Taiwan still needs Filipino workers
Ma. Elisa P. Osorio
Philippine Star
Taiwan still has strong demand for Filipino workers despite the recent layoff of 1,263 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), the government said.
“There still are employment opportunities. We are working closely with the Taiwan authorities to ensure that these opportunities remain open and are hopefully expanded, so that we can at least mitigate the dislocation caused by the slowdown in the exports sector,” Manila Economic Cultural Office (MECO) Resident Representative Antonio I. Basilio said.
In November alone, new hirings totaled 1,716 as againts the layoff of 1,263 workers from November through December.
In fact, statistics showed that in the first three quarters alone, the country has already exceeded its 10-percent growth target. From January to September, job placements in Taiwan grew by 26 percent.
Currently, an estimated 90,000 Filipinos work in Taiwan, of which about two-thirds are employed as factory workers.
Basilio said that the country continues to deploy new workers to Taiwan in industries which have not been as affected by the global crisis. These include household service workers, caretakers, fishermen, construction workers, and professionals.
“Taiwan will launch a new giant economic stimulus project, worth nearly NT$500 billion (about $15 billion), to reinvigorate the domestic economy.
The budget will include NT$82.9 billion in shopping vouchers to Taiwanese citizens but will mainly go to infrastructure projects, urban renewal, industry upgrading and incentives to investors,” Basilio noted.
“We have?asked the Taiwanese authorities to give priority to the rehiring of Filipino workers for these new projects. Likewise, the influx of tourists from Mainland China as a result of the opening of direct flights is also expected to boost the local economy,” he added.
Likewise, MECO is seeking a greater share of employment opportunities for OFWs to be offered under a giant economic stimulus package being readied by the Taiwanese government.
In a report dated Dec. 2, Rodolfo M. Sabulao, DOLE Representative and MECO director for labor affairs said that 18 Taiwanese companies affected by the crisis were forced to let OFWs after they scaled back or even shut down their operations.
He noted that most of the companies were either in the electronics or textile sectors whose major markets are the US and other countries affected by the crisis.
“The (Taiwanese) companies which have shut down their operations have been very supportive of their workers’ plight, which have made negotiations with them on behalf of our workers faster,” Sabulao said.
No Comments, Comment or Ping
Reply to “Taiwan still needs Filipino workers”