International Conference on the Past, Present, and Future of Philippine Labor Migration (REGULAR/EARLY BIRD RATE)

The year 2024 marks the 50th anniversary of the enactment of the Labor Code of the Philippines which paved the way for the Philippines to participate in international labor migration. This development coincided with the emergence of employment opportunities in the oil-rich countries in the Gulf region. The Philippines was among the countries in Asia which responded to the call for workers by Gulf countries. At the time, the Philippine state conceived of international labor migration as a temporary measure, with the expectation that it would come to an end when economic conditions improved. But economic, political, social and cultural factors came together to sustain the phenomenon. Except for a decline in deployment levels during the pandemic years (2020-2022), temporary labor migration is easing back into pre-pandemic levels, and is likely to revert to the path of increasing deployment in the years ahead.

The main rationale of this international conference is to reflect on the Philippines’ long experience with temporary labor migration and its multifaceted impacts on Philippine society and Filipinos at home and in the global community. Over the years, the OFW phenomenon has attracted much research interest, resulting in a rich body of knowledge about the evolution of overseas employment and how the Philippine state and other institutions shaped the phenomenon. Half a century later, it is time to review what has transpired, to know where we are now, and to envision how international labor migration will figure in Philippine society in the context of mega-trends in the global community.

The International Conference on the Past, Present, and Future of Philippine Labor Migration will be held on 18-19 July 2024 at the PSSCenter, Commonwealth Ave., Diliman, Quezon City. The conference is organized by the Philippine Migration Research Network (PMRN), the Philippine Social Science Council (PSSC), the University of the Philippines Population Institute (UPPI), the Commission on Population and Development (CPD), and the Institute for Migration and Development Issues (IMDI).
For more information, please visit https://pssc.org.ph/migrationconference2024