MANILA, Philippines — Guam will be needing not just Filipino construction workers but health workers as well, a recruitment consultant said on Sunday. “Aside from construction workers, Guam will also be hiring applicants for nursing jobs and other health care workers with the impending relocation of US Marines and dependents from Okinawa,” Emmanuel Geslani said in a statement.
Demands for nursing jobs applicants and other health care workers is expected to start by 2012 when the relocation has already been completed, enough time for those interested to work in Guam to prepare. “Aspiring Filipino nursing jobs hopefulls and doctors can now prepare by taking the necessary licensure examinations,” he said. Guam will require other health care workers such as medical technicians in radiology, cardio labs, CT-Scan, occupational and physical therapists, medical transcriptionists and medical administrative personnel. Deployment of Filipino construction workers to Guam is expected to start by the first quarter of 2010.
Last week, Guam officials arrived in Manila for consultations with the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA), Philippine Chamber of Commerce, Philippine Association of Service Exporters, Inc. (PASEI), Philippine Construction Association on the hiring of Filipino construction workers. POEA and recruitment industry officials warned, however, that recruitment has yet to start and there are still no job orders for nursing jobs available for Filipino nurses aspiring to work in Guam. POEA administrator Jennifer Manalili said a proposed employment contract that would be acceptable to both parties is still being drafted.
Manalili said Filipino nurses would not spend much for their nursing jobs applications in Guam because the US government had recently declared that there should be no placement fee in the recruitment of foreign workers in the mainland and the territories. Records of the Commission on Filipinos Overseas say there were total of 22,567 Filipinos working or residing in Guam in 2007. – GMANews.TV