Comments on: Controversial POEA Memorandum Circular No. 4

By: Ronald

Ronald — Thu, 13 May 2010 19:35:53 +0000

Hey Jon, then that would be the problem if you want to start an IT business here in this country. Unless you can afford to pay the equivalent rate Singapore is paying, then hell no we will work in this country.

By: My Shaldan » Blog Archive » Controversial POEA Memorandum Circular No. 4

Tue, 09 Sep 2008 12:03:11 +0000

[...] the inflow of OFW remittances to the Philippine’s. 4 months should be enough that it will cause investment houses to downgrade the Philippine Rating enough to limit our lending rates. That should get [...]

By: Remitter

Remitter — Wed, 21 May 2008 04:00:32 +0000

This is just going to serve the agencies which supply man power to countries like the US and the UAE. The problem is going to hit hard the Filipinos and the employers who require the OFWs to work for them. I fail to understand why the memorandum has come at a time when the OFWs themselves are finding it hard to sustain themeselves abroad? Instead of coming up with such moves, the government should create employement opportunities in the country, I feel that would stop the brain drain.

By: Lester Cavestany

Lester Cavestany — Fri, 08 Feb 2008 16:55:27 +0000

My friends, this can’t possibly be a good thing. I am an OFW and I would like to come back to the Philippines. But I have to wait for the right opportunity before I can do that. With this memorandum, I might be forced to come back home without a job. I’ll be jobless. What’s the point of having all the brains back in the Philippines when those brains will just be falling by the wayside?

By: deuts

deuts — Wed, 06 Feb 2008 15:28:15 +0000

Very strong words here huh, and i couldn’t agree with you more!

By: Jon Limjap

Jon Limjap — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 06:55:01 +0000

See, the problem is neither businesses nor employees nor allegiances nor preferences. IT IS our government.

And people love saying that because it absolves them completely and cleans their hands from any responsibility to solve the problem.

By: Richard

Richard — Sat, 02 Feb 2008 01:35:13 +0000

Well Jon, I know your point. But can’t you see? The thing that screws IT startups are not the migrating hotshot developers but the government policies. Competitiveness is not really about developers, its about enterprises. With the kind of help our government gives to non-bluechip Philippine companies, do you think these local businesses would standup to their multinational and conglomerate counterparts. Yes, I know for sure there are good Filipino-owned small companies, but the question is, are they enough. With all those OFWs coming back to the Philippines to look for work, do you honestly think there is enough?

And besides, if I am a senior dev, as you call it, I’d choose a company with a big name and big financial package if the level of technical competency and satisfaction are the same.

And please don’t assume that people never come back because of parents telling their children that the Philippines is hopeless. Look around, everybody IN the Philippines says that. But take the resolve of OFWs differently. Most of these people just want to earn a good living and long to return home.

See, the problem is neither businesses nor employees nor allegiances nor preferences. IT IS our government.

By: POEA’s new rule on ‘direct hiring’ whips up storm of protest - tonyocruz.com

Fri, 01 Feb 2008 10:11:31 +0000

[...] Javellana, writing on Pinoy Tech Blog, said: Its bad enough that OFW’s have to contend with loneliness, being away [...]

By: Jon Limjap

Jon Limjap — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 02:30:38 +0000

Richard,

The problem with the brain drain, unfortunately, is not the ramifications for the Filipino worker but rather for those who want to put up business.

What happens is that, much like the “shrinking middleclass” problem when it comes to economies that progress too fast which doesn’t address the needs of those in poverty thus creating a “great divide” where there are a small upper class, a just-slightly-larger-than-the-upper-class middelclass and a huge lower class, in the IT industry there is a small, well paid senior class, a just-slightly-larger-than-the-senior-class intermediate junior/senior level who are in the 30K/mo -> 100K/mo range, and then below that are the huge numbers of junior and freshly graduated n00b/copy-paste-but-don’t-understand-code type devs.

If I were to set up a business and can’t afford either the intermediate or senior devs because I can’t afford the good ones and everyone in the middle is in Singapore, I’m left with a code monkey market.

And as if any of these guys will go back. Hell no, many of them will settle in their host countries or immigrate because they grew up with their parents telling/teaching them that the Philippines is hopeless and it’s not worth doing anything here.

By: the jester-in-exile

the jester-in-exile — Thu, 31 Jan 2008 16:43:13 +0000

the ramifications i thought of — superficial as they are — scare the crap out of me.