Absurdity of Looking for Work in the Philippines

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Just a small coment to this part.  From what I have seen "po" seem similar to how English use "please" when not begging but is polite.

The worker class say it too, perhaps more often than the rich and middle class   

@gsturdee writes "... Californian."

Thanks gsturdee for your interesting post, and for caring about the above.

@PalawOne Cheers mate!

@drjs Got an offer today for 120k a month, thanks for the pointers

@willTol

wow, congratulations.  hoping to hear whether or not you'll accept the job offer.

@BassMan_720 Unfortunately  it is a Government directive to give the senior citizen discount to filipino citizens only.

A bill was put forward for foreigners to be included but was sat on in the senate and not passed.

@temploni I am a 72 year old foreigner who regularly get a Senior Discount after showing my ACR-I Card - NOT everywhere, but many Fast Food restaurants including TGIFridays, Jollibee's, Burger King, KFC, and Dairy Queen. From 10 to 20%. Can't get it at Supermarkets or Department or Retail Stores. My Doc gives me Senior Visit Price of 500 Pesos for a visit, but Kaiser Clinic and Pharmacies do Not give any discount.

@BassMan_720 Unfortunately it is a Government directive to give the senior citizen discount to filipino citizens only.
A bill was put forward for foreigners to be included but was sat on in the senate and not passed.
-@temploni

Why "unfortunately" ? 

It would be nice to get discount at VISA costs 

and at "Kano prices" which I dont pay anyway except to poor

but I suppouse we foreigners have more money than almost all owners of small businesses so why want discount from them...?

((Inspite of I  got my look aged 10 - 20 years fast when I got a serious illness, one around 35yo Swedish woman believed recently I am 20 years younger than I am! which suprised me because I realy aged much fast by the illness I got 4 years ago. Although if counting other than smile wrincles I have less wrincles and less bags under eyes too than some 30yo so I wonder what they have done to look that old.  So I suppouse some would believe its fake if I would show senior citizen card to get discount      My mother got grumpy when she had got her first wrincle - when she was over 80

Coach53 said . . . .My mother got grumpy when she had got her first wrincle - when she was over 80

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Must have been that Coco Oil.

Coach53 said . . . .My mother got grumpy when she had got her first wrincle - when she was over 80
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Must have been that Coco Oil.
-@Enzyte Bob

You are correct for once!!! 

She use coconut oil since some years.

Hello to everyone,

Can we kindly return to the original topic- Absurdity of Looking for Work in the Philippines

Thanks,

Yoginee

Expat.com team

@coach53

It's not "lose face".  Most Pinoys especially the poor ones are xenophobic especially due to language barrier.    Seeing what poor Filipino carpenters can accomplish in building Makati and Taguig cities and all those wonderful skyscrapers, I am convinced that they are not hesitant to ask and clarify using their vernacular.   Otherwise, those structures would not last a year standing. 

@Gardo Fuentes Those structures are designed by licenser architects who hire licensed contractors. Their building standards are up to par with first world countries. The contactors hire foremen who know the building codes. The tradesmen need to be certified. Laborers work by the instructions of the foreman. Building inspectors check the work. I would not expect Trump tower in Makati to come down at the next earthquake but people trying to save a few pesos by hiring local workers to build their homes can run into problems unless they hire architects and, at least, licensed engineers to oversee building of their homes. Not every municipality pays a lot of attention to bulding inspections.

I suppouse we foreigners have more money than almost all owners of small businesses so why want discount from them

-@coach53

Omo....Not at all funny to me....when you see many basic grocery prices that are even more expensive than the prices from where I come from a place where my salary was way much higher than any employment income I could get over here....infact it makes me angry that the much poorer locals are forced into such a trap.

Agree Manwonder but one has to ask who created the trap? Self imposed or the greedy? Point is that the going pay rates are the going pay rates and all my workers stated their rates that they were happy with and none wanted SSS or Philhealth deducted, go figure but their choice.

9 workers, 2 masons, (one is the leading hand), 1 steel worker, 5 labourers, 1 (the better half and yes I pay him) he runs wages and account books, translates, does all the buying/pricing of materials, lots of snacks for the workers etc.

6 days a week = 27,900 Pesos or UA $720.00.

I give them all an extra P1K per month and guess what? They always start work 15 minutes early and 10 minutes after knock off time, keen. That's why I give them a bonus. I also give them great amenities in the bunk house we built 6 weeks ago, large refrigerator, 4 inch mattresses on the bunk beds, large kitchen with double bowl sink and running water, a toilet and shower, plenty of power points and lighting. Ben said that a few of the guys say it's better than their houses.

I think my point here is that their wages are the going rates but we give them great facilities as I always expected if working away or overseas. A happy worker is a good worker.

Sorry to go off topic and back to the OP. I know to find decent paying work here that foreigners expect is very difficult for most and simply glad I retired here.

OMO.

Cheers, Steve.

Quick question

What is the difference between a "malay filipino"

and a "tribe filipino"

I've never encountered these terms

My Filipino partner has never heard those terms, hope another can help you.

Cheers, Steve.

Speculating...the Philippines has seen many ethnic influences over the centuries and the Filipino DNA is currently halo-halo (like European DNA) .

"Tribe Filipino", might be referring to the aboriginal inhabitants, like the Negrito tribes, closely linked to indigenous Indonesians and Papuans, with genitally more Denisovan DNA than any other haplotypes on the planet. They're shorter, wide-nostrils, darker skinned people with curly hair.

https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opin … stry-69089

"Malay Filipino" might be referring to the descendants of the 14th century immigrants of their Malayan neighbors, who introduced Islam to the southern islands including Mindanao. Their DNA has subsequently spread throughout the islands, along with Chinese, Portuguese, Spanish, and American - and comprises the average Filipino we see today.

In the 1500-1600's the Portuguese slave traders stopped by Manila, on route from Africa to South America, to get supplies, and left a little DNA also.

And connecting to looking for work topic (sorry of track)..Denisovans were only recently discovered through genetic sequencing studies of modern humans, and there is precious little archeological sites or tissue remains to be tested, unlike for Neanderthals. So, there's likely genetic and archeological research openings coming soon to the Philippines.

"....with genitally more Denisovan DNA than any other haplotypes on the planet."

That word was meant to be "genetically", BTW.

Quick question

The following terms were referenced in replies to this thread by a member.

What is the difference between a "malay filipino" and a "tribe filipino" ?

I've never encountered these terms

I suppose it's like being a Chinoy.

https://tinyurl.com/2s3wrucz

No different to being a Muggle? (Harry Potter).

Tribe Filipino to me means no mixed blood.

https://tinyurl.com/3zceyx7j

Like most countries mixed lineage.

Cheers, Steve.

@coach53    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Filipinos … _descentIf  it would be that simple, man that's so racist... consider to learn what is Malay before you put yourself out there in such pathological racism...

First of all, Malays played a significant role in pre-Hispanic Philippine history. Malay involvement in Philippine history goes back to the Classical Era with the establishment of Rajahnates as well as the Islamic era, in which various sultanates and Islamic states were formed in Mindanao, the Sulu Archipelago, and around Manila.

Further more you are sounding like a racist! Pinoy people are the most respectful people on the globe but I have to admit you lost a brain cel and cannot think clearly anymore or you coming from a cave monkey which never developed till today.

Learn to have respect for other nations and keep those stupid remarks for yourself.

And to Nightfish, just go to Google and read the result there.

Omo....Not at all funny to me....when you see many basic grocery prices that are even more expensive than the prices from where I come from a place where my salary was way much higher than any employment income I could get over here....infact it makes me angry that the much poorer locals are forced into such a trap.
-@manwonder

Expats are commonly paid way above local rates, and there's nothing wrong with that - BUT -  and there's always a big 'but'........

Expats, in my humble opinion, should always respect and try to understand locals and their problems.

I got ripped off a lot in Malaysia and Thailand, and I get ripped off here, but I always allow it as long as it's not silly.

An example would be a man in my last place who sells kids comics at the traffic lights. He always asked for a little higher from me than he did from locals, and I always paid up.  The guy was very old, had not much to his name, and still trying to do an honest days work to feed himself.

My usual trick was to give him (and people like him) a much bigger note than he was likely to have the change for, then tell him I would get the change next time I saw him - The same the next time and so on.

The loss to me was nothing, not so much as a cup of coffee, but it meant a meal or three to him.

Be nice to people.

@manwonder I wonder how up to date is the information in that report. In 2014, I set up a web development corporation with 99% foreign ownership with a fully paid up capital of US$200,000.

My only job interview here in the Philippines was with an international company that my husband (a foreigner) worked in. The interviewer, a Filipina, told me after a few questions: "I actually have no intention of hiring you, but was just curious why you applied."

My only job interview here in the Philippines was with an international company that my husband (a foreigner) worked in. The interviewer, a Filipina, told me after a few questions: "I actually have no intention of hiring you, but was just curious why you applied."
-@yiqipo

Almost related. . . .

I was a sales manager for a company and doing primary interviews on the phone and the good candidates would be invited back to a one on one personal interview. One of the candidates was name John L. Sullivan.

On the phone interview I asked about their employment history, Mr. Sullivan said he was a professional wrestler  and his wrestling name Luscious Johnny Valiant.

My kids and myself had seen him wrestle just a few days before. More out of curiosity I invited him in for an interview. Indeed he did have a successful sales history prior to being a wrestler.

I asked him why he was interested and his reply was he lived in Pittsburgh (where I lived at the time), He said over 300 days a year on the road  was a real grind, he would wake up and not even know what city he is in.

I would have liked to have hired him but I knew that sometime he would leave and continue his wrestling career. Afterwards I felt ashamed for wasting his time to satisfy my own curiosity.

@Enzyte Bob

That is so Cool !

Yeh but he failed to pin down the job

@drjs

correcting grammar or spelling to the person interviewing you. Won’t get ya hired.  14 years there I will tell you expats I know that landed a good job.   Dole hires expats and I know  they pay good. The two I know. We’re given  paid condos. 

American Auto parts

contact large companies in the USA like Johnson and Johnson. Amazon etc.

also buy a car or van and rent trips.

The problem is, in the U.S. right now, BOTH Johnson & Johnson and Amazon are laying off workers. Amazon's laying off 18,000 workers..so getting hired by either of these 2 companies will be NON EXISTENT! My advice, DONT come to the USA to work...at least not in 2023, maybe 2024 will be better.  The economy is BAD AT BEST! Interest rates are like 8 to 9%.

Randall Roy said. . . . correcting grammar or spelling to the person interviewing you. Won’t get ya hired.

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I was a sales manager for 14 years conducting hundreds of interviews. So reading Randall Roy's post I reached back in my memory to my interviewing days. The only ones that come to mind are the dumb candidates.

One interview was with a woman who brought her husband along, the interview was in a hotel room half way across the state and more than 100 miles from my office.

Being what the situation was I didn't have any objections for him being present for the interview. Every time time I asked her a question the husband would answer for her. As they left the room he turned around and asked me, Did she get the job?

@danfinn

That's how understand it too.

But the word "inappropriate" might be too strong. I have been with a 4 star general for 5 years, who consistently addressed others with "po". Maybe it's unusual and depending on region.