Agreement Signed to Allow Filipinos to Teach English in China

Agreement Signed to Allow Filipinos to Teach English in China
Apr 17, 2018 By eChinacities.com

China has signed an agreement that will pave the way for thousands of Filipinos to teach English in China.

 

Philippines Labour Secretary Bello III told Gulf News this weekend that Beijing’s restriction on foreign workers from the Philippines will be lifted, allowing the employment of 30,000 more Filipinos in mainland China, including 100,000 English teachers.

A memorandum of understanding, which was originally tabled to be signed in November 2017, sets out that Filipinos who teach English in China will be paid at least 1,500 USD (around 9,419 RMB) a month.

The agreement also lays down rules in other areas such as work hours, benefits, terms of employment and labour protection laws to prevent abuse.

As well as English teachers, China is also seeking Filipinos to work as domestic helpers, caregivers, nurses, musicians and cooks.

“There is a big demand for English teachers in China. Chinese nationals want their children to speak English,” said Bello.

“They lack sufficient numbers of teachers who can speak English. Families want English-speaking maids who could tutor children with their studies. China also has a growing ageing population,” he added.

Recruitment agencies securing such jobs for Filipinos have been urged to include information on Chinese cultural norms in their training and to thoroughly vet the employers they deal with.

As of 2016, there were 12,254 Filipinos officially working in China, although it is thought up to 200,000 also work here illegally.

It is not clear if the agreement will legitimise these 200,000 illegal foreign workers.

It’s also not clear if Filipinos currently working in Hong Kong will be able to seek employment in mainland China.

There are approximately 140,000 Filipinos working in Hong Kong, some of whom are trained as teachers but working as domestic helpers.

Labour unions think such expat workers would transfer to China given the choice and pursue better paid careers in their chosen field.

This could result in a significant shortfall in English-speaking domestic workers in Hong Kong.

The Philippines has long been seeking to sigh bilateral agreements with all the countries that employs its workforce, especially those that have not signed the labour conventions of the International Labour Organisation, which spells out rights for foreign workers.

So far, the Philippines has only forged 13 agreements with the 180 countries that employ its people.

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Keywords: teach English in China

10 Comments

All comments are subject to moderation by eChinacities.com staff. Because we wish to encourage healthy and productive dialogue we ask that all comments remain polite, free of profanity or name calling, and relevant to the original post and subsequent discussion. Comments will not be deleted because of the viewpoints they express, only if the mode of expression itself is inappropriate.

Guest2775332

I heard, when you apply online for a working permit for a teacher of English from the Philippines, upon entry of the country of origin, the job description as an English teacher is automatically blocked, nothing appears, nothing to click. I find this article hard to believe.

Oct 08, 2019 23:37 Report Abuse

Guest16587112

But I think it's also becoming more difficult for Filipinos to work hard in China nowadays.

Aug 07, 2019 23:58 Report Abuse

Guest15381482

oh thats so generous of the Chinese considering Engish is a first language in PH and even a lowly street beggar can speak more than some flash git driving a porsche around shanghai. the level of arrogance in china is shocking. funny thing was i was in manila 2 years back and a family of chinese were in a hotel elevator with the kid acting like the classic little spoilt idiot, the ph guys reaction was that they were used to this kind of behaviour (sniggering) and it was amusing to see that they also think the same way about the behaviour of chinese abroad. funny and true and phillippines might be a poor country but the people have class and you cant buy that China.

Apr 21, 2018 07:51 Report Abuse

nashboroguy

I wonder if the "English Teachers" will be subjected to rigorous documentation verification that most westerners have to go through now days. Because of the tightening of visa requirements for westerners, fewer and fewer teachers are becoming available to work in China. It took one of our teachers three months to get everything authorized. Not to mention the costs involved. It will be interesting to see if China's educational institutions see in influx in Filipino teachers and what that does to the salaries of existing teachers.

Apr 19, 2018 13:42 Report Abuse

Judred1967

Don't worry because Filipino teachers need to show their valid professional teaching license, teaching experience,authenticated diplomas, and NBI clearance that are also required by the Philippine government before these workers can leave the country. For maids, most probably they will be asked to show their authenticated high school diploma and NBI clearance and these maids can speak English, though with Filipino accent and ungrammatical structures (but hey, Westerners prefer Filipino maids compared to those who cannot even use some form of English). Everyone should also pass the medical check up and all of these are regulated by the POEA or Philippine Overseas Employment Administration. The Philippines have been exporting professional, skilled and unskilled workers since the 70s so all legal workers are vetted. However, illegal workers will be another story just like some illegal workers from the West and other parts of the world. There are many brilliant Filipino English teachers who are even hired by American schools in other countries and can teach better than native speakers of English who do not have an education degree (a 3 to 6-month ESL course doesn't really cut it). Many Filipinos from very good schools are actually fluent in English. As for the cost, Filipinos have been paying a lot just to go abroad. This is nothing new to us. It just so happened that it is only now that Western workers in China are experiencing what professional Filipino workers have been experiencing since the Philippines started exporting her people. The "free market" will determine the salaries of teachers and unfortunately, once the Chinese can see that there are actually a lot of good English teachers from the Philippines and Filipino teachers have gain acceptance, then native speakers will get a run for their money.

Apr 19, 2018 18:21 Report Abuse

Guest15381482

what you say is a genuine thing - and not just for education. however you are probably right that the idea to hire from PH is a cost cutting measure for ESL. The long term goal imo is to eventually get the sons and daughters of all the idiots who got rich quick and sent their kids to study in US and Canada to come back over here and teach English. Thats no problem but thats what is gonna happen. you can be sure of that.

Apr 21, 2018 07:54 Report Abuse

25079832

I live in Bangkok, I have a Filipino girlfriend and she has told me that the signs displayed around the BTS Skytrain system warning of pickpockets are due to Filipino 'English' teachers. She says that they come from the slums with fake credentials and take crappy teaching jobs as a cover for their extracurricular activities. Of course, this is not everyone coming from the Philippines...

Apr 18, 2018 16:16 Report Abuse

Guest15381482

do not believe you. if you or your 'girlffiend' know anything about pinoys abroad you will know that it is hard for them to get out of the country. to do that they at least need a university degree. the process is rigourous and fake credentlals? i call BS.

Apr 21, 2018 08:01 Report Abuse

25079832

Call what you want, I've seen it firsthand.

May 11, 2018 17:33 Report Abuse

Judred1967

Hmm, let us see how this will truly flesh out. Many HK and Singaporeans complain about Filipino maids and kept telling them to leave HK and Singapore. I am curious what will happen next.

Apr 17, 2018 23:03 Report Abuse