OFW deployment drops after 10-year growth; Owners shying away from Filipino seafarers over disability claims... but employment decline due to 'slowdown in the global shipping industry'

OFW deployment drops after 10-year growth
Rudy Santos September 24, 2018 https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2018/09/24/1854138/ofw-deployment-dro...

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines registered a nine-percent decline in the deployment of migrant workers in 2017 after 10 years of continuous growth.

According to recruitment consultant Manny Geslani, the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to 180 countries declined by nine percent in 2017 as compared to 2016, a banner year of deployment for migrant workers that hit 2,112,331.

Records provided by the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) showed that only 1,992,746 workers were deployed in 2017.

This is the first time the figure dipped after 10 years of continuous increase from 2008 with over two million OFWs, the POEA’s planning branch said.

Geslani said the slight decrease in deployment may be attributed to the decline in the hiring for Saudi Arabia, which dropped to 163,238 in 2017.

Among others, there were major decreases in demand for OFWs in the top destinations: Kuwait, Qatar, Hong Kong, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia and Oman.

Another reason for the decline is the increasing shift of Saudi Arabia to employ its own citizens to work in companies and malls as part of its “Saudization” policy.

In addition, more major projects in Saudi Arabia have been shelved or delayed resulting in the exodus of more than 30,000 Filipinos skilled in construction, maintenance services and oil industries in the 2016-2017 period.

Crude oil, still in the $70-80 level, has prevented Middle East countries from embarking on construction and infrastructure projects with the exception of Qatar, which is in the midst of preparations for World Cup 2022.

Even the demand for domestic helpers, or the so-called Household Service Workers (HSWs) sector, also dropped by eight percent in 2017 with only 231,251 compared to 275,073 due to internal controls implemented by the Philippine Labor Officers in the Middle East.

Deployment of HSWs in 2018 is not expected to go beyond the 200,000 mark with the ban imposed in Kuwait from January to July in 2018, resulting in the loss of 40,000 jobs.

Among the top skills listed by the POEA are HSWs, manufacturing labor, nurses, cleaners and helpers, waiters, home-based personal care, civil engineering laborers, welders and flame cutters, health care assistants, plumbers and pipe fitters, building construction laborers, drivers, cooks, dancers and choreographers, and stall and market sales staff.

However, the outlook in Asia is quite good with the opening of the market in Japan for more technical trainees and caregivers by this month and is expected to surge till the end of the year. More than 120 local recruitment agencies have been accredited by Japanese authorities to deploy agricultural, construction, skilled workers and caregivers for the next five years to fill up the labor shortage in that country.

Other labor markets that are promising are in Europe like Germany, which needs hundreds of nurses, Czech Republic, Russia and the United Kingdom, which recently lifted visa rules for more Filipino nurses.

Getting more benefits

On the other hand, the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) said more Filipino workers abroad are getting financial aid and other benefits from the agency, starting in 2017.

OWWA administrator Hans Cacdac reported an almost three-fold increase in the “direct payment” beneficiaries of the agency.

“The number of direct beneficiaries of OWWA increased by 245 percent which means the money from the trust fund went straight to the hands of the members,” Cacdac said.

Owners shying away from Filipino seafarers over disability claims
20 July 2018 http://www.seatrade-maritime.com/news/asia/owners-shying-away-from-filip...

While Filipinos remain the seafarer of choice for their English language ability and ease to work with there are other factors that discouraging international shipowners from choosing them to crew their vessels.

An issue that has dogged the industry for some years now are full disability claims, for relatively minor, non-career ending injuries, brought by ambulance chasing lawyers combined with an antiquated Garnishment Law that means awards are paid in full prior to appeal.

The Seafarers Protection Act enacted in 2016 was supposed to cap legal fees at 10% of the award to the seafarer, rather than as much as 40 - 50% as has been charged in the past, but in reality it has proved difficult to regulate private agreements between seafarers and the lawyers. Charles Jay De La Cruz, senior partner with law firm Del Rosario Del Rosario, tells Seatrade Maritime News: “It's been two years but the effects have not really been felt. It really requires education and orientation for the seafarers.”

While the seafarer is enticed by a much higher payout than originally offered under their employment agreement after legal fees the amount they receive can actually be less. “Sadly a group of lawyers see it as a business and the seafarer is not benefiting from this,” says Andrew Malpas, President of P&I Correspondent Pandiman.

There is a particular issue with cases brought for seafarers covered by Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBAs) which are heard by the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) and full disability compensation is up to $250,000.

In cases brought for seafarers with contracts under the Philippines Overseas Employment Agency contract where the maximum payout is $75,000 and they are heard by the National Labour Relations Council (NLRC) De La Cruz estimates owners win around 50% of cases, for cases heard by the NCMB he says it’s just one in four.

While the owner or P&I Club can appeal Malpas says that a 70-year out-of-date Garnishment law means payouts have already been made, and the money spent by the time an appeal is heard in the Supreme Court. He says that International Group Clubs have paid out some $27m under garnishment. The result is shipowners deciding to opt for other nationalities to crew their vessels.

“I know shipowners who have moved ships because of decisions by the NCMB,” he says.

De La Cruz comments, “Shipowners in these depressed times would rather settle (out of court) or choose other nationalities (of seafarers).

Current figures on seafarer deployment by the Philippines in international shipping are hard to come by but the general perception in the industry is that numbers have dropped, and to a certain extent have been buoyed by cruise ship jobs such as hotel staff and entertainers. A presentation by Dohle Seafront Crewing at a recent NordCham Philippines Maritime Forum (http://bit.ly/2LbcNzW) quoted government figures for 2016 that actual deployment numbers for seafarers dropped to 304,329 compared to 401,826 in 2015.

There are moves afoot to try find a solution to the issue of disability claims and Malpas is hopeful that it will be resolved. One possibility is that payments are held in escrow until an appeal is heard, however results of tripartite negotiations between the industry, government and the unions will likely take another two years to yield results.

Cacdac said direct payment benefits were provided to the OFW members through welfare, calamity and scholarship programs.

“This is good because more OWWA members directly benefitted from our programs. The figure excludes indirect benefits,” he added. – With Mayen Jaymalin, Delon Porcalla

Decline in deployment
KATLENE O. CACHO March 14, 2017 https://www.sunstar.com.ph/article/131278/

DEPLOYMENT of Filipino seafarers overseas suffered a decline last year due to the slowdown in the global shipping industry.

From 406,531 seafarers deployed in 2015, only 304,329 seafarers were sent abroad last year, down by 25 percent, according to the initial records from the Philippine Overseas Employment Agency (POEA).

Carl Martin Faannessen, managing director of Abojeb Company, attributed the slowdown to the weaker global shipping activities in the past years.
He noted that the maritime industry had been through “a bit of an earthquake” in the last four to five years that even the largest segments of the world’s fleet have struggled.

“Bulk carriers have been struggling immensely, even giants in the container industry have been reporting losses for the past years. The offshore market, oil and gas, has suffered together with the decline in oil prices,” said Faannessen, adding that the slowdown has put pressure on the people working onboard, with many of them already repatriated to their respective countries.

According to Faannessen, 11 of the 12 biggest shipping companies reported huge losses last year, with many teetering on the edge of bankruptcy. Fluctuations are also apparent in all sectors of the maritime market – ship management, finance, crew management and related services.

Abojeb is a maritime and human resource services company, with a pool of over 12,700 seafarers with 10,000 of them on board.

The Philippines is said to be biggest supplier of seafarers in the world. Cebu and Iloilo are the two biggest producers of seafarers in the country. Eighty percent of seabased workers deployed in cruise ships are from Cebu.

Lawyer John Rio Bautista, officer-in-charge at Seabased Pre-employment Services Center at POEA, said the country deploys an average of 150,000 seafarers (non-officers) year-on-year while non-marine workers, such as those deployed on cruise ships, stood at 160,000 annually.

Seafarers send about $4 billion in remittances annually, making them one of the top pillars of the country’s economy.

Faannessen said volatilities in the global maritime industry have a huge impact to the economy, particularly on consumer spending.

But amid these challenges, he said Filipino seafarers remain resilient, optimistic and the most in-demand.

The official said the Philippines is the preferred source market for seafarers because of the good combination of skills and attitude.

“The crisis has given a lot of opportunity for shipowners around the world to focus on the human element onboard. This is one area where Filipinos have the unique ability to shine because of the way they are —welcoming, friendly, engaged, open-minded, and willing to learn,” he said.

The global maritime industry is expected to be more balanced this year, with the exception of the offshore market.

“The offshore market will continue to be more problematic,” said Faannessen, adding that this is due to the continuing downward trend of crude oil prices.

In terms of deployment, the Abojeb official said the demand for non-officers will be stable.

“There is a surplus of ratings (non-officers) until and unless the industry, together with these people find their way to convert them into officers, we will continue to have a surplus. For officers, I think shortages in some areas will remain,” Faannessen said.

Aside from the Philippines, other top supplying countries for seafarers are India, China, Myanmar and Eastern Europe.