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A BOOM
in construction activities is expected to commence in
Guam by next year with the transfer of some 8,000 US
military personnel and their families from Okinawa,
Japan. But the Philippines may not have enough workers
to supply that demand.
This was
the assessment of Victor Fernandez, president of the
Philippines Association of Services Exporters Inc. (Pasei),
an association of 777 licensed manpower recruitment
agencies in the country.
“We
don’t have enough workers. So our association is working
to enhance the skills of workers in the construction
industry. Even here, we have a difficult time looking
for skilled workers because many have moved to the
Middle East, which is experiencing a second construction
boom. So we are training our workers to meet the Guam
demand, based on US skills standard,” Fernandez told the
BusinessMirror.
AN aerial view of the
Futenma US Marine Base in Futenma City, Okinawa
prefecture, Japan, July 27, 2006. The Marines plan to
move 17,000 personnel and dependents to Guam from
Okinawa, Japan, beginning in 2012, boosting the island’s
population by 10 percent. House prices have risen 70
percent since 2003 on expectations of increased demand.
-- HIROAKI
YAMASHIRO/BLOOMBERG NEWS
He said
about 20,000 to 30,000 workers alone are needed to
fulfill the contractors’ demand for skilled and
unskilled laborers for the construction of housing and
other facilities needed by the military personnel who
are expected to make their move to Guam by next year.
He added
that another 20,000 workers will also be needed to
supply the service-related businesses, such as
restaurants, clubs, hotels, hospitals and children’s
recreational facilities, among others, once the military
personnel have fully established themselves on the
island.
“The
demand is not just for construction workers; the total
projected demand is about 50,000 to include the
service-related industries. There will be a multiplier
effect because naturally you have to put up recreation
areas, more malls, department stores, clubs, etc., and
you need service-related workers, such as waiters,
accountants, and hotel and restaurant management staff,
for those.”
Fernandez said the need for construction workers is
actually expected to ease after 2015, after construction
activities wind down.
“But the
need for service-related workers will be permanent,
because you have to put up hospitals, for example, and
will need medical staff, maintenance people for the
housing facilities, plumbers, etc.”
On May
9, 2008, US President George W. Bush signed into law the
Consolidated Natural Resources Act, which includes an
immigration rider exempting Guam from the annual
allotment for working visas. The US government has an
annual immigration cap of 66,000 for H-2 visas, which
are reserved for foreign construction workers.
The move
of the 8,000 military personnel to Guam is projected to
cost about $10.3 billion, as housing units, utilities
and other infrastructure still need to be constructed.
Fernandez estimates that the gross pay for an unskilled
worker alone, such as an assistant to a carpenter for
instance, will be at least $1,200 a month. “If you
remove the taxes, food and housing, these unskilled
workers can net at least $750 a month.”
He said
this rate is much higher than what said workers are
being paid in the Middle East, where most Filipino
construction workers continue to be deployed.
“In
Saudi Arabia, for example, the same worker will probably
get only $250 a month. So I tell prospective applicants
that they are still ahead in Guam in terms of wages.”
Thus, he
sees the Guam demand for workers as ”leverage” for
Filipinos in the Middle East to bargain for higher wages
with their employers there.
“They
[Middle East employers] won’t get other workers because
they still prefer Filipinos. So if they want their
workers to stay, they can increase the workers’ wages.
They now have to compete in terms of availability of
skilled workers. Once our workers know there are better
opportunities on Guam, they may opt not to renew their
contract in the Middle East, or this will give the
leverage to haggle for a higher salary,” he said.
Despite
the higher wages and the anticipated large demand for
workers on Guam, the Philippines, he admitted, will not
be able to adequately meet that demand.
So Pasei
will be tying up with the government-run Technical
Education and Skills Development Authority to develop
training modules and get US-based trainers to train
local trainers so the latter will be able to help
upgrade the skills of Filipino workers to meet US
standards.
“We are
seeking sponsors for the training programs, especially
for applicants [from] the provinces. We already have 42
congressmen who have agreed to sponsor the training of
their constituents. All the applicants have to do is to
repay the training in kind like serving in their local
businesses. Some of them can render their services for
free with construction companies in their area to serve
as on the job training.”
He said
the final details of the training program are still
being worked out but will hopefully be in place within
18 months, before local recruitment agencies receive
their “job orders” from Guam contractors to supply the
needed construction manpower.
Still,
Fernandez said the Guam construction may help alleviate
the joblessness in the Philippines.
“It can
alleviate local unemployment, but our workers have to
show their willingness to upgrade their skills to US
standards,” he said.
The
unemployment rate in the Philippines rose to 8 percent
in April 2008, compared with 7.4 percent in April 2007,
while underemployment, or the number of workers who are
unable to work for at least eight hours a day, increased
to 19.8 percent from 18.9 percent in April 2007.
There
were 57.7 million employable persons in the Philippines
who are 15 years and older as of April 2008, and only
36.4 million were in the labor force, according to data
from the National Statistics Office. |
