EU/UK workers complained for alleged that AMEC replaced their Labors with Philippine Workforce at a lower Pay

Concern: the jacket for the Jasmine platform in the UK North Sea is towed out

Amec denies foul play over Filipino hirings

UK CONTRACTOR Amec has defended using up to 70 employees from the Philippines on the hook-up and commissioning of ConocoPhillips' Jasmine platform off the United Kingdom.

Other workers on the project raised concerns with Upstream that Filipino staff had been employed as cheap alternatives to UK or European Union labor.

They allege the Filipino staff, understood to be working a three-week on, three-week off shift rota, are receiving $900 per week after deductions with no pay for time spent onshore.

Amec confirmed it had engaged 38 Filipino personnel through the V-Ships agency to work as pipefitters and platers.

Up to 30 more and one Indian national are working as commissioning technicians for Amec subsidiary Gedi.

Amec denies the international workers are receiving lower rates than UK or EU employees and Upstream was unable to verify independently the alleged pay figures.

Pay rates and employment terms for the project have been agreed between the Unite and GMB unions and the Offshore Contractors Association (OCA), using the collective OCA pay agreement as a benchmark.

UK or EU workers in similar roles to the Filipinos — classified as Category B under the OCA agreement — would receive a minimum of £247 per day ($370) as well as onshore pay, it is understood.

Amec said the workers all have the required competency levels and added: "The total remuneration of the Filipino workers is in line with OCA rates — i.e. rates for UK or EU workers.

"All personnel engaged, whether from the UK or from overseas, are employed according with the OCA with all personnel, including commissioning, being paid competitive market rates."

Unite regional organizer Wullie Wallace said he was not aware that international workers were receiving less pay than UK workers.

The international labor element on the project represents about 5% of the 1400-strong labor force.

Amec said the employment of overseas personnel on this North Sea project was "a contingency exercise to mitigate risk... to deliver the job safely and on time for the customer".

The overseas workforce would be used in the short-term to meet peak labor requirements and the company remained committed to using UK labor, it said.

A spokesperson for the UK contractor said recruitment for the Jasmine project had entailed a "huge coordinated program of advertising, road shows and working in partnership with the GMB and Unite unions".

Both Amec and the Unite union said the campaign to recruit UK labor had been more successful than anticipated and that less international labor than expected was being used.

V–Ships were unavailable for comment by press time.

Amec said V-Ships are recognized internationally for its high standards of employment and remuneration packages.

With report from Upstream

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POEA Launching online appointment system exit clearance or overseas employment certificate (OEC)

Click the link below to apply OEC online

http://bmappointment.poea.gov.ph/

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) will launch tomorrow an online appointment system for "balik manggagawa" - to allow overseas Filipino workers (OFW) vacationing in the country to process documents via Internet.

POEA Administrator Hans Leo Cacdac, in a statement, said the online appointment system is an option for vacationing overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to set an appointment with POEA for the processing of their exit clearance or overseas employment certificate (OEC).

The system, according to Cacdac, was developed for the convenience of returning workers who have limited time to spend with their families during their stay in the country specially this coming holiday season.

Cacdac advised OFWs to use the appointment system which is free and available by logging on at http://bmappointment.poea.gov.ph  particularly during the peak months of March, April, May, November, December, and January when the bulk of OFWs return home for vacation.

While encouraging the use of the system, Cacdac explained that the POEA has not totally scrapped its facility for walk-in clients.

"We are just starting out with the system and we believe that OFWs without access to internet would still prefer getting their OEC the usual way without setting an appointment with us," Cacdac said.

The POEA has put up counters at its main office in Mandaluyong City, Duty Free Philippines in Parañaque City and SM Manila to accommodate those who choose to get their exit clearance at a specific date and time.

Cacdac emphasized that the documentary requirements for those using the appointment system and walk-in processing are the same: 

1) passport valid for six months from time of departure; 

2) valid working visa/work permit: 

3) proof of employment such as certificate of employment, company ID, pay slip, and other equivalent document.

Returning workers have to pay ₱100 for POEA processing fee; $25 or its peso equivalent for OWWA contribution on a per contract coverage; ₱1,200 for one year PhilHealth coverage; and a minimum of ₱100 contribution to Pag-ibig Fund, Cacdac added.

Fees Summary

• Processing Fee ₱100.00
• OWWA contribution on a per contract ($25) ₱Depending on the Value of Dollars
• PhilHealth coverage ($25) ₱1,200.00
• Pag-ibig Fund contribution ₱100.00   

An approximate total of ₱2,600.00   

Cacdac said OFWs may also get their exit clearance or OEC at the Philippine Overseas Labor Office (POLO) nearest their jobsite before their departure to the Philippines, or at the POEA regional offices while they are in their respective provinces.

Click the link below to apply OEC online

http://bmappointment.poea.gov.ph/

Philippines Iinformation Agency

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The fuel for the Philippines as the Shining pearl to global investors

Taking a look of the millions of Filipino Professionals who are not hesitant to accept jobs lower from their level of educational attainment, or other Filipinos who landed the match job of their profession makes the Philippines as a funnel from hard working people overseas to build the Economy. They are the legion of  Philippine Economy Army; the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW)

Eileen Alcala, cashier in the Upper Crust sandwich shop in Singapore, is a member of the legion of Philippine Economy Army and one reason the Philippines is suddenly looking like a rare investment bright spot after years as one of Asia's persistent laggards.

Put off by tough competition for jobs in Manila, the 24-year-old graduate in hotel and restaurant management left the Philippine capital for Singapore two months ago and now sends over half her monthly pay – about S$500 ($394) – back home.

Taking a look at a professional who landed a job abroad match to his educational discipline; Denis Somoso, an International Taxation Specialist and Accountant of a World Leading Design and Engineering & Construction Firm in South Korea, 32 year old bachelor graduate of Bachelor of Science in Accountancy in MTIM Iligan City left the Philippines for South Korea, given a good benefits form the company rented studio type apartment, free transportation,  food and cost of living allowance,  two and a half year ago and for the past 2 years sending 95% of his monthly pay – about Krw 2,550,000 ($ 2,200.00 USD) – back home.

Numbers like these highlight steady growth in remittances from the Philippine diaspora – and help explain why the, Standard & Poor's became the latest rating agency to upgrade the Philippines, to BB+. That is the country's highest grade for nine years and one notch below investment grade.

The move reflected the Philippines' strengthening external position, with OFW remittances and an expanding service export sector continuing to drive current account surpluses", S&P said.

Foreign reserves of $76 Billion as of May exceed the country's external debt of $63 Billion. Inflation is below 3.5 per cent and gross domestic product growth, driven by robust electronic exports, is forecast by the government at 5-6 per cent this year.

At a time when many economies are struggling, the Philippines is among only 10 sovereigns in the world with positive outlooks, notes Barclays.

Investors are taking note. Philippine share prices are up a quarter since the start of the year, making Manila the world's fourth-best performing equities market on expectations that the country will win investment-grade credit status by next year.

Indeed, since January 2012 foreign investors have pumped $1.8 Billion into the market, according to Bloomberg, a 265 per cent increase on the same month a year ago.

A "public-private partnership program" (PPP) launched six months ago to overcome infrastructure bottlenecks has not only attracted foreign interest but is boosting the shares of companies seen likely to benefit from government contracts, such as Ayala and Metro Pacific Investment.

"The government is much focused on accelerating the PPP program," said Prakriti Sofat, regional economist at Barclays in Singapore.

Laggards on the exchange have been companies with broader exposure to the economy, such as Philippine Airlines and Manila Electric. Still, constituents in the stock market index are trading on an average price/earnings multiple of 18 times. That compares with 20 times for the Jakarta index and 15.6 times for the Kuala Lumpur index.

The yield on the country's benchmark 10-year government bond, meanwhile, is at 5.8 per cent, down from 6.5 per cent this time a year ago. That compares with a yield on comparable Indonesian debt of 6.1 per cent, against 7.3 per cent a year ago.

Hans Sicat, chief executive of the Philippine Stock Exchange, predicts funds raised through company listings and secondary activity will hit ₱107 Billion Pesos ($2.6 Billion US Dollars) this year.

Yet investors may be glossing over the risk that the two-year-old administration of President Benigno "Noynoy" Aquino may take time to deliver.

"Investors are so bullish, they are forgiving many of the country's structural sins," says Luz Lorenzo, economist at Maybank ATR Kim Eng group.

The Aquino administration's gains in lowering the budget deficit were achieved mainly through lower government spending, which fell as a proportion of GDP to 16 per cent last year, from 17.7 per cent in 2009.

A clampdown on tax evasion has resulted in the filing of scores of complaints against suspected tax evaders. Yet, actual tax collection as a proportion of GDP has barely moved, up from 12.1 per cent in 2010 to 12.3 per cent last year, according to the central bank.

The government's tax take is being eroded by a series of exemptions approved by the former president but Mr. Aquino does get credit for a planned new tax on cigarettes and liquor – so-called "sin taxes". Rogier van den Brink, a World Bank economist, says: "They are closing the net on tax collection."

Poor implementation has plagued previous reform efforts, and analysts warn this is still an issue. "I remind [clients] how it went with power privatization. The law was passed in 2001 but the first assets were sold in 2004, and it was only in 2007 that the process really took off," Ms Lorenzo said.

Still, investing has become easier after exchange trading hours were extended in January from a previous lunchtime close to 3.30pm.

A rule forcing listed companies to have a minimum 10 per cent float by the end of this year has prompted a flurry of secondary market activity. That has spurred foreign participation, which accounts for 38 per cent of the market, says Mr. Sicat. "What we're seeing is a very strong local bid, which is helping improve confidence for anyone who is coming in from the outside."

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Philippine Lawmaker filled a bill to fine $50 Dollars all OFW Filipinos leaving to work abroad

A proposed law Bill No. 6195 has been filed by Manila lawmaker Ma. Theresa Bonoan-David aimed at generating funds for the repatriation program of troubled Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW)s, but the funds will be collected from them.

The bill, which seeks to amend Republic Act 8042 or the Migrant Workers and Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995, provides that for every worker recruited or deployed overseas, recruitment agency or its employer, in addition to the obligation to repatriate its workers shall contribute $50 to OWWA's Emergency Repatriation Fund.

The House measure provides that for every worker recruited or deployed overseas, the recruitment agency or its employer shall contribute $50 to Owwa's Emergency Repatriation Fund.

 "The bill intends to provide the necessary measures for the government to carry out its responsibilities to assist distressed OFWs in cases of war, epidemic, disaster or calamities, natural or man-made, and other similar events, and promote their general welfare," said Bonoan-David.

RA 8042 has already created and established an Emergency Repatriation Fund under the administration, control and supervision of OWWA with an initial funding of P1 million.

"There are millions of OFWs all over the world which the Philippine government is mandated to protect and safeguard under RA 8042 but it seems incapable to efficiently help distressed OFWs due to financial constraints," said Bonoan-David.

Under the bill, distressed OFWs can be repatriated during wars, epidemics, disasters or calamities, natural or man-made, and other similar events.

The bill will also establish and maintain an up-to-date database and locator system of OFWs for their repatriation, as well as the necessary disaster preparedness and mitigation measures

OFWs opposed for the no-knowledge law maker for ₱13 billion OFW fund

The overseas Filipino workers' group Migrante-Middle East is opposed to a legislator's proposal to collect an additional $50 fee from every departing OFW to help sustain the government's emergency repatriation fund under the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA). 

Migrante-Middle East regional coordinator John Leonard Monterona said that Manila Rep. Ma. Theresa Bonoan-David's proposal "is ill advised."

"She may be misinformed because the issue is not about lack of funds," Monterona said in a statement issued on Saturday.

According to him, the OFW trust fund under OWWA is now about ₱13 billion and is earning. However, the OWWA allegedly does not have enough programs and welfare services to OFWs and their dependents.

"The OWWA has not been transparent on the real status of the OFWs trust fund and where it is being spent," Monterona said.

He claimed that Bonoan-David's proposal "is clearly anti-OFW" because it would just be an added burden to Filipino migrant workers. Monterona also said that it is against the mandate of Republic Act 10022 or the Migrant Workers Act of 2010.

"Instead of imposing additional fees or charges upon our heavy shoulders, considering the huge contribution of OFWs in terms of yearly remittances posting to $1.7-B on April 3 to 4 percentage point higher than the same month of last year, Rep. Bonoan-David must give up and volunteer to channel her millions of pork barrel allocation to OWWA's emergency repatriation fund," Monterona said.

Migrante hopes that Vice President Jejomar Binay, presidential adviser on OFWs concern, will defend the interest of Filipino migrant workers.

"We hope that....[he] is on our side as we have heard him several times issuing statements against additional unnecessary fees and charges overburdening our OFWs," Monterona said.

MIGRANTE International scored a lawmaker's proposal to require overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to pay $50 or around ₱2,100 as contribution to the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (Owwa) Emergency Repatriation Fund before leaving the country.

Who to blame for the OFW Philippine Economy Army (PEA) exodus?

The Philippines have already suffered for the highest unemployment rate of 6.9% as of April 2012 lower than the previous years with the 94 Million people living within the country.

Counting the more than 10 Million Filipinos working abroad as jobless if they remain in the country, it would sum up to approximately 17 Million Filipino jobless or 18% unemployment rate of the country which might lead to the collapse of the Philippines.

The Philippine Government just failed to address the need of the people resulting to the exodus to find a living outside the country.

The exodus also give a better effect to the Philippines economy as it help the Philippines afloat in spite of the US and European financial crisis as the Filipinos working abroad keep on supporting their family and relatives in the Philippines which accounted $1.7 Billion USD in the month of April 2012 alone which grew 5.3% year on year.

The Overseas Filipino Workers or OFW has been praised and named as the Modern Day Heroes or "Bayani in Filipino term" for helping the Philippines to survive from the global financial crisis.

In fact, International economist named the Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) as Philippine Economy Army (PEA) as the Philippines had been so dependent on the OFW Remittances for the foreign currency needs of the country as its export earnings could not sustain the needs for the demand of Dollars.

OFW tried to survive even in the midst of turmoil in their host countries particularly in the Middle East, a home of Millions of Filipinos investing their lives just to support the needs of their family back home.

The Anti OFW bill of Manila lawmaker Ma. Theresa Bonoan-David is an act of shameless jealous to the OFW after helping the country to survive, they would be penalized for leaving the country.

Many OFW criticized this law maker as selfish, inggitera at "Walang utang Na loob" for the proposed additional $50 US Dollar fine for leaving the country to work abroad.

Pagkatapos makikinabang ang Pilipinas sa pinag hirapan namin na kahit mahirap at mapanganib ay hinarap namin, kahit parang si kamatayan ay halos nasa tabi na namin pinilit namin, ibinubuwis namin ang buhay namin mapakain lang ang pamilya naming naiwan sa Pilipinas dahil walang trabaho sa Pilipinas at iyon ay dahil sa kapalpakan ng govyerno tapos ngayon pag multahin kami, pag bayarin kami ng $50 Dollars kasi lalabas kami para makapag hanap ng trabaho? Bakit lalabas ba kami kung may trabaho diyan? decried by many OFWs.

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