Offer good terms if you want Pinoy nurses, Japan told

Hiring Filipino nurses will not be easy for Japanese employers despite the forging of the Japan-Philippines Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA).

Labor attaché Reydeluz Conferido said Japanese employers have to compete with other foreign employers and must offer good terms to convince Filipino nurses to work in Japan.

"We have been telling prospective Japanese employers that Filipino nurses are not dying for those (employment) opportunities. They should offer good terms and conditions and employment because there are other global opportunities for them," Conferido said.

He explained that the Philippine government is not telling overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) where to go, but is merely listing their employment options.

"The job of the labor department is to give workers alternatives, but in the end they will make their own decision where they would like to go for employment," Conferido said.

He noted that the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) is currently negotiating with Japanese authorities to firm up the mechanism for hiring Filipino nurses and caregivers in Japan.

"There are negotiations between the POEA and the designated institution on the part of Japan, the Japan International Federation Special Welfare (JIFSWEL) for hiring foreign nurses and caregivers should the JPEPA be ratified by our Senate," Conferido said.

Once the JPEPA is ratified, JIFSWEL will identify and accredit medical institutions and caregiving homes qualified to receive Filipino medical caregivers.

The medical institutions will be evaluated based on the adequacy of their facilities and capacity to provide training for Filipino medical caregivers.