The pandemic has taken a toll on nearly 4,600 overseas Filipino nurses, who are back in the country after being displaced due to the economic blow of the pandemic in their host countries.
Most of them are now looking to be employed locally, according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
DOLE said that the figure was based on the agency’s OFW Assistance Information System (OASIS) database.
“We have discovered that some OFWs, mostly from the Middle East, who have come back, are looking for work locally. As per the initial analysis, 30 percent of those nurses are willing to get jobs here. But this is just the initial number,” said former DOLE secretary and now consultant Marianito Roque, adding that there will be “adjustments” in the hiring of these workers.
“I guess hospitals, both government and private, will take the final call based on the merits and experience that these nurses have. These are very experienced nurses who are adept at using more advanced technologies that are available from their past work experiences. It will be subject to negotiation. employer-employee negotiation,” Roque further said.
The initial number of nurses came from the period of September 2020 up to May 11, 2021.
He added that the bulk of the displaced medical workers originated from the Middle East, where most of the clinics where they used to work have closed.
Not just nurses, workers from other sectors including construction, shipping among others have returned due to pandemic-induced job losses.
“Many construction workers, service and hotel workers coming from the cruise liners that are no longer sailing and a lot of engineers too. It is a hodgepodge of different skills but most of them are household service workers,” Roque said.
