a big paying job to help their families? A heartless leader that one may fear wants to make white people the priority over those who actually need it. This corrupted plan that runs against the favor of our fellow Filipinos. This is disgusting, No one should lose their occupation over their race.
After reaching one of its lowest unemployment rates in two decades, the Philippines failed to keep its momentum as its unemployment rate rose to 4.7% July, translating to 2.38 million jobless Filipinos, the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) announced on Friday, September 6. It is the highest unemployment rate in 2024, reported just after the lowest in June at 3.1%. June’s rate was the second lowest since April 2005. We are not blind to see what's happening in our country. Bringing unemployed Filipinos will greatly affect the statistics, doubling the size of poverty in the Philippines. Our government already failed to provide a better future. What more can we expect if international work becomes restricted.
It may not affect us now, but slowly we’ll realize how this is a catastrophic event that will soon take a toll on every aspect of Filipino families that heavily relies on their family member that works abroad to provide for them. This mass deportation is a domino effect making it hard to barely even afford basic necessities for the poor families. It is our economic growth to look out for as well, not only the OFWs but everyone inside in our country too.
We must fight for our OFWs who work hard to provide for their relatives. We're too ignorant just because we’re comfortable with the lives we have now and how we remain unaffected. These are fellow Filipinos who started from nothing and did everything they can to rise from poverty to lift their family the life they deserve just for it to be forcefully taken away. Where is the justice for our OFWs? Why can't we take a stand with them and help ourselves as one country together. We’re already struggling alone in our homeland, what more if they go back with nothing but their empty wallets. There are people who still rise but what about the unfortunate? Those who don't get that chance. Let's give voice to our laborers as we stand together for our fellow Filipinos. What kind of citizen are we if we turn our backs against our own people to let them suffer over a little discomfort we feel from speaking out by starting with ourselves.
REFERENCES:
[1] Baclig, C. E. (2024, November 5). What’s next for Fil-Am family petitions if Trump wins? INQUIRER.net. https://newsinfo.inquirer.net/.../whats-next-for-fil-am...
[2] Balita, C. (2024, April 19). Overseas workers from the Philippines - statistics & facts. Statista. https://www.statista.com/.../labor-migrants-from-the.../...
[3] Accelerator, O. (2024, July 11). Country-based salary comparisons. Outsource Accelerator. https://www.outsourceaccelerator.com/.../country-based.../
[4] Abad, M. (2024, September 6). Unemployment hits year-high with 2.38 million jobless Filipinos in July. RAPPLER. https://www.rappler.com/.../unemployment-rate.../
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