“Overseas employment has built more homes, sent more children of the poor to college and established more business enterprises than all the other programmes of the government put together.” (Waves of Fear, The Economist, January 11, 2007)
Migration is broadly defined as the movement of people, especially of whole groups, across regions and between continents particularly with the intention of expanding empires in new territories, seeking asylum for refugees, labor, travel and adventure. (Encarta, 2006)
This phenomenon has been steadily increasing and is currently earning global notice. In the Philippines, migration is so prevalent. About 10% of the country’s total population is working abroad. (Philippine Overseas Employment Administration Data)
This paper tackles labor as an impulse for movement- the diaspora of people in search for greener pastures and its consequences to the country of origin as well as its potential as development tool.
Background
Labor migration in the Philippines started in the early 1900s, when the country was still a colony of the United States of America. Filipinos then migrated to the US to work as fruit pickers in California, Washington and Oregon; in the salmon canneries in Alaska, and sugarcane and pineapple plantations in Hawaii. In the 1960s, Canada, Australia and New Zealand became the new destination when these countries lifted their pro-European Immigration Policies. However, it was only in the 70s, during the term of then President Ferdinand Marcos when migration was actually promoted by the state as a mechanism to generate income amidst the global oil crisis and the many other economic problems the Philippines was contending against. Since then, the stream of Filipinos going abroad has steadily increased. (Asis, 2006)
The Americas and its Trust Territories is the major destination of Filipinos, consisting 44% of stock estimate of Filipinos abroad followed by Asia, Europe, Oceania and Africa.
Migrants can be classified according to the status of their visa. (see Table 1). Permanent migrants are those who have acquired citizenship in their host country. Temporary migrants are contractual workers. While irregular or undocumented migrants are those whose visa have expired. [They might have come as tourists and subsequently found work and decided to prolong their stay in the host country than they were allowed and have found their niche therein and never wanted to go back to the Philippines. This is common story.]
Migration Trends
There are more Filipino temporary contract workers than permanent residents abroad. Asia (particularly the rising tigers) is becoming increasingly important as an alternative destination. Females dominate migrant deployment since the 80s. Sixty five percent of migrants are women which gives rise to the concern about the feminization of migration. The proportion of service workers (domestic helpers) are constantly on the rise since the mid-80s. (Opiniano, 2004)
Costs of Migration
Migration is a very complex phenomenon that entails a lot of issues. Foremost is Brain Drain or the loss of human capital in the sending country due to the number of professional workers who went abroad exceeding the net additions to the professionals in the work place. The departure of skilled workers results to the reduction in the country’s over all productivity. (Opiniano, 2004)
It is also believed that migration is an outlay from countries of origin which are mostly developing countries. It is seen as a means by which host (developed) countries are being subsidized their human capital needs by sending (developing) countries. One study estimates that in OECD countries where there are about 3M migrants with tertiary education, if it costs $20,000.00 to educate to this level, then the total wealth transferred from poor countries to rich is about $60B. (Hugo, 2003)
Migration also causes strain in family relations. The feminization of migration has huge effects on child rearing, marital relations and family development and basically undermines the strength of the family as the basic unit of society.
It is also considered as a “Moral Hazard.” Households become too dependent on the remittances sent by migrant workers. At the macro level, the government ignores economic imbalances (e.g. trade deficits) and fails to pursue economic reforms in anticipation of more remittances.(Opiniano, 2004)
Migrants themselves suffer discrimination, contract violations and unfair treatment in their work place. The undocumented workers are especially prone to abuse and human rights violations.
Gains from Migration
On the positive side, gains of migration include reduced unemployment, increased income through remittances and skills and technology transfer.
In the Philippines, rough estimates indicate that domestic unemployment could have been 2.3% higher (to reach 13.7%) without overseas employment. (Opiniano, 2004)
Migration also brings higher wages to migrants. Salary differential is a major enticement for Filipinos to work abroad. This sizable difference in salary for the same line of work translates to increase in income that result to improved quality of life, increased consumption on consumer goods, improved housing and living conditions and better access to health and education. (Opiniano, 2004)
Migrants likewise supply remittance flow to countries of origin. In the Philippines, economists credit the 1992-1996 economic growth to the steady stream of foreign exchange supplied by citizens working abroad. (ADB, 2004)
Migration also promotes stronger trade links through the network established by migrant workers Skills and technology transfer and freer flow of information can also be gained from it.
Migration as Country Strategy
A. Declaration of Policy
If migration is to be promoted as country strategy towards development, the Philippine government must start with explicit declaration of such policy. Since the 1900s, when migration of Filipino workers to the US started, there has not been a clear formulation of policy regulation with regard to the diaspora although the number of Filipinos leaving the country to find work abroad is sizeable.
As mentioned in the previous section, it was only in the 70s, during the world oil crisis when the country was in recession and was troubled by current account deficit, that the president encouraged migration to Middle East countries to acquire dollar earnings. Although it was intended as a stop-gap mechanism, the number of Filipinos going abroad was generally on the rise.
Figures in the last five years reveal that it was only in 2003 when the uptrend was broken due to the SARS outbreak and the US-Iraq War. (POEA, 2004) Despite this, there seems to be a confusion with regard to the nation’s stand vis-à-vis migration. In the law governing migrant workers, the “Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995” (Republic Act 8042), it is declared a policy of the state that:
“While [the State recognizes] the significant contribution of Filipino migrant workers to the national economy through their foreign exchange remittances, the State does not promote overseas employment as a means to sustain economic growth and achieve national development….” [Sec. 2 (c)]
However, in a trip to Singapore, no less than President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo said that the Philippines will remain dependent on remittances (AFP, 2001) and there is no clear indication until when the country will remain dependent on migrant worker remittance.
Recognizing the importance of remittances, there must be a clear policy towards deployment of Filipino workers abroad. If it’s going to be a temporary, stop-gap strategy, then it must explicitly pronounced as such and clearly articulated. In so doing, other policy interventions can be more effectively drafted and implemented.
B. Situating the migration phenomenon at the domestic setting
Migration, by its very complex nature, involves a lot of sectors and players. Locally, it enmeshes the labor sector, health and education. At the international front, it engages foreign policy- the diplomats and trade partners- OECD countries, Asian neighbors, among others.
Since a great number of citizens leaving the country to find work abroad are in the education and health sector, a big problem is being faced by the country in those industries. Teachers are going to Hongkong and Singapore to work as nannies. Medical professionals are leaving in droves to Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom and the US to work as nurses.
Even practicing doctors in the Philippines are taking nursing courses to be able to work abroad. Since nurses are in demand abroad, doctors enroll in nursing schools to find foreign employment. (Gatbonton) This caused serious problem to the health care industry. Some hospitals have closed down due to lack of doctors and nurses especially in the countryside. Philippine Congress has in fact passed a law (Republic Act 9173, “Philippine Nursing Act of 2002.”) increasing the salary of government nurses to help address the shortage of medical professionals. Sadly, the passage of the law didn’t seem very effective in addressing the problem. The difference in salary, among others, is just too enticing for these professionals. (Adversario)
The diaspora of professionals is a double-edged sword. While the entire country benefits from their remittances, the loss of skilled professionals in crucial sectors such as education and health certainly cannot be ignored. But the Philippines has a population of 76.5M (as of May, 2001) and an annual population growth rate of 2.36% for the period 1995-2000. (Census 2000) The Philippines is among the world’s most populous state. Manila is in fact projected to be the 15th largest city in 2015 (Todaro, 2006 citing UN Projections) If China was able to capitalize on its labor force to propel its economy, the same can be emulated in other populous countries like the Philippines. Whereas in China, the laborers are provided employment through foreign direct investments, the Philippines can send its skilled people to foreign countries to gain employment with higher salary and keep on training its young population to fill in the void that migration might create.
The government may provide scholarships to bright young students and after graduation, require them to serve in the government for a certain period of time before they are allowed to leave the country, if they so desire. It has been done in other fields- sciences and engineering. There’s no reason why the same can’t be employed in the health and education sectors.
C. The Philippines in the Global Arena
The Philippines is the second largest developing country receiver of remittances next to India (ADB, 2004 citing Gameltoft, et. al. ), and the third biggest Asian population abroad next to China and India. (Wikipedia)
Considering the immensity of Filipino workers abroad, there is a grave need to expand the support provided by the government to its citizens.
The government must identify the countries with the most number of migrants and amplify consular support services extended to Filipinos therein. Presence of Philippine diplomatic offices would help ensure that the wellbeing of migrant workers are amply attended.
There have been a number of reported cases of contract violations and human rights abuses and executions among migrant workers. And this support service is very crucial to safeguard the workers’ rights and welfare.
In 1995, the country was stunned upon hearing of the Flor Contemplacion case. Contemplacion worked as domestic helper in Singapore. She was accused of killing another Filipina domestic helper and her four-year old ward. She was advised by her court-appointed lawyer to admit the killing in the hope of getting clemency when the case reaches the Supreme Court. The plan, however, didn’t materialize despite Philippine President Fidel Ramos’s appeal to Singapore President Ong Teng Cheong. (Asiaweek, 1995)
Another case involved an entertainer in Japan, Maricris Sioson. Her case probably was one of the most prominent and most tragic case of abuse among Filipino workers abroad. She went to Japan at the age of 22 to work as an entertainer. She arrived in April 1991 and was returned in a coffin to the Philippines barely five months since her arrival.
Her death certificate indicated hepatitis B as cause of death. However, when her coffin was opened in Manila, it was found that her body had been beaten and stabbed.
The Philippine National Bureau of Investigation conducted its own autopsy and identified the cause of Sioson's death as traumatic head injuries, and not hepatitis as claimed on her Japanese death certificate.
This case was highly publicized in Manila, prodding the Philippine Government to send a mission to clarify the circumstances of Sioson’s death. The Japanese Government, however, would not allow investigation by foreigners of crimes committed in Japan.
Other non-government organizations helped with the case. An NGO working for the protection and promotion of women’s rights, asked the Chief Medical Examiner of the State of Oklahoma in the United States to review the autopsy report and other medical records relating to the death of Maricris Sioson. The examiner concurred with the NBI report that the immediate cause of Sioson’s death was head trauma. The finding further concluded that the head trauma was likely to have been caused by one or more blows to the head with a blunt object, suggesting that the death should be classified as homicide.
It was revealed in the Philippine Senate hearings following the incident that 33 Filipino workers had already died in Japan that year and that twelve of these deaths took place under “suspicious circumstances.” (Equality Now)
Recognition of migrant workers’ rights is a major issue. The Philippines as a sending country must be able to assert its position to make host countries acknowledge the basic human rights of foreign workers. Although the Philippines is in a weak bargaining position being just a developing nation, it can utilize international instruments which the host countries have signed to honor this fundamental demand. The United Nations International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families is a potent instrument of international law that will ensure protection and respect for the human rights of all migrants.
Also, the Philippines can actively forge bilateral and multilateral agreements especially with fellow Asian countries like Japan, Saudi Arabia and Singapore (the top destinations of Filipino contract workers) to help ensure protection of migrant workers and also to gain leverage as opposed to its competitors (Mexico, Thailand, Bangladesh, Pakistan, among other top sending countries of migrant workers).
As is the current phenomenon, the country can also seize the opportunity in the globalization trend. The General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS) can be well-utilized to optimize the benefits of migration. Liberalization of the services sector can very well provide more opportunities to work for Filipino professionals.
Migration-Development Nexus
At present, there is a growing consensus that remittances represent a substantially greater redistribution of wealth other than foreign direct investment and foreign development assistance. A large number of Overseas Filipino Workers originating from the countryside immensely benefit from increased income.
The channeling of remittances to investments would benefit economic development. It is a clear source of capital. Predictable flow of $7B from Filipino migrant workers which is about 10% of the country’s GDP and 7.8 times bigger than FDA sure is a big help to the Philippine economy. (ADB, 2004)
Reliance on remittance may be unsustainable. But the key is to direct these remittances to investment. Sufficient training and investment opportunities must be provided to households so as to encourage them to spend remittances not only on durables and other consumption goods but more importantly on resource-generating endeavors. They must be given adequate training and education assistance to encourage them to invest in local enterprises. If the business succeeds, households will then have their own source of income and will not be dependent upon the migrant workers' remittance. This will likewise put a stop to the seemingly endless sacrifice of workers to hurdle the struggle of working abroad for higher salary. It will create local employment, too.
Another advantage is the multiplier effect of remittance. One study reveals that for every dollar remitted from abroad, total GNP increased by $2.69-$3.67 and that the largest income multipliers were in rural communities where expenditure patterns favor the purchase of locally produced goods and services. Another study (in Bangladesh) indicates that each migrant worker overseas creates 3 jobs at home through remittances. (Hugo, 2003)
As stated, migration eases the country’s liquidity problem and lessens the country’s unemployment. [--]
Migration also promotes stronger trade links. Diaspora can lead to the expansion of economic linkages for the home nation. Canadian-based studies have shown that a doubling of skilled migration from Asia saw a 74% increase in Asian exports to Canada. (Hugo, 2003)
Skills and technology transfer is also a major plus to development. Return Migration facilitates knowledge transfer and reverses brain drain. In Taiwan in the mid-1960s, about 20% of its Science and Technology undergraduates went abroad for higher education. The government put in place programs to encourage its citizens to return home. Government-sponsored meetings and conferences attempted to build a “transnational community” with expatriate scientists and engineers which established connection with local experts and contributed to exchange of knowledge. (Hugo, 2003)
The world is rapidly changing. Advancements in technology and knowledge, market systems and industries have carved niches for countries and business which are most able to adjust and adapt to the changes in environment. The Philippines, in the face of all these transformations remains dazed as to what particular path to take to attain its place in the developed world. There are a number of success stories that it can emulate or it can devise its own success formula. Migration has been in existence since the beginning of time and for various reasons. The Philippines as among the major sending countries in the planet has the advantage in its possession- vast competitive labor supply- to improve its economic conditions. Labor migration’s costs and gains have been identified as well as its potential benefits and harms. The decision now lies upon the hands of power-wielders whether or not to employ it as a development strategy.
_________
References:
Adversario, Patricia L.
“Philippines suffers from hemorrhage of nurses.” Manila Times, April 21, 2003.
http://www.manilatimes.net/others/special/2003/apr/21/20030421spe1.html
Agence France Press (AFP).
2001 “Philippines dependent on overseas remittances: Arroyo.” Singapore Window, August 21, 2001.
http://www.singapore-window.org/sw01/010826a1.htm
Asian Development Bank
2004 Enhancing the Efficiency of Overseas Workers Remittances. Technical Assistance to the Philippines Final Report. (July, 2004)
Asiaweek
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http://www.pathfinder.com/asiaweek/95/1229/feat3.html
Asis, Maruja M. B.
2006 “The Philippines’ Culture of Migration.”
http://www.migrationinformation.org/Profiles/display.cfm?ID=364
(January, 2006)
Equality Now.
‘Japan: The Death of Maricris Sioson.’
http://www.equalitynow.org/english/actions/action_0401_en.html
Gatbonton, Patricia B.
”Doctors working as nurse,” The Manila Times, February 9, 2004.
http://www.manilatimes.net/others/special/2004/feb/09/20040209spe1.html
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Microsoft Encarta 2006.
Opiniano, Jeremiah M.
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http://www.fes.org.ph/pdf/Our%20Future%20Beside%20the%20Exodus.pdf
Philippine Overseas Employment Administration.
Annual Report 2004
http://www.poea.gov.ph/AR2004/AnnualReports/AR2004.pdf
Stock Estimate of Overseas Filipinos as of December 2004
http://www.poea.gov.ph/docs/STOCK%20ESTIMATE%202004.xls
Republic Act 8042
Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995.
Republic Act 9173
Philippine Nursing Act of 2002.
Tan, Edita
2001 “Labor Market Adjustments to Large-Scale Emigration: The Philippine Case.”
Asia Pacific and Migration Journal, 10, 3-4: July-December.
Todaro, Michael and Smith, Stephen.
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Wikipedia.
Overseas Filipinos.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overseas_Filipino
Bagong balita: OFW remittances account for 10% of the country's GDP and 60% of the BSP's foreign exchange reserves
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