MANILA – Sen. Nancy Binay said she plans to author measure that will totally ban the employment foreign construction workers in the country.
She stressed that the blanket ban should be implemented, particularly in the government’s infrastructure projects to protect the welfare of Filipino workers.
“Ang panawagan ay total ban sa pagpasok ng mga Chinese laborers at construction workers. Our duty is to protect our own workers and provide job security for them – but sadly, we’re opening our labor market to non-Filipinos,” Binay said.
She added: “Kawawa naman tayo. ‘Yung mga trabaho na dapat para sa mga kababayan natin eh napupunta lang sa ibang lahi.
Binay also said it was unacceptable to hire Mandarin-speaking Chinese laborers because
the materials used in China-funded infrastructure projects are written in Chinese characters.
The administration cannot fulfill its promise to give Filipinos jobs under its infrastructure drive if foreigners were given preferential treatment “because of conditions inserted in official development assistance loans,” she added.
President Rodrigo Duterte earlier appealed for a cautious handling of the issue on Chinese workers being employed in the country, noting that China is also home to Filipino workers./PN
