JAMES MATTHEW R.

LOMONGO BS APPLIED MATHEMATICS

THE CONTEMPORARY WORLD

ENCOUNTER WITH AN OFW

Name: JAY C. LOMONGO

FB ACCOUNT: JAY CABASAG LOMONGO
Age: 38
Marital Status: SINGLE
No. of Children: 3
Occupation: SEAMAN
Country of the workplace: ANY DESTINATION
Years of working abroad: 15 YEARS

B. Work Experience
1. Why did you choose to work as an OFW?

- He said, she believe that when they go abroad, their salaries are high. Let's face it: the
Philippines has one of the lowest wage structures in the area. While still abroad, she chooses to
save money. In the Philippines, they do this for their loved ones. So that they may send money to
their children in the Philippines to finish their studies and cover their daily costs.

2. What are the benefits of working abroad?

- When Filipinos work abroad, they have the option of claiming benefits for themselves and their
family. When they begin working overseas, for example, they become OWWA members, which
qualifies them and their families to perks such as scholarships. In addition, as they become
permanent expats, their dependents are eligible for advantages such as free education overseas
and other similar things.

3. What are the challenges of working as an OFW?

- Working as an OFW is not always as easy as it looks. The truth is that they confront a variety of
problems in addition to abandoning their family in the Philippines in order to pursue a brighter
future. They have obstacles in communication, money, and their personal and professional lives.
The purpose of this study was to assess the obstacles faced by a group of foreign migrant
workers. This research included 850 OFWs from all around the world as participants. The breadth
of this study would make a significant contribution to the vast body of information about the issues
encountered by Overseas Filipino Workers.
4. How do you deal with the challenges?

- He said, working abroad is you need to notice you're overthinking, find something pleasant
to do to redirect your focus away from it. You may go for a run, clean the kitchen, watch a
movie, or socialize with your pals. Sometimes all that is required is getting up. It helps you
from a lot problem you encounter in the Philippines and it easy to you to socialize people in
abroad even it scares cause it’s not your country you were born.

5. Based on your experiences, if you were given the choice to work in the Philippines or abroad,
which would you choose? Why?

- I actually prefer to work in the Philippines than to work abroad. My professional profile (I am
a senior finance manager in private industry) is actually more useful and therefore more
valuable in the Philippines than abroad, which is not to say it will not be valued abroad, only
that the Philippines perhaps needs my skills and contributions more. I believe that being
somewhere in the world where you can be put to best use as an individual is an important
consideration for any self-respecting professional.

Also, unemployment rates for my professional profile might even be higher abroad than in the
Philippines, which is to say, I can probably get a higher-paying job (in real economic rather than
nominal terms) that I would find enjoyable and interesting in the Philippines than abroad.

The cost of living in the Philippines is also generally lower than in most other countries where I
could get to practice my profession, therefore overall (and as I partly alluded to above), the
economic returns to me in real terms might still be higher in the Philippines than abroad.

6. Give some pieces of advice to those who want to become an OFW.

 - To those people who want to become an OFW all I can say is be brave in terms of facing
different people. Many aspiring OFWs already know how hard being an overseas worker
could be based on countless accounts of OFWs. And expectations may be far from reality.
Yet, never give up and never let your aspirations go. They will ultimately come true through
hard work and perseverance.

C. Realizations
My realization is you might think that since OFWs earn in dollars, it means they earn more than
what you earn. That is true. Unfortunately, they get to spend in dollars too. The cost of living varies
per country, but one thing is for sure: it is more expensive to live in other countries than to live in
the Philippines.

Yes, OFWs earn bigger income, but the cost of living is higher, which explains why they take more
than one job to make ends meet.
Filipinos working abroad do not live a carefree existence. To make ends meet and send a larger
amount to their families back home, the majority of them work multiple jobs. Many people are
sacrificing their fundamental requirements in order to support their families. Even if you see them
posting holiday photos on Facebook, they most likely used a budget travel package or saved for
months to take their trip. In other words, being an OFW is not as easy as you think it looks. It
entails a lot of hard work and sacrifice, which we all need to acknowledge.

D. Documentation