top of page
קוראים מתרגשים
The Third Column
What do Filipino workers do with the money they earn here?
(the original column in Hebrew)
In the third and final column in the series, Tovit Neizer, who conducted an in-depth research to get to know Filipino caregivers in Israel, talks about their economic conduct in Israel and abroad, and shares optimistic stories about the relationship between them and us, the Israelis.
My research-journey to understand Filipino caregivers in Israel taught me surprising lessons. The dozens of conversations we had were part of a research project for my book, in which one of the main characters is a Filipino caregiver who works in Tel Aviv.
In my first column, I spoke with mothers who leave their children far behind for many years to work and support their families and in the second, I learned about the Filipino culture and the differences between the countries.
Towards the end of the journey, I learned financial lessons about proper financial management, and, in a sweet and symbolic way, I heard optimistic stories that left a good taste.
Financial literacy for caregivers
During my conversations with the caregivers, I learned about the high cost they are asked to pay to come to Israel, an amount that can reach $10,000. They borrow the money from family members and friends and it takes them about a year to pay it back.
Mike Ong: "If a person comes in with a small amount and suddenly has a large income and a lot of money, he doesn't know what to do with it and that's a problem."
But the arrival to a Western culture blinds many who fail to save in light of the abundance that confuses them.
Mike Ong, the only male caregiver I spoke to, talks about these difficulties: "If a person comes with a small amount and suddenly has a large income and a lot of money, he doesn't know what to do with it, and that's a problem. He tries to live like a 'rich' person, wearing what others wear because they don't have those things at home, and when they come here they can afford a lot of things because now they have the money. After a few years of such waste, they realize they haven't saved anything."
Mike delivers financial literacy programs to caregivers from the Philippines, and describes himself as a financial educator. "There are many who don't know how to manage their money and end up with nothing. The plan is to enrich and teach them online, on Zoom or Facebook Live. The caregivers listen to lectures with headphones while they work. We have different topics like debt management, emergency funds, and insurance."
The lectures are conducted in Taglish - a combination of Tagalog and English, and are given free of charge as part of a campaign by an organization to which Mike belongs called IMG - International Marketing Group.
Mike (42) receives, as a side income, a commission on the insurance policies that program participants choose to purchase. He is the father of two sons, one 11 years old and one 11 months old, and has worked in Israel for eight years. "I travel almost every year, I want to see the children grow up. My wife is at home raising the children. She wants me to come back, maybe in three or five years." In the meantime, he is trying to implement what he teaches: "I have investments, I have an emergency fund, we bought real estate. Step by step. You can only teach if you practice."
Mike emphasizes the importance of this content specifically for the caregiver audience. "These people come from need, so they think about income and improving their situation. You have a lot here, but there are Filipinos who come from poor backgrounds and not all of them are financially literate, so we try to prevent a situation where they return home without money. You have to start saving early, right after you finish paying off your debts."
All for one, one for all
At the end of the first year, most caregivers begin to save money through various mechanisms. One of the mechanisms is Palawagan - a social savings method practiced in the Philippines and used by many caregivers. According to the method, a group of ten friends or relatives collect a fixed amount of money each month, between 500 and 2,000 NIS from each participant.
At the end of each month, one of the members receives all the money collected, allowing them to pay off an urgent debt, complete a renovation project in the Philippines, make an impulse purchase, or care for a sick family member who needs financial assistance.
The money is collected in cash by one of the group members, who then transfers the amount to the next member. The caregivers say that even though their turn is known in advance, if an emergency occurs to one of them, the money collected that month will be transferred to her to help.
Years of work that paid off
Sharon, who has worked in Israel for 6 years, is married and the mother of an 11-year-old daughter, cooks and sells local food and dishes on her day off. She publishes three menus of pre-packaged boxes with various dishes at prices ranging from 50 to 75 shekels.
Sharon and dishes she prepared herself
She sends the money to her husband and divides it between a checking account, a budget for food, and savings. She pays the bills and her husband, who works at a bank, pays for the food. She does the cooking side-gig to save more quickly and return back home.
Myra (45), also doesn't rest and defines the day off as a waste of time. She has a clothing business that her husband runs at home and all of her salary goes into investments. Even when she goes home for vacation, she continues to work and run the business, dividing her time between the business and the children.
"It's containers of second-hand clothes. I dress the doll, take pictures of them on her, and then upload them online to a Facebook page that I manage. I also do the marketing."
"Ever since I was young, I've loved business," she recalls. "In elementary school, I sold ice cream and sweets that my mother made, in college I made and sold embroidery. I get very bored if I don't have a business idea, I always have ideas. In my free time, I check Facebook or make Skype calls about the business."
"Thanks to these years and my distance"
Rein (51) has lived in Israel for 23 years and works for the same family. She left her eldest daughter when she was 7. "She is 26 and unmarried. She wants to enjoy her age first, and doesn't want to experience her family leaving her again, like she experienced with me."
Today, her daughter is an architect and works in California. "She was sent from college to do a master's in the US." One of her sons, 24, studied accounting, and a third son, 22, studied IT, and both live in the Philippines.
Myra: "I'm very bored if I don't have a business idea, I always have ideas."
"I sent the children to one of the best universities in Manila, it was expensive. That's my achievement from living here." Today, her daughter is a US citizen and is eligible to bring her parents to live there, which Rein plans to do in the future. "Now my three children are already working and I don't have to send money. So I save and we're starting to build a restaurant in my province."
After she and her husband receive citizenship thanks to their daughter, their sons will also be able to immigrate to the US, which is the shortest route for a family reunion, she says. "The children today appreciate my work here, but in the past I fought a lot with my daughter. Now that she is in the US, she understands that it is thanks to these years and my distance."
Like Cinderella in Paris
Grace (40), a single woman who has worked in Israel for 12 years, came to work and save money, and plans to go to Canada because citizenship is not available here. In Canada, she explains, she will receive a work visa as a nurse and caregiver. "If you are a professional like me, a nurse, you have a chance to become a citizen in the future, to bring your family, your parents. After two years on a work visa, you can apply for citizenship."
She describes her first employer, a French Israeli, as perfect. "When I arrived in Israel, I was shocked because he didn't speak English and I didn't know what I would do, but I learned little by little. After a few months, maybe they felt I was like their daughter, they offered me a flight to Paris alone," she recalls.
"An elderly family friend came to Israel and I lived in her apartment for two weeks. They left me food there, everything. I went around with a map. Every day I got up at six in the morning and returned home in the evening. I saw beautiful places. It was like a dream to visit Paris and for two weeks."
Following the publication of the second column, about the cultural gaps between Israel and the Philippines, I received a call from a woman named Yona Dotan who read it and was moved by the stories.
Gretchen's words, in which she mentioned that the prices of books in Israel are much higher than she was used to at home, touched her and she decided to send her books in English.
I connected the two and a few days later they met and Gretchen received a stack of books. "I can't believe what good fortune has fallen on me," Gretchen wrote to me after the meeting and sent a picture of the literary gift.
bottom of page