“Once again, this is a shining testament to the world-class Filipino worker,â€
An interesting story today about the tiny island of New Caledonia. The island is owned by France, one of the last vestiges of France’s former empire and is rich in Nickel and Cobalt ores. One might wonder why France didn’t staff this project with French citizens … especially the huge, whining contingent that was bitching so loud about discrimination and lack of opportunity that they almost burned France down a month or so ago.
Even though I am neither a sociologist nor a politician I have my thoughts on why: Perhaps because mining in a tropical climate is damn hard work … not much opportunity to make a buck or a frank or a peso while sitting in a sidewalk cafe complaining about every other country. Or perhaps because in order to make money from minerals you have to have a workforce that gives an honest day’s work for an honest (but small) day’s pay? Or perhaps Franc is afflicted with the same “dirty hands” syndrome that now plagues the US … anyone who gets their hands dirty to earn a living must be unsuccessful by definition.
Whatever the reason, a great opportunity for New Caledonia and a great opportunity for the Philippines.
As a US expat-to-be in the Philippines I marvel at the number of fellow Westerners who think they know the Philippines when they make disparaging statements regarding the work habits and industry of the Filipino people. Part of the reason I am kicking off this site is to publish the real facts about the Philippines as well as being available to answer FAQS (Frequently Asked Questions).
You can expect to see a varied menu here. Opinions, commented news reports, editorials, reviews of Philippines business, destinations and services that I have personal knowledge of, and hopefully a lot of guest editorials from other expats.
What you will not see are get rich quick schemes, whiny forum posts and trivial complaints aired again and again. If you’d like to learn and explore without the BS. Then welcome aboard for the journey.
If you have a question or comment, mail me at: Philly@philfaqs,com
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I have heard too many horror stories about construction in the Philippines to entirely discount the unfavorable reports I’ve read about Filipino workers. I think a lot of the conflicts are because Americans expect American-standard work, which generally starts with higher quality materials and uses workers with more skill and knowledge of construction.
Americans as a class seem quick to judge and quick to be hostile to others, particularly those they don’t understand. The conclusion I have come to after reading a lot about this and talking to a fair number of people is that a construction project in the Philippines requires constant supervision, because people may not know what they are doing, or they may want to steal your materials. This is understandable; they know you’re the “rich kano” with unlimited funds, and compared to theirs, they are right. This also causes construction to go very slowly, especially when you’re not around to monitor it.
So, Filipino workers are lousy, right?
Well, maybe not. You can say the same things about a lot of American workers you would hire. Are American workers known for messing up jobs? Yep. Are they known for slacking when you’re not around? Of course. I think most people who complain look back at America with rose-colored glasses, which of course is a mistake. They forget over time the problems with America that caused them to want to leave.
I think it’s important to understand another thing. I’d say most people who want to live in the Philippines are probably not doing it because of the low cost of living or the tropical climate. Those are good things, yes, but it’s the personality and warmth of the Filipina that has truly seduced us. Our Filipinas care about us, even the bargirls we hire for a day or a week. And in return, we care about our Filipinas, and we want to see them happy and content and curled up in bed with us.
What’s that have to do with unreliable workers? It is this: The Filipinas are most charming because they put us first – they put personal things first, and then work or business.
A few examples: The Sassy Lawyer blog is run by a pretty sophisticated Filipina, but she has recipes too there and cooks for her husband. Her logo is a cellphone in one hand and a spatula in the other! A profile I read of a Filipina gives the most important things in her life: Her husband, her family and her work. In American families, those priorites are exactly reversed.
This whole philosophy affects all workers, and so the pace of life is slower and people don’t work as hard in many situations. Just remember that this is the same reason snuggling up with your Filipina gives you such great joy.
Give her a little smile as you think about her …
D
Some great comments, David. Thanks.
With respect to Filipino construction workers, I agree that you can find very good to very bad. I also can show you very good to very bad in the US. Those withknee-jerk reactions that all is perfect or all is crappy becuase of nationality are only showing their lack of overall thought process.
I also lived for years in Japan. Mnay things are extremley high quality there, yet the million or billions of dollars worth of high speed bullet trains, envy of the world, are in continual danger of chunks of concrete falling off the roofs on tunnels becuase the concept of continuous pour concrete (and thus no “cold joints”)is totally foreign to many Japanese craftsmen. I worked for two weeks on a project I managed there for the USAF before I could find even one company who could guarantee a continuous pour. I might as well have been talking in Swahili.
We all, personally and nationally, have our strong and weak points.
P
The export of humanity is the number one export of the Philippines. In 30 years at sea I have NEVER entered a port, no matter how remote, and not ran into a Filipino who was working there. For the most part they were all being mistreated, gouged by the Job Agent whom they have a contract with, gouged by the employer who remits a portion of their low salary back to said agent and their own government who will do nothing to help unless it hits the International News.
While tied to the pier in the UAE, we encountered 18 Filipino Seaman trapped by local law on an abandoned Flag of Convenience tanker berthed next to us, they we fishing off the well deck for food. Why we asked? It seems that the company went broke and the ship’s Master and Officers just walked off and flew home, leaving the crew to fend for themselves. No water, no Power, no food, and the Purser took their passports with him. My ship’s Master (who is married to a Filipina) went to the Philippine Embassy to get them some help, and was flatly turned down. He then got so angry he contacted the U.S. Embassy who contacted CNN, and they aired the story. The very next day the Philippine Embassy (plus Ambassador) was on the pier in mass to render assistance to their fellow countrymen. Who by the way had been stuck on that derelict hulk for over two months! (And yes my crew brought them food)
I won’t even get into what I saw Filipina’s have to do to survive and make a little extra money in some of these “Host” nations. And the government takes such pride in the amount of money returned by these Over Seas Workers. Yet you could never get them to pass a decent minimum wage law or fair labor laws, that could keep worker’s, working at home and together.