galvtexas

I'm sorry, is this a serious question? I'm just amazed. We profess to be professionals and yet we do NOT know the basic rules in etiquette. I am from the Philippines and living here in the United States. Aside from English, I speak Pilipino and a little of Spanish. When I am in the workplace, I am very careful NOT to speak Pilipino (or Spanish) because i do not want to isolate other people and make them feel UNCOMFORTABLE. To put it bluntly, it is very RUDE to speak in our language when other people are around. I know that sometimes we get excited when we see a "kababayan" and we prefer to speak in the vernacular, but this must stop.

The immigration route is different for teachers. Employer must apply H1B visa for you. The application must also go through Department of Labor as they will verify if job is in the "shortage" area. Applying for H1B is not a sure thing either as there are only a few available and there are more applicants than slots. Be wary of agencies offering J1 visas. This visa does NOT have dual intent compared to H1B. With J1 visa, you have to go back to home country after 3 years and you may not apply for green card.

The U.S. does not need to do anything for the Philippine government and the hundreds of thousands of nurses who all want to work here. It was the decision of the Philippine government to "sell" (like a commodity) their most important resource (people) to 1st world countries. I am not talking about nurses alone but teachers and other professionals as well. Unfortunately, because of the "insensitivity" (and corruption) of the government a lot of people are suffering. It is really tragic that the Philippines has hundreds of thousands of nurse graduates who cannot even work and acquire that much needed experience. On the issue of nurses, the Philippines needs the U.S. more (not the other way around). Things really look bleak. I love the Philippines. However, I left 4 years ago because the level of corruption in the government is just unprecedented. Policies with regard to overseas employment are always one-sided and :oworkers suffer.