Labor implications on the OFWs in Malaysia

As a former Philippine Labor Attache to Malaysia, I feel extremely apprehensive of the diplomatic and immigration backlash to what the Sultan of Sulu has done, and I'm and deeply concerned with far-reaching implications of the diplomatic standoff between our country and that close ASEAN ally.  The trouble in Lahad Datu is bound to bring untold problems to the thousands of Filipinos in Malaysia be they permanent residents, or migrant workers, be they legally documented or undocumented. Expectedly, the OFWs in that country will most probably meet the antagonism of their employers, co-workers and migrants from other countries, and from the Malaysian government itself.

The estimate on the actual number of Filipinos in Malaysia ranges from 245,000  to  640,000, many of whom are undocumented and residing in Sabah. As of December 2011, the reports from the Philippine Embassy in Kuala Lumpur indicated that there were 55,828 legally documented OFWs in Malaysia, about 4,000 of whom are professional workers that include engineers who work in that country's oil industry in Sarawak, Pahang, Teranganu and other states. Malaysia has 11 federated states, 9 of which are located in the mainland connected with Thailand in the north, and by a bridge with Singapore in the south. Sabah and Sarawak are parts of the island of Borneo with Indonesia and Brunei.

There are about  30,000 Filipino domestic helpers in Malaysia who are documented. We have no basis to make an educated guess on the number of those who are undocumented, most of whom work in Sandakan, Kota Kinabalu, and in Sarawak and the island of Labuan, which serves as the rest and recreation centers of the Filipino expats and other nationals.  The expats work in the oil drilling and refineries in Brunei and Malaysia. There are allegations of some undocumented in Johore who simply cross the bridge to Singapore and in Penang who travel to cross the borders to Thailand. They are all good Filipinos who cannot be called “illegal”, because they are simply undocumented, victimized either by employers and/or recruiters and traffickers.

But most of the Filipinos in Malaysia are decent, educated and honorable people. Some of them are University professors, teachers and school administrators. Others are doctors and nurses, dentists and caregivers. There are many college graduates working in hotels, restaurants and resorts doing sales, customer services, food and beverages, housekeeping and security. When you visit the giant malls in Kuala Lumpur, Penang, Genting Highlands, Johore, Malacca and Kota Kinabalu, Sebu and Miri in Sarawak, you will meet Filipinos working as sales clerks, chefs, waiters, room boys, beauticians, office clerks and front desk personnel. Most of all, almost all entertainers are Filipinos: singers, guitarists, pianists, drummers all sorts of musicians.

The household service workers, or domestic helpers, as they are officially called by our government, are trusted with the homes and young children of royal families and rich Malaysian businessmen. They care for both the young kids and the elderly and are paid good salary and given some benefits. On Sundays, they are given day offs and they usually congregate in Kota Raya where they socialize and send money to their loved ones. Or, they go to the embassy and labor office's FWRC, or Filipino Workers' Resource Center where they take short courses on computer, tailoring, cooking, care-giving, nursing care and other related courses for free. I should know. I was the Administrator of this school from 2005 to 2008. Malaysia gives the OFWs a lot of freedom and opportunities.

All these, however, are being threatened by a possible tightening of immigration policies by the Malaysian authorities. Malaysia is our friend. Prime Minister Najib  Razak is helping us on the peace process. With all due respect, what the Sultanate of Sulu has done, notwithstanding the fact that the sultan may have his own reasons, is posing a grave and imminent danger to the stability of the OFWs' employment in Malaysia. Sooner than later, the heat will most probably be felt by incoming migrants seeking to enter Malaysia.

What is being done in Lahad Datu may be seen as a sufficient provocation. And a new policy of making the OFWs' stay in Malaysia difficult may be used as a weapon of self-defense, by a friend who is deeply aggrieved. I may be wrong, of course, but if my prognosis is correct, life among the Filipinos may not be as happy as it used to be. And if that happens, we have no one else to blame but ourselves. Sayang.