PHL needs strategy to manage healthcare worker migration

By Justine Irish D. Tabile, Senior Reporter

THE Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) said the ageing population will require a rethink of how the government plans to oversee the care economy, with other countries also imposing demands on the roster of Philippine healthcare workers.

“The Philippines should adopt a National Care and Migration Strategy that aligns labor export with domestic care needs,” it said in a discussion paper.

“This includes incentivizing the return of skilled care professionals and formalizing employment pathways in local health and elder care systems to mitigate the care drain,” it added.

The report said ageing populations in Singapore, Japan, and Australia have reshaped labor demand for caregiving, domestic work, and healthcare.

“These structural demographic shifts have intensified the reliance on migrant workers, with Filipino women emerging as a critical labor force within the region’s global value chains (GVCs),” it said.

However, it noted that despite helping address labor shortages in these countries, workers continue to face “precarious employment conditions, gendered inequalities, and limited access to social protections.”

“The sustainability of such labor systems raises critical concerns as ageing societies continue to expand their dependence on migrant labor, highlighting the need for robust policy interventions, mapping of care and value chains, and regional cooperation,” it added.

The paper concluded that while the Philippines has a sophisticated deployment apparatus through the Department of Migrant Workers and the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration, gaps remain in credential recognition, recruitment regulation, and portability of benefits.

Migrant workers “sustain ageing populations abroad while filling fiscal gaps at home through remittances, yet their work remains undervalued and insufficiently protected,” it said.

“Ensuring the sustainability of this care-driven interdependence demands collective action — between states, industries, and regional institutions — to secure equitable, ethical, and technologically supported care systems across the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation region,” it added.

PIDS added that the country should strengthen care workforce development and accreditation by harmonizing technical-vocational and higher education curricula with international standards.

“Expanding regional training centers in high-outmigration regions (e.g., NCR, Region III, Region IV-A) will ensure equitable access to skills development,” it added.

The paper also cited the role of technologies such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality, and interactive learning approaches in improving care training standards in the country.

Meanwhile, it called for enhanced social protection and financial literacy programs for migrant workers by integrating comprehensive pre-departure and reintegration modules on financial planning, digital literacy, and remote caregiving technologies.

It also said the government should promote savings and investment mechanisms for returning care workers “to reduce long-term economic vulnerability.”