Many Unsuccessful Overseas Filipino Workers are Coming
Back Home
After reading an article published in the PhilStar website on August
10, 2004 entitled "MANY OFW’s RETURN TO RP PENNILESS,"
I had to agree that it is a true event in the life of Overseas Filipino
Workers (OFWs).
Why is this happening?
The very first thing that causes an OFW not to save enough from his
overseas work earnings is due to the exorbitant placement fees and
other unnecessary fees that he has to pay prior to his departure for
work abroad. Recruitment agencies, licensed or unlicensed, take advantage
of poor job applicants who want to work overseas. Many people in the
recruitment business thinks that every OFW could earn thousands of
dollars abroad. Although these agents know for sure that the applicant
usually will receive only the minimum salary, unjust placement fees
and other unnecessary expenses are still collected from them. Only
a few recruitment agencies are really dedicated to assist their applicants.
The poor job applicant, especially a first-time applicant who has
no knowledge about the processing of work-related papers abroad, is
often a victim of lies. I've known one who was conned by these agents.
They asked about P50,000.00 from him but the only service given to
him and the other applicants is the issuance of passports and an assistance
to help them leave the country, a very simple job that requires no
special help or information.
With few financial resources, applicants will borrow large sums just
to be able to pay for these fees. Sometimes, it can also be through
salary deduction. Whatever means it is, those expenses will usually
be paid with interest. Sometimes, it takes six months to one year
to get those debts fully paid. However, if the job contract is only
one year, the remaining months’ worth of earnings won't be enough
to bring back home. You're lucky if you really get the job, but most
often, if you've been to an illegal recruitment agency, you'll end
up with no job and go home totally penniless.
The second thing that causes OFW’s not to save enough of their
earnings is the overspending of their beneficiaries. These dependents
think that the cash from overseas will not run out, so they often
spend like there’s no tomorrow. It's okay if the spending is
worth it, but if it's useless, they just put more hardships on their
OFW loved ones. Beneficiaries sometimes do not know how to save the
income of their OFW loved ones because they have no idea on how hard
it is to work overseas. They need to realize the difficulty in dealing
with foreign employers and co-workers, as well as the hardships of
being alone just to give an OFW's family back in the Philippines a
better life. At times, beneficiaries will borrow money carelessly
if the remittance is late, thinking that money will always be sent
to pay those debts.
The third reason is the fault of the OFW himself. Like other people
around him, he thinks that he could always have the job and the earnings
that he currently receives. So, he overspends and doesn't invest it
in a proper way. Whenever he goes home for a vacation, he'll spend
most of the money and when the time comes to go back to work, his
savings account will be empty and he would need to borrow more money
again to spend for a new application.
Sometimes, the OFW husband will get involve with another woman and
then have children. An additional wife could give you additional children,
as well as additional responsibilities and expenses. Instead of supporting
just one family, an OFW will now need to support two or even three
families. And by the time he retires, he has no more savings even
for himself --much less a pension or life insurance.
Related Article "How to Be a Successful
Overseas Filipino Workers"
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(Revised October
2004-KL)
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ofw info hub 
