Republic of the Philippines

PANGASINAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Urdaneta City Campus

San Vicente, Urdaneta City

A Project Proposal

Presented to the Faculty of the

College of Engineering and Architecture

In Partial Fulfillment

of the requirements for the Subject

Contemporary World

Proponents:
Alvarado, Mark
Cascolan, Janwel Ray
Concepcion, Sherwin
Dizon, Ellen Micah
Frias, Cathryn
Garcia, Patricia
Lafeguera, Ranjit
Magalong, Julius
Nicolas, Jennylene
Palisoc, Rachelle
Ragca, Jayvon
Santos, John Carlo
Suarez, Ahllen
 I. RATIONALE

The current age of globalization has faded international borders and stimulated
multiculturalism. In this context, the Philippines is among the largest migrant
countries of origin in the world. Over the past decades, outward migration has
shaped Philippine society in many ways. Initially intended as a temporary measure to
catalyzed economic development, migration is now a major contributing economic
force.

In 2015, the Department of Labor and Employment reported that the number of
Filipinos leaving the country to work overseas rose from 4,018 in 2010 to 6,092 in
2015, a 51% increase in the span of 5 years. In 2016, there were 2.4 million Filipinos
leaving and/or working outside of the country, and they significantly contribute to the
Philippine economy by way of foreign remittances. They sent back $25.8 billion in
2015, roughly 8.5% of the country’s gross domestic product.

Yet, there remain serious concerns about the economic sustainability. The Asian
Development Bank (ADB) observes that in countries like the Philippines, remittances
“do not have significant influence on other key items of consumption or investment
such as spending on education and healthcare”. Remittances, therefore, may help in
lifting “household out of poverty but not in rebalancing growth, especially in the long
run”. More importantly, global migration is “siphoning qualified personnel, removing
dynamic young workers.” This is often referred to as “brain drain”. Brain drain,
another persistent labor migration issue, refers to the exodus of skilled human
resources mainly to search for better economic conditions. According to Dr. Florian
Alburo of the University of the Philippines School of Economics, brain drain
shamelessly prevents the originating country from utilizing local talents for its own
progress and development.

Limited employment opportunities in the Philippines encourage Filipinos to

pursue a brighter future abroad. The majority of the Filipino migrants are deployed to
the Gulf Cooperation Council countries. While the Philippine government seeks to
ensure that the rights of Filipinos abroad are adequately protected, the reality on the
grounds is often very different. Migrants remain vulnerable to exploitation and abuse
including contract violations, sexual harassment, violence and discrimination.
 Although globalization imposes partial citizenship on both male and female
migrants, this experience is made doubly ironic by the denial of reproductive rights
for women, who not only contribute to the economic growth but also perform the
reproductive labor of receiving nations. For instance, the contradiction of having the
responsibility of caring for class-privileged families and being unable to nurture their
own families magnifies the restricted incorporation of migrant domestic workers.

Receiving nations curb the integration of migrants so as to guarantee their

economies a secure source of low-wage labor. By containing the costs of
reproduction in sending countries, wages of migrant workers can be kept to a
minimum; that is, migrants do not have the burden of having to afford the greater
costs of reproducing their families in host societies. Moreover, by restricting the
incorporation of migrants, receiving nations can secure their economies a supply of
low-wage workers who can easily be repatriated if the economy slows down.

Although globalization imposes partial citizenship on both male and female

migrants, this experience is made doubly ironic by the denial of reproductive rights
for women, who not only contribute to the economic growth but also perform the
reproductive labor of receiving nations. For instance, the contradiction of having the
responsibility of caring for class-privileged families and being unable to nurture their
own families magnifies the restricted incorporation of migrant domestic workers.

Philippine migration is becoming increasingly gendered. Domestic Workers, of

whom 90 per cent are women, accounted for one-third of the total 2012 deployment
of new hires. Domestic workers and other low skilled workers often work in a
deregulated environment making them extremely vulnerable to exploitation and
abuse.

The Philippine government is internationally praised for its model of labor

migration. As State party to virtually all international conventions promoting the rights
and welfare of migrants worldwide, the Philippines attempts to ensure the safety of
their nationals overseas. Moreover, the government has enacted countless laws and
policies protecting the right of Filipinos overseas. Despite the government’s effort to
protect their OFWs and seafarers, many Filipino migrants find themselves in a
vulnerable position. The implementation of the laws and policies have proved to be
problematic, ineffective and reactive. Human and material resources designated for
OFWs are insufficient to ensure their safety and welfare.

As a strategy for development, migration has not achieved its desired effects.
The Philippines is reliant on remittances while national industries are declining. The
brain drain inhibits genuine economic development as more and more highly
educated professional leave the country to perform low skilled jobs overseas and the
transfer of technology is largely overstated.

In connection with these, we came up with an idea to recommend actions that will
address the uneven process of globalization to Global Filipinos.

II. RELATED LITERATURE AND STUDIES

This chapter entails the prominence of inequality of globalization in the

developing countries.

The integration of world economy through progressive globalization of trade and

finance has reached unparalleled heights. This phenomenon is a subject of active
public debate for its implications on the economic well-being of people in all areas.
Shehzad Nadeem (2009) in his article Macaulay’s (Cyber) Children states that
globalization has sown seed of desire in an individual to increase one’s standard of
living and enjoy foreign products and adopt a new technology. This caused the
uneven development of the citizens of the third world countries wanting to migrate to
developed countries to earn money to afford lavish lifestyle. Professionals tend to
migrate to other countries that allows them to gain higher wages than what their own
countries can offer. This resulted developing countries to lack professionals who can
contribute expertise in developing their countries. However, Kristof explains that
globalization has also resulted in foreign businesses in core countries to take
advantage of the workers in poor countries by utilizing their talent but giving them
low wages. The salaries earned by migrant workers are still low compared to what a
local professional worker earns. Still, this practice is supported by developing
countries because it provides employment to its citizens and benefit to the employers
in the less developed countries. In line with this, a research conducted by Tan (2013)
states that migrant workers contribute a lot in the development of the economy of
rich countries as presented in their gross domestic product. This shows the widening
income gap between the rich and the poor countries. As rich countries become
richer, the poor countries may have made considerable progress, but it is still not
enough to be able to fill the gap that continues to expand as time goes by.

III. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Globalization is accelerating with pace and scale and enables access to new
markets and ideas that enhance the welfare of people. However, it does have
negative effects and uneven development in many parts of the world. Philippines is
greatly affected by globalization in terms of economic growth, employment and
migration. For instance, industries that are less able to compete and workers whose
skills have become less relevant may be adversely affected and will have difficulty in
adjusting caused by globalization. Many are forced to work abroad due to the
country’s unemployment situation. Moreover, the employment opportunities in other
countries, regardless of the type of job, are perceived to offer higher salaries or
compensation, and better income and lifestyle packages (eg health benefits,
insurance). Hence, in order to manage the effects of uneven process of
globalization, we need to come up with solutions.
Here are some of the recommendations:
 First, we need to prioritize people-centered growth. This requires a wide range
of structural policies, from social protection and active labor market policies, to
strategic investments in education, skills, innovation and physical
infrastructure.
 Second, we need to fight the dark side of globalization and restore trust in
global economies and global integration. The proliferation of high-level
corruption, tax evasion and tax avoidance scandals have taken their toll. We
need to reverse these trends, complementing social reforms with policies that
promote transparency and nurture a culture of integrity.
 Third, we must practice patriotism. Filipinos should stop being a brain drain.
Instead of working abroad, highly educated professionals should use their
knowledge and skills to help make a progress for their own country.
 Since most of the OFWs are women, the Congress must work on policies that
enabling women to overcome challenges in workplaces and protect women
against employment discrimination most especially in previously male-
dominated occupations. Affirmative actions and policies help women to
acquire the opportunities where they can translate their education and training
competencies into equal job opportunities in the country.
 Meanwhile, rather than toe the line of rich nations pursuing globalization as a
way out of their economic crisis or stagnation, the government can curb
landlessness, joblessness and homelessness instead. Protecting national
patrimony, pursuing genuine land reform and developing basic industries are
among the best alternatives to take for now. The greatest challenge posed
against the country in this whole globalization phenomena is keeping the solid
of identity of Filipinos. More than the basic needs, it is primary that the
Philippines be wary of the whole system of globalization which seems bent on
eating up what is left of the country. In these times when the trend is outward
looking, it is important for us to keep our eyes on what is here and what must
be done here now. The interest of the Filipinos above all must be our priority.
 The key to a competitive future lies in working for and engaging in an
integrated community and working aggressively to make ourselves a dynamic
and productive economy in our own right. We must band together and
integrate our efforts to prove our worth to our neighboring countries.

 The Philippine government together with the Department of Labor and

Employment (DOLE) which maintains jurisdiction over overseas contract
workers through Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA), which
monitors the exit of workers, and the Overseas Workers Welfare Agency
(OWWA) which provides services to migrants in the receiving nations must
come together to implement laws and policies that are truly effective and can
address the concerns of OFW and not the concerns of their personal interest.
 Migration must be viewed through a gender paradigm by addressing the
specific vulnerabilities of men and women.