Hold the door

'had an interesting thing happened last Sunday... We were walking from the parking lot and ended up queuing up to enter the church door. First an old lady, next a Filipino, then us. It was a wide door but only half was opened so it can only fit one person at a time. The old lady entered then the Filipino guy followed her closely and just went in and let the door swing back to close. We immediately reached for it otherwise it'll hit us.

I am just amazed that even here in New Zealand, where locals would actually hold the door for someone following them when entering a room or building, still Filipinos, like this guy, just couldn't learn! This isn't the first time, by the way. I can not count how many times I've seen Filipinos do this. The same thing I saw when I was in the U.S.

How hard is it really to recognize that someone is following you and hold the door for him?? How hard is it really for us to start to care for others?

Yes this is such a little thing but even this we can't do??? Come on! No wonder our country is just spiraling downwards.

It's very very common in the Philippines that people don't "hold the door" for someone following them. But this isn't the Philippines anymore and yes it really is a good thing to "hold the door" don't you think?

I believe this is a very strong and direct reflection of how much most Filipinos just care about themselves. Look at how people just can't put their garbage inside designated bins. Look at how people insert in queues especially in jeepney stops. Look at how most people pull others down just to get ahead. These are just a few from the top of my head. I might update this post when I go back to the Philippines for a visit 'cause I'm sure it'll be very obvious.

Next time you get into Jolibee or the rest rooms or whatever, can you please look behind you to see if someone's there and "hold the door" for him? Please? It's really not hard and setting an example would definitely bring you joy. If you do it and one or two people sees you, chances are they'll do it too. We're gonna have to start caring for others especially our "kapwa" (fellow) Filipinos. Sooner or later, if we continue doing good, starting with little things like this, eventually it'll grow to bigger things and eventually the Philippines will slowly become a better place.

I remember a TV ad which basically said "Ang mali ay magiging tama kapag ginagawa ng mas matanda."

So please, be a good example and let's start changing our society one person at a time.

Your thoughts?

Brain Drain in the Philippines

Starting at around the 1970s, Filipinos have already been immigrating to other nations like the USA, Middle East, Canada, Australia and many other countries to find work in order to send money back home.

A report from Geneva's International Labour Office showed that the number of professional workers who went abroad exceeded the net addition to the professionals in the workforce during the 1990s.

Highly skilled physicians, teachers, seamen, engineers, nurses, and many others who received such a high level of university training only to apply their knowledge and expertise in other countries.

Indeed the massive amount of income they're bringing in to the country through their remittances has been keeping the country's economy afloat for many years and counting.

What is this doing to the local workforce, however?

There is no direct information on the actual magnitude of brain drain from the Philippines and how much this has changed over time. Occasional surveys may reveal the extent of location of Philippine professionals but there is no regular monitoring of movements. For example, one survey in the seventies indicated that the number of physicians in the United States amounted to half of the registered physicians in the Philippines.
Source: Skilled Labour Migration from Developing Countries: Study on the Philippines

Even without the numbers, just go to the POEA/OWWA offices anywhere in the country and you will see that everyday, hundreds of Filipinos would be there processing their applications or renewing their contracts all hoping to go out of the country and work.


It's not hard to see why, simply ask around and visit the homes of some families whose a family member is an OFW (Overseas Filipino Worker) and you'll often find that they're living way better than most Filipinos.

So for most OFWs, the reason really is just one word: economic. Although the remittances from these workers are good for the Philippine economy, it is not sustainable. The Philippines, I think, is still challenged to be able to produce something from within and be able to export goods and services for a more sustainable income. In addition, when the businesses within the country become globally competitive with good salary grids, people won't have to go somewhere else to find that elusive "Greener Pasture".

Find jobs in New Zealand via POEA

You can find "approved jobs" in many countries on the POEA website. Simply go to this link: http://www.poea.gov.ph/cgi-bin/JobVacancies/jobsByCty.asp

Here's a short sample list for jobs in New Zealand:

Approved Job Orders by Country as of Jul 14, 2009 5:55:19 PM

Country : NEW ZEALAND

Country

Position

Agency

Date Approved

JO Balance

NEW ZEALAND		OPERATOR ROLLER		UNIPLAN OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT INC (MHM OVERSEAS EMPLOY`T AGENCY CORP)		6/29/2009		1

NEW ZEALAND		OPERATOR SCREED		UNIPLAN OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT INC (MHM OVERSEAS EMPLOY`T AGENCY CORP)		6/29/2009		2

NEW ZEALAND		NURSE REGISTERED		JEJ INTERNATIONAL MANPOWER SERVICES		6/1/2009		30

NEW ZEALAND		SEWER		SACRED HEART INTERNATIONAL SERVICES, INC		5/22/2009		2

NEW ZEALAND		DRIVER TRUCK		UNIPLAN OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT INC (MHM OVERSEAS EMPLOY`T AGENCY CORP)		5/18/2009		2

NEW ZEALAND		OPERATOR SCREED		UNIPLAN OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT INC (MHM OVERSEAS EMPLOY`T AGENCY CORP)		5/18/2009		1

NEW ZEALAND		TECHNICIAN PLASTIC		LAU` MEL INTERNATIONAL ENTERTAINMENT PROMOTION		5/18/2009		2

NEW ZEALAND		WORKER DAIRY		BISON MANAGEMENT CORPORATION		4/21/2009		50

If you can't find what you're looking for, try and check back again at a later time. Keep checking this every now and then as the list is updated in a few days I think.

Happy job hunting.