Chinese tourists are "clandestine workers"

ALARMED Senator Joel Villanueva calls for stricter regulation of foreign workers. -JANAN BONDOC

Tens of thousands of Mainland Chinese enter the Philippines as tourists before obtaining special short-term permits to work in online gambling operations, a Senate panel heard on Monday.

At a hearing of the Senate Labor Committee, Senator Joel Villanueva expressed concern and indignation after immigration and labor authorities admitted that more than 119,000 "tourists", most of them of them from mainland China, had been able to circumvent labor regulations to obtain temporary employment in the country. country.

Holders of these tourist visas remain technically tourists, even during the three to six months of their missions in the country.

Thus, their employers do not need to prove that jobs can not be performed otherwise by locals, which is the usual policy of foreign workers.

Jobs "stolen"

"It's very clear. Chinese nationals steal our jobs, rob our homes and steal opportunities from Filipinos, "said Villanueva.

He called for strict regulation of foreign workers in the country.

The Senate committee is studying the proliferation of suspected illegal workers from China, whose number has increased in Metro Manila to a degree that does not match that of the Ministry of Labor and Employment (Dole).

Dole figures show that since 2015, a foreign work permit (AEP) has been issued to nearly 116,000 foreigners, which allows them to work legally in the Philippines.

An AEP will be issued by Dole only if there is no Filipino willing or competent enough to do the work proposed to a foreigner.

Visa requirement

Authorization is one of the main requirements for the issuance of a work visa for foreigners, but officials acknowledge that virtually all AEP holders have been able to obtain visas from job.

Chinese nationals account for the bulk of foreign workers holding AEP, nearly 52,000, or about 45% of the total, mainly in the manufacturing, information and communications sectors, and as administrative and support services.

But the Deputy Secretary of Labor, Ciriaco Lagunzad III, told the Senate committee that the Chinese had been able to get a job in another way, even without AEP, by obtaining special labor permits from the Bureau of the Senate. 39; immigration.

"It goes beyond the ASP … because it's for short missions of six months … or three months that can be extended by three months," he said.

Lagunzad explained that the status of these license holders remained tourists. "Is it covered by an AEP? The answer is no, "he said.

He pointed out that more than 119,000 of these permits had been issued by the Immigration Bureau from 2017 to 2018. But the actual number could be higher, knowing that about 1.6 million tourist visas were issued to Chinese citizens in 2018 by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and only 18 pre-employment visas.

Massive presence in the metro

Villanueva also described anecdotal evidence of China's massive presence in major real estate projects in Metro Manila, particularly in the south of the country.

The demand for Chinese workers' offices and housing boosted the Metro Manila real estate market, pushing up rents in many condominiums.

Reports of undisciplined behavior of these workers in residential buildings have also increased.

"There is certainly more than the official figures," Villanueva said.

Homer Arellano, head of the prosecutions and legal assistance section of the immigration office, said that special work permits were generally granted to foreign basketball players to play in the local league and to international artists who organized a concert. .

Offshore gaming operators

But when Villanueva noted that there could not be 119,000 workers of this type, Arellano said: "Most of them are Chinese and work in companies run by Pogos (Filipino offshore gambling operators)" .

Senator Grace Poe responded, "Should not this be a red flag for us? They should not come here under false pretenses. "

Poe also asked if the immigration authorities had tracked the background of these license holders and had a criminal record in their home country.

Mandarin

Arellano said that one of the factors that disadvantaged Filipinos compared to Chinese in this type of work was the lack of fluency in Mandarin.

This prompted Poe to retort that Filipinos could be hired as dubbed to learn Chinese in Pogo jobs.

Villanueva then suggested that the language skills training of Tesda (Authority for Technical Education and Skills Development) focuses on teaching Mandarin to Filipinos.

Addressing reporters after the hearing, Mr. Villanueva said his intention was not to spread the anti-Chinese sentiment, but only to ensure that Filipino jobs are protected.

"It is unfortunate, but we are not trying to distinguish a nationality, we are talking about illegal workers stealing jobs from Filipinos," he said.

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