BY DANIE MAE FAJARDO-DELA CRUZ
MANILA – Secretary Susan Ople of the Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) welcomed the possible opening of Hong Kong to Filipino caregivers.
There is currently an acute manpower shortage in Hong Kong, specifically in caregivers and assisted care workers.
“This would provide additional job opportunities for our caregivers,” said Ople.
On Dec. 13, 2022 the Hong Kong Executive Council approved the direct hiring of foreign caregivers and speeding up the application processing period to just two months.
But Ople stressed the importance of making sure that Filipino caregivers work under conditions that value their skills and are cognizant of their rights and welfare.
Hong Kong’s roposed salary range for caregivers and assisted care workers ranges from HKD12,000 to HKD20,000 or from P85,000 to P140,000.
To discuss the possible deployment of Filipino caregivers and assisted care workers to Hong Kong, DMW will hold exploratory talks with their counterparts in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region this February.
Several concerns will be tackled including language barrier. Most of Hong Kong’s elderly only speak Cantonese.
DMW undersecretary Patricia Yvonne Caunan (Policy and International Cooperation) will lead the team in the exploratory talks.
There are 211,514 Filipinos in Hong Kong, data (as of first semester of 2022) from the Hong Kong Immigration Authority showed, and they are mostly domestic workers.
Secretary Ople had a bilateral meeting with Hong Kong Secretary for Labor and Welfare Chris Sun on Jan. 9.
Hong Kong population is aging, Sun told Ople, thus there is a growing need for workers in both private and government subsidized care homes and assisted care facilities.
Sun also assured Ople that the Hong Kong Executive Council places importance to protecting their large foreign domestic workforce.
For her part, Ople proposed collaborative campaigns between the DMW and the Hong Kong government to inform OFWs of their rights as migrant workers and how they can seek assistance from authorities when they are in distress./PN
