Watching the News is Painful

Since I quit my job, I’ve been watching television more, and part of my weekday habit is to watch the News on television (I also watch the News on my PC, but that’s another story). Everyday, I do a little count on how many times they’re going to mention the number of Filipinos who are getting sacked abroad and coming home in tears.

Besides the sacking stories, I also take note of employee harassment abroad, and stories about Filipinos accepting risky jobs (including those that don’t provide adequate safety equipment to keep them alive). Needless to say, it’s depressing.

For years, the Philippine government has been pimpin’ The Great Filipino Worker, encouraging people to take up ‘abroad-friendly’ courses and applying for jobs outside the country as soon as they can. Now, however, we cannot deny that risking our countrymen’s livelihood and safety abroad has become a bigger issue. Hiring is still on, for sure, because the government rarely considers the safety of the workers abroad. It becomes an issue only after accidents happen and investigations on worker safety in the said country or company are needed.

It’s a choice of every Filipino to go abroad and earn cash as everyone here really is a Great Worker, but if there are more jobs here (construction jobs, manual labor, nursing jobs..etc. ) we won’t need to go out.