Career Guide

20,000 Jobs for Filipino Workers in Guam Still Available Next Year

Sep 13, 2009

A senator from Guam confirmed that the reported job opportunities for Filipino workers in Guam will still be available next year. This is despite a recent proposal from an American official that Guam should only allot 30% of their workforce for the foreign workers. Earlier news said that Guam is expected to hire 15,000 to 20,000 foreign workers in 2010 and that majority of the positions will be open for Filipinos. Rory Respicio, a Guam Senator and Majority Leader said during a press conference held at the office of the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), “We have affinity for foreign workers, especially for Filipinos." Respicio made this guarantee because US Representative Neil Abercrombie recently filed a bill that would require Guam to limit the number of foreign workers they can hire. Judith Guthertz, another Guam Senator and Assistant Majority Leader said that she thinks the bill proposed by Abercrombie is unlikely to be implemented. She added that in order to pass the bill, a similar proposal would have to be filed and approved in the Guam Senate. Guthertz said, “We do not believe it will pass. He will not get everything he is wishing for," The employment opportunities in this US territory are due to the transfer of the US military bases from Okinawa, Japan to Guam. The relocation of the US military bases from Okinawa, Japan to Guam will create thousands of employment opportunities for foreign workers and Guam officials had long expressed their intention to hire Filipinos. As Guthertz said, “The most likely source of non-US workers for us would be the Philippines." Respico added that Guam prefers Filipinos because they are hardworking, loyal, and very, very industrious."

The senior adviser of Respicio and Guthetz, Alfredo Antolin Jr., said that Filipinos must find this new opportunity in Guam very promising. He said, “In Guam, they will be making good money, there won’t be exploitation."
Workers who will be hired in Guam will receive a minimum of USD12 or Php590 per hour. With that rate, Filipino workers would be making around USD 1,920 or Php 94,000 a month.

Moreover, applicants for Guam jobs do not have to deal with excessive placement fees because according to Guthertz, the required USD 1,000 service fee would be charged to their contractors. The service fee they will collect would go to their manpower development fund for the training of their local workers. However, there is still a chance that some recruitment agencies may charge the said service fee to the workers. In this possibility, the POEA Chief, Jennifer Manalili said “That is something they have to monitor pero magpupulis din naman tayo dito sa atin." Hiring of workers for the Guam relocation project is set to start on 2010. Manalili said that they are still in the process of determining the best recruitment mode.

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