Dear TRS,
Recently, a blog that has been circulating online caught my attention. It was about someone suggesting all forms of ways and means on how to ill treat Pinoys when the opportunity presents itself. Though I disagree with such childish and aggressive behavior, I Understand where the hate stems from.
I caught up with a friend and we were just exchanging stories about our careers. But what she shared with me about working with Pinoys made me reflect on my own experiences. But first, let me share her story.
My friend M is from the hotel industry with 3 years of experience. She had recovered from an accident and managed to apply for a supervisory position because of her experience and qualification. However the salary they offered her was ridiculously low for her position at $1700 in a reknowned 4 Star hotel. Due to financial pressure she took the offer, grateful for having a job. In her department, she was the only local. Her manager was Pinoy and her surbodinates were also Pinoys.
M never really looked at ethnicities at work and got along well with everyone. She even befriended the Pinoys. However as the weeks and months went by she started to understand why no local could last long in the job. Her surbodinates were constantly being given preferential treatment by her manager. For example, she would let them have their preferred off and leave dates first. Her surbodinates were given more weekend offs than she did. When she requested for leave giving over 3 months heads up, her manager basically made it near impossible for her to do so, citing reasons that she was holding a supervisory role. Being new, M always gave in. But the more she bent over the more they took advantage.
Her workload gradually began to increase and being a generally 'soft' person her surbodinates and manager seized the opportunity. Despite the difficulties, M perservered. She had numerous service ballots(complimentary letters) and guests often praised her in their Tripadvisor reviews. Once she was nominated for an award which had a ceremony for her to attend. Her manager did not inform her of this and put her on afternoon shift whilst allowing 2 of her surbodinates to attend even though they had not been nominated. It was only several days after when her senior management congratulated her that she discovered she had won the award. Even when she questioned her manager about this, the manager simply shrugged it off claiming that she was not aware.
But the straw that broke the camel's back was when she discovered how underpaid she was. Being close with the Pinoys, her subordinates shared their salary figures with her during rheir many conversations. All 3 of them mentioned the exact same numbers of $2500. At first she thought they were bluffing, until one fine pay day when one of her pinoy colleagues asked her to help withdraw some cash during work hours as she was on break using their atm card did she discovered the heart wrenching truth. It was indeed the said amount. She felt that for a supervisor to be paid $800 less than her surbodinates was inconceivable. She has since left the job for a better offer.
M has granted me permission to submit her story as long as I do not name and shame her former employers.
As mentioned, her account struck several chords with me as I had my own share of encounters working with Pinoys. A few years ago, I was in a small sales and marketing firm. I had been building a good relationship with a client for 6 long and frustrating months and it had finally come to fruition. A convention in Jakarta was the location where they would be signing our package for a hefty sum of $43,000. 2 weeks before the trip I was due for reservist. Whilst away, I received no updates from my company on my impending trip and to my utter dismay when I came back, my FT manager told me that my Pinoy senior was taking over my account and will do the closing as well as getting all the commission. I was so furious I ended up quitting my job that day itself.(Yes it wasn't the smartest move either) However, in my career thus far I have made several observations about Pinoys. They maybe nice and sweet to you but the truth is they are without a doubt two faced.
While we Singaporeans are generally concerned about each other's rice bowls, Pinoys are relentless back stabbers and pure suck ups. Even when confronted they would pretend that nothing happened and still smile at you. Perhaps to them it is a dog eat dog world, or maybe their culture is a case of 'survival of the fittest'. Trust me on this one, the next time if you are a minority in a Pinoy filled department or company, watch as how they will intimidate you by staying with their own cliques and speaking Tagalog. Even better, give them any form of authority and watch them maximise it to the fullest. While I don't like stereotyping others, I have come to the conclusion that Pinoys in general share the same traits.
If having a hard time at work isn't enough, try the local schools. Yes you read it right, local schools. A former colleague of mine had picked his 8 year old up from school. On the way home he shared with my friend about a little argument he had with his Pinoy classmate. The boy said and I quote 'You better behave yourself. One day Filipinos are going to take over your country.' Aghast, my friend took this matter up to the principal. How can an 8 year old boy say such a thing? The Pinoy boy was summoned to the office with his parents the next day. With my friend present, he confessed that his mum and dad had always told him that.
According to my friend, the Pinoy boy's parents just kept looking on the floor feeling embarassed.
At this rate, I'm honestly not sure how long can this level of Pinoy tolerance be kept under wraps.
Do share with me your thoughts.
-FL-
TRS Contributor
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