By Karl Lester M. Yap
Dec. 10 (Bloomberg) -- Sonny del Pilar tried for eight years to get work as a sailor so he could join the Philippines' 8.7 million overseas workers, sending money to his brother's family of nine rather than living with them in a Manila slum.
The 33-year-old gave up this year and set up a small shop in front of his house selling stuffed toys. He says competition from Indians, Bangladeshis and Syrians is making it harder for Filipinos to find jobs as seamen.
“I work not just for myself but for my family and my siblings,” del Pilar said in Manila. “I don't know if I can still find work abroad. It depends on God's will.”
The Philippines, which for four decades has sent what the government called “modern heroes” to work overseas, is facing the first decline in remittances in eight years. A global recession is reducing job opportunities abroad just as a surge in cheaper labor from China, India and elsewhere ramps up competition. That's threatening revenue that accounts for more than a tenth of the Philippines' $144-billion economy. Read more
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