Tale of an Overseas Filipino Worker

Working abroad is not easy. You will be away from your family, living each day would be hard having no one around to help and cheer you up. Not to mention the process you are going through to be able to get a job abroad.

But working abroad seems a normal part of life of a lot of people all over the world. Not just one or two but millions of Filipinos wants to go abroad. One reason is that working abroad means higher salary compared to what we are normally receiving here in the Philippines for the same work and for the same number of hours worked and I know this is true to all, since I can see a lot of people from different countries working in a foreign land like Saudi Arabia.

REALITY

But the reality is not all who wants to work abroad get the job they wanted. There are some who failed for various reasons and worst a lot of them were scammed.

I know how painful for someone who spent too much just to get a job abroad and ended being fooled by illegal recruiters. That is why working abroad for me is a destiny. If it’s not for you will never have it and if it's for you, it will be given to you in God’s time.

Part of an OFW’s predicament is when they landed int the hands of abusive employers. Some work for long hours but overtime is left unpaid. And some even not paid at all, which is hard not just because he or she cannot send money to his/her family back home who are depending on it to live, but because there's nothing for him/her to buy food.

And worst, there are some who were physically and sexually abused and some few were murdered. Good if they can go home even inside the coffin but most of them were there for a long time.

A VISIT TO THE TALLEST BUILDING IN SAUDI ARABIA

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Anyhow, there are also a lot who are lucky enough to have a very good paying job and a happy life abroad. They were able to save more and provide their family in the Philippines with everything they need and even wants and some of them were able to start their own business in the the Philippines.

But you see, things could never be okay for everyone. There were families that were broken just because one of them work and live abroad.

Truly, being an OFW is not easy. You have to be strong; you have to be determined to be successful. But there are also people who will do anything for their benefits at the expense of other people.

Anyway, here I am and I will try to bring you to a place where I’ve been when I was working abroad. It was indeed a once in a lifetime experience.

Yes, once in a lifetime because not everyone can go there. This is one of my company’s excellent projects. Not until the new building will be finished in the area, this is still the tallest building in the whole of Saudi Arabia.

HEADQUARTERS BUSINESS PARK

Please don't miss to watch this video to appreciate the building.
Video Source: Samir Linjawi

They call it the Headquarters Business Park, it has more than 60 floors with a helipad and I am really glad I got the chance to reach the helipad and took pictures. 52 stories of offices, clinics, restaurants and others with 11 stories of parking garage.

Look at those people taking pictures, LOL:

This tower is one of the most beautiful buildings in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and I could say a pride of our very own Filipino Engineers and Architects. They were behind this majestic creation. And yes, about half of the labors who built this building were Filipinos.

How did we get there?

Actually, we were group of Filipino workers who were assigned in the head office and Headquarters Business Park is one of our projects. Since we were not assigned there, we are not supposed to be allowed to enter the building.

One time we decided to ask permission to visit the building and fortunately given the authority through the help of our Filipino counterpart in that project, so it was during our free time when we went there.

So were up there!

That was 4 years ago and indeed the feeling was great being able to visit the tallest building in the Kingdom. We were so overwhelmed with joy and of course there was fear especially when we were at the top.