By Nova M. Lachica
Posted at 01/14/2012 7:59 PM
When I was young, I never thought of working abroad. I consider myself a simple girl, with simple dreams. I just wanted to finish my studies, have a stable job, and a family of my own.
Occasionally though, thoughts of how it would feel like to work abroad entered my mind. After graduating from high school, I wanted to take up a computer course. But my father did not agree with me.
Being an obedient child, I heeded my father’s advice and took a course in teaching. After finishing college, I wanted to rest for a while. But my father, who was then working in Saudi Arabia, kept on nagging me.
“Are you just going to depend on me for the rest of your life?” “Why don’t you apply for a work abroad?” Those words of my father, however painful they were, challenged me to try my luck and work abroad.
I have a friend who is working as a domestic worker in Kuwait. She has been sending her family some big amount. I asked myself, “why can’t I apply and work abroad just like her?” My friend was not even a high school graduate but she was able to land a job abroad and she is earning well.
Out of curiosity, I decided to apply for work abroad. I was then 22 years old. My father was very supportive of my decision. He even provided me with my financial needs during the application process. My mother, however, wanted me to review for the LET examination for teachers. She wanted me to pursue a career in teaching. I told her that I have made up my mind and would pursue my desire to work abroad.
I applied with several agencies and underwent a series of interviews. My first interview was for work in Singapore. Unfortunately, they declined my application because I was under-aged. I had to wait until I turn 23 years old to qualify. But because I was determined to find work abroad, I applied for work in the Middle East. My application for work in Lebanon and in Jordan was accepted. I had to make a choice so I sought the opinion of my family members. The decision to choose Jordan was partly influenced by us being Christians.
My family and friends were very supportive while I was processing my application. They kept on telling me that I will have a better life if I am able to work abroad.
When I flew to Manila for the Pre-Departure Orientation seminar (PDOS) and to get my Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) certificate, the agency where I applied for allowed me stay in one of their staff houses.
They also trained us on how to do household chores. It was also the agency that took care of processing all my documents for abroad. I heard some negative feedbacks regarding my agency but that did not stop me from pursuing my application.
I did not attend the PDOS nor the OWWA seminar, nor did I see the job order nor my contract, but still I discarded negative thoughts about the agency that was processing my work application.
An hour before my scheduled flight in February 2006, I was made to sign the contract. There was hardly any time left for me to go through the contract but I was able to read some portions of it. My fear started when I read the information about my family. The names of my parents as well as their address were not correct. My salary says US$150 instead of the promised US$200. Even the name of my employer is different from the one listed in the job order and in the contract.
I got scared and wanted to back out at that very moment but they confiscated my cellular phone and there was no way for me to contact my family.
The hardship starts
Upon my arrival in Jordan, a man named Tareq took us from the airport to the agency. We were taken to different agencies and not to the agency as written in our visa. One Filipina at the agency informed me that our agency is not registered with the Philippine Embassy nor is it recognized by OWWA.
My fear started to rise again and I wanted to go home immediately. But I tried to be strong. I told myself that I am already in Jordan and I just had to make the best out of the situation. Perhaps I will have a good employer.
When my employer came to take me, I felt that the husband and the four children were good. I was not so sure with the wife. When I met the wife, whom I call Madam, I thought she was good. She had an angelic face. But one can never be sure what lurks behind the angelic face.
I felt miserable during my first week in Jordan. It was my first time to be away from my family. I really felt homesick then. Communication with my family was also limited. I was not allowed to communicate with my family until after three months.
Theirs were also a different culture and tradition and I had difficulty coping with them. I was not that familiar with the Muslim religion and I was often scolded by my employers for this. Madam would always tell me how to talk and dress properly. I almost gave up but I would always remember my father’s words and that was enough to make me stay.
I consider each day of my stay in Jordan as a nightmare not only because of the amount of work I had to do but also because of the emotional torture I had to go through.
In July 2006, the war between Israel and Lebanon started. I considered it a blessing from God that I was in Jordan and not in Lebanon. I could have been one of those Filipinos sent home because of the war.
My first experience of Ramadan
I thought that Ramadan would be easy to deal with. I thought it would be advantageous to me since I do not have to cook meals for the family three times a day. It turned out more difficult instead and there was less time to sleep and more work to be done.
I would wake up at three in the morning to prepare the food and wait until the family finished eating before I could go back to sleep. My employers had to eat early because they could not eat from four in the morning to six in the evening.
At six in the morning, I have to wake up and prepare the things that the children need for school. It was like I was fasting the whole month of Ramadan.
Aside from working for my employer’s family, Madam would always send me and the Filipina helper of her sister to her mother’s house for us to do the household chores there.
That was not part of the contract that I signed. But every time we complain or refuse to do the chores, they would tell us, “We feed you, we paid US$2,000 to your agency, and we bought you clothes. Why do you refuse to work as well in my mother’s house?” They even threatened to send us back to the agency without paying our salary. I was naïve and I easily got scared of all the threats they made.
One time, Madam slapped me for no reason at all. I could not help myself, so I fought back. I was so angry and threw back to her all the bad things she did to me.
“It is so hard to please you. You never appreciate anything that I ever did,” I complained to her.
I also told Madam that I will talk to her husband so that they can send me back to the agency or send me back home.
She got scared because her husband told her never to hurt us. After that incident, Madam treated me better. In fact, we became close. Thus, when it was time for me to go home, it was quite difficult to leave because they would not let me.
Back to Jordan
I went back to work in Jordan after resting in the Philippines for a few months. My second contract in Jordan is so much better than my first one. Although I was not allowed to have a cellular phone, they provided me with telephone cards to call my family. My employers treated me well and so the two years working for them went by so quickly. I also found it hard to leave my employers because they have gotten so used to me. They said they knew me and could trust me.
A new destination
After finishing my contract in Jordan, I returned to the Philippines. This time around, I am applying for work in Hong Kong as a domestic worker. I do not know why I keep on working as a domestic worker abroad despite all the hardships I have gone through. Perhaps this time around, I will have a better experience.
I have proven that working abroad is not a guarantee to fulfill one’s dreams. Working abroad will not guarantee you success. I just hope and pray that everything turns out for the best. I put my trust and faith in God to guide and protect me always.
My advice to OFWs like me is to have a strong determination in everything that you do. You also have to put God in the center of everything that you do.
Editors Note: The story is from the book “Migrants’ Stories, Migrants’ Voices 3″ published by the Philippine Migrants Rights Watch (PMRW) with the support from CEI (Conferenza Episcopale Italiana) or the Italian Bishops’ Conference. The book contains a collection of 12 stories of the realities of migration as faced by Filipinos abroad and their family members in the Philippines. abs-cbnNEWS.com obtained permission from PMRW to publish the stories online.
