When Republic Act 8042 was enacted in 1995, the now-familiar “overseas Filipino worker” (OFW) came into existence. OFW refers to Filipino migrant workers, or Filipinos who reside in another country for a limited period of employment.
Known as “modern-day heroes,” OFWs are scattered all over the world: from seamen to nurses, from engineers to chefs, from teachers to caregivers, and from domestic helpers to laborers.
During my travels abroad, I have the opportunity of meeting them at the airports, hospitals, hotels, malls and restaurants. There are also those who engaged themselves in the entertainment industry.
The Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) estimated 1.77 million OFWs from April to September 2020, of which 96.4 percent (1.71 million) were overseas contract workers. The remaining 3.6 percent comprised OFWs who worked abroad but without working visa or work permits like tourists, visitors, students, and other types of non-immigrant visas.
More women worked abroad as they accounted for 59.6 percent (1.06 million) in 2020. In comparison, only 0.72 million men were OFWs (40.4 percent).
Asia accounted for 83.6 percent of the country’s total OFWs. Most (26.6 percent) of them worked in Saudi Arabia, followed by the United Arab Emirates (14.6 percent), Kuwait (6.4 percent), Hongkong (6.3 percent), Qatar (5.4 percent), and Singapore (5.3 percent).
In Europe, OFWs working registered at 6.7 percent. North and South America came second (5.2 percent) and Australia came third (3.4 percent).
All in all, the total remittance sent by these OFWs during the period reached P134.77 billion, according to PSA. These included cash sent (P113.08 billion), cash brought home (P18.98 billion), and in kind (P2.71 billion).
Most of these OFWs have some interesting stories to tell. Some of them are inspiring like the one that happened to Joffrey L. Emasula, who is from Digos, Davao del Sur. He started as a waiter in a foreign hotel and became a recruitment manager in a matter of nine years.
In 2011, Emasula came to the United Arab Emirates and worked at the Fairmont Bab Al Bahr in Abu Dhabi. “My first opportunity to work in hospitality was when I joined Fairmont as a server. I was promoted to F&B Concierge that handles restaurant reservations and groups events involving food and beverage,” he recalled.
From there, he was transferred to Fairmont The Palm from 2012 to 2016. Then, he became assistant human resources manager at the Fairmont Fujairah Beach Resort from December 2016 up to March 2017.
In March 2017 until December 2019, he returned to Fairmont The Palm as assistant recruitment manager. “Reporting to the director of human resources, I was managing the daily operation of the recruitment department. This role involves end-to-end recruitment process, maintaining the recruitment platform, and portal and working closely with department heads for the organization’s recruitment needs,” he said.
He was promoted as recruitment manager from January until March 2020 at the same hotel. “As a recruitment manager, I prepared departmental and manning budgets, forecasting, annual merit review and reporting,” he said.
“It is fun,” Emasula said of his work. “You get to work with a lot of professionals from different parts of the globe. You get to learn a lot since learning and development is a huge thing.”
Being involved in hospitality, they are trained to exceed guest expectations. “There is no room to dislike a guest as we must provide them the best experience they could have (during their stay),” he explained. “You have the support of the team, which makes the job easier. Teamwork is the key.”
Emasula also gets to learn about discipline while working abroad. “Rules are implemented and strictly followed,” he said. “When I say rules, it is both the company policy and the rules of the land. Being on time is a must.”
On the negative side, he said, is homesickness. “You get to miss your family and friends as well as being absent on special occasions,” he said, adding that during the first few years, he had a hard time assimilating with the ‘new normal’ of his daily activities. “Adjustment period is challenging,” he pointed out. “Settling in a new workplace as well as location requires flexibility and open-mindedness.”
As days became months, and months became years, there are two things that he missed the most: family and food.
Despite this, Emasula looked at the brighter side of being an OFW. In fact, he urged others to work abroad. “There is so much to learn apart from the monetary aspect,” he said.
When the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), hospitality was at its lowest. So, he decided to return home. When asked if he is thinking of returning, he replied, “Not too sure yet but I’m open, depending on the opportunity.”
One aspect he is thankful for are the friends he gained during his OFW days. “Colleagues and even guests became your family away from home,” he said. “When I travel overseas, sometimes, I get the chance to meet some of our guests before in their homeland I get to experience their culture in a local way.”
Traveling was another incentive he obtained in working in hospitality. “You get paid vacation for a month and free airfare,” he said. “You will be given an opportunity to realize your dream if traveling is your dream.”
Emasula had traveled to about 40 countries–Turkey, Armenia, Georgia, Maldives, India, Sri Lanka, Nepal and most of the southeast Asian countries. He also went to some parts of Africa, including Egypt.
Where to stay during those travels is not a problem. “Hotel companies will provide you with a colleague rate when you stay in other sister hotels,” he said. “Hence, staycation is cheaper.”
Career-wise, working in hospitality is a plus. “Career advancement is really stable in hospitality,” he said. “In my 10 years, I moved to positions and three properties.”
More importantly, hospitality work is financially rewarding. “I guess the pay is way better abroad (than working in the Philippines) considering that hotel employees are provided with free accommodation, food and transportation,” he said.
