POEA: More Pinoys seeking jobs abroad

MANILA, Philippines – Almost immediately after coming home from the United Arab Emirates, OFW Rey Salarda is already applying for another job abroad.

“Yung kikitain mo kasi doon talagang hindi mo makukumpara dito, mas malaki,” he said.

Salarda is just one of many Filipinos expected to work abroad to this year.

Based on information from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), the most in-demand jobs abroad are still domestic helpers, production workers, nurses, waiters and bartenders, cleaners, laborers, service workers, wiremen, plumbers and pipe fitters, welders and flame cutters.

“There are now more skilled categories for OFWs… Ngayong mas highly skilled na yung mga OFWs, yung ibang nationalities sila na yung gumagawa ng mga mas low skilled na trabaho,” Liberty Casco, POEA deputy administrator, said.

The Middle East and the rest of Asia are still the biggest markets for OFWs, with Saudi Arabia still the top destination.

The demand is so big that even some recruitment agencies have a hard time complying with job orders because of the shortage of applicants.

“Most of them sa construction, talaga ang kailangan, tapos maintenance workers,” Azizzah Salim, president of Azizzah International Manpower Services, said.

Aside from Saudi Arabia, Filipino workers are also in demand in the following countries:

United Arab Emirates
Singapore
Hong Kong
Qatar
Kuwait
Taiwan
Malaysia
Bahrain
Italy
“Ang mga Pinoy kasi pulido magtrabaho at magaling makisama,” Salim said.

But with the big demand for Filipino workers, the POEA warned applicants to be careful in dealing with potential employers and recruitment agencies.

The POEA also advised applicants to verify whether the job order is legitimate and that recruiters are registered with government. –from a report by Pia Gutierrez, ABS-CBN News