The following OFW issues and concerns need urgent attention:
- pre-deployment orientation (geography, law,
worker's rights, language, cultural sensitivity, etc.) - exorbitant placement and processing fees
- bureaucratic red tape
- protection vs. illegal recruitment
- human trafficking
- culture shock
- proliferation of psycho-social illnesses
- occupational health and safety
- alienation/self-estrangement
- human rights violations in the workplace
- feminization of migration
- gender-based abuse, violence against women (VAW)
- unreasonable work load and wage rate
- labor contractualization
- ethnic discrimination
- undocumented migrant workers
- moral hazard (the government and
their family's financial dependence) - social costs of forced migration
(broken marriages, depression, etc.) - onsite protection and assistance
(legal, health and social services) - rest and recreation (R&R)
- financial literacy of OFWs and their dependents
- financial security due to the vagaries of the world
market (implications of fluctuating inflation and exchange rates) - social safety net for displaced migrant workers
- comprehensive reintegration program
(economic, social, psycho-emotional, etc.) - braindrain (Philippines) vs. braingain (destination)
- legislative reform pertaining to overseas worker's welfare
- sensationalized handling of abused OFWs
by media and politicos to generate
readership/viewership and votes, respectively - migrant workers in the deathrow
- pursue national industrialization
and agrarian reform in order to generate
sustainable and sufficient domestic employment
Contributed by the students of Econ 115
(Philippine economic history)
