GOOD NEWS PILIPINAS - February 18, 2009

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Cebu Pacific, PAL remove fuel charges

The hiring of Filipino nurses and caregivers in Japan will continue despite the country’s worst economic crisis in 35 years.

The Philippine Overseas Employment Administration allayed fears about the cancellation of the planned hiring, and even said 1000 Filipino nurses and caregivers will be hired over the next two years.

“We will be deploying an initial batch of 200 nurses and 300 caregivers by end of April or early May this year as part of the agreement,” POEA chief Jennifer Manalili said.

Under the agreement between the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and the Japan International Corp. of Welfare Services (JICWELS), those who qualify for the jobs will undergo a six-month language and culture training in Japan during which they will receive an allowance of $400 or more than P21,000, Manalili said.

Fresh economic data revealed a Japanese economy contracting at its fastest pace since 1974.

But Manalili reiterated that Japanese employers have not expressed plans to cancel or defer the hiring of Filipino nurses.

At this time, Manalili said, the POEA has received an “overwhelming” number of applications for the initial 500 nurses and caregivers set to be deployed to Japan.

The POEA said there are some 2,000 applicants for the first 200 nursing slots while more than 5,000 aspirants are contending for the 300 caregiver slots.