By Atty. Howie Calleja
Another sad news has emerged this week when Jullebee Ranara, an overseas Filipino worker (OFW) reported charred and killed in Kuwait. Ranara was a 35-year-old Filipino domestic helper in Kuwait who was raped before being burned by the son of her employer, according to reports from local media.
Unhappily, Labor Migration is likely to continue because of the combination of push and pull factors despite the growing restrictions put on human mobility. People will migrate for as long as there exist powerful push factors in sending countries or pull factors in receiving countries. Migrants are pushed to leave their country and are pulled towards other countries that need them.
The search for better economic opportunities and, in some cases, situations of economic vulnerability lead migrants to conclude that migrating is the best, or sometimes, only the choice that they have. Added to this, in our contemporary world, migrant workers have become a vital cog in the sending countries’ economic push for development. It is now generally recognized that remittances from migrant workers constitute one of the world’s most substantial financial flows, surpassing even the traditional export earnings in several Asian countries.
Honestly, it is a tough act to balance this economic gain with the social costs labor migration entails. The ILO (International Labor Organization) notes that: “There are also adverse social consequences arising from the migration of persons for employment abroad. There are a number of costs associated with foreign employment. The lack of protection and welfare for workers and the social and psychological costs associated with migration has been of concern for policy makers for long. There are numerous instances where these workers have been sexually and physically abused and not properly paid for their services. Although the government has taken several steps to improve the rights and freedom of migrant workers and the welfare of families that are left behind, the effectiveness of these measures in improving the present conditions is yet to be seen.”
Added to this, children are growing up without one or both parents. Marriages are breaking up, with spouses unable to withstand long periods of separation. The extended family, which provides a healthy support network for the very young, the elderly and the infirm is weakening.
Personally, I am concerned with the impact of “Brain Drain” vis-à-vis Labor Migration. Besides losing our most skilled workers, the most obvious negative effect of the brain drain is the cost of education of these migrant workers which has been, in most cases, subsidized by the labor-sending country. Although the net developmental losses of the brain drain are difficult to determine, there has been growing concern that labor-sending countries should be compensated in some form for the loss of their skilled manpower.
In the end, promoting our nationals to prospective employers overseas requires the need to be grounded on a clear ethical perspective. For though we say that marketing labor means promoting the skills, talents or capabilities of our fellow nationals abroad to fill in the need in the international market with the end view of making them secure employment overseas, we cannot get away with the fact that we are dealing with people and not just their skills, capabilities or talents.