One in three OFWs is an unskilled worker - NSO

One in three overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) is a laborer or an unskilled worker, a survey done by the National Statistics Office on overseas Filipinos has shown. The same survey, covering Filipinos who worked abroad between April and September 2006, showed that laborers or unskilled workers sent the highest cash remittance of P16 billion in that period. Laborers or unskilled workers pertain to domestic helpers, cleaners, and manufacturing or factory workers who made up 35.1 percent of the total Filipino workers abroad between April and September last year. Those who were trade workers or trade-related workers made up 14.7 percent, while those who were service workers and shop and market sales workers accounted for 13.8 percent. NSO administrator Carmelita N. Ericta said the number of OFWs who worked abroad at anytime between April and September last year reached 1.52 million, which is 14.3 percent more than the 1.33 million OFWs abroad during the same period in 2005. One out of five OFWs worked in Saudi Arabia while one in 10 was in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Hong Kong, Japan, Taiwan and Singapore were also popular destinations of OFWs, the NSO survey noted. Those who worked in Europe comprised 9.5 percent while those who worked in North and South America accounted for 9.2 percent. The total OFW remittances in those six months was estimated at P102 billion, posting an increase of P16.8 billion from the previous year’s estimate of P85.1 billion. Included in the total remittances are cash sent (74.4%), cash brought home (21.0%) and remittances in kind (4.6%). Of the total cash remittance sent during the period April to September 2006, 79.3 percent were sent through banks, 13.2 percent were sent through door-to-door, and the rest (7.5%) were sent through the agency/local office, friends/co-workers and other means. OFWs working in Asia, comprising 78.3 percent of all OFWs, sent the biggest cash remittance of 52.5 billion pesos. Ericta said the OFWs who were at home on vacation from their jobs abroad who left earlier than April 1 were included in the report as long as they worked during the specified reference period. “OFWs include overseas contract workers (OCWs) who were presently and temporarily out of the country during the reference period to fulfill an overseas contract for a specific length of time or who were presently at home on vacation during the reference period but still had an existing contract to work abroad and other Filipino workers abroad with valid working visa or work permits. Those who had no working visa or work permits (tourist, visitor, student, medical, and other types of non-immigrant visas) but were presently employed and working full time in other countries were also included," she explained. Contract workers or those with existing work-contract abroad comprised 1.38 million, or 91.4 percent of the total OFWs during those six months in 2006. This number was 14 percent more than the 1.21 million OCWs recorded in the same months in 2005. By gender classification, females accounted for 764, 000 while males comprised 751, 000 of the 1.52 million total OFWs during the period covered in the survey. The females were generally younger compared to the male OFWs. Of the total number of female OFWs, 28.8 percent belonged to the age group 25 to 29 years while 14.7 percent were in the age group 15 to 24 years. Male OFWs were somewhat evenly distributed among the age groups 25 to 29, 30 to 34 and 45 and over. The OFWs from CALABARZON (16.8%), National Capital Region (16.4%) and Central Luzon (14.5%) made up almost half of the total number of OFWs. On the other hand, Caraga and MIMAROPA (Mindoro provinces, Marinduque, Romblon and Palawan) reported the smallest share of OFWs at 1.1 percent and 1.3 percent, respectively. Ericta said the 2006 Survey on overseas Filipinos was intended to derive national estimates on the number of OFWs, their socio-economic characteristics and the amount and mode of remittances, in cash and in kind, received by their families. The survey did not ask for the total salary the OFWs received, hence, the remittances presented in the results may just be a part of the total salary they received. The data were taken from the NSO’s Income and Employment Statistics Division under the Household Statistics Department. - GMANews.TV