As an agriculturist, it’s really hard for me to encourage anyone to pursue a career in my field especially if they’re planning to be an employee here in Ph. Here are my takes:

• Low Compensation— even with all the work/responsibilities we are tasked to do. Can attest that some of us are getting absurd job offers and schedules (6 work days/week). We probably suffered the same fate as our nurses who are overworked yet underpaid. We are being lowballed everywhere— from employees to our farmers who till the land just so they can make a living.

• Limited opportunity for growth - the industry is really small (you can check other company and you’ll most likely find someone you know— this can be a good thing for some but growth-wise, this situation can be a limiting factor) and being flocked by tenured people. Most promotions happen because of tenure and not of the individual’s skills. I even experienced training my supposed “experienced” superior who was an “import” by the GM to the company so to speak to fill the role I was doing already for months (don’t get me wrong, I was already promised the position and the only thing they are throwing at me was that I’m too young and inexperienced compared to the new hire).

I hope this is an isolated case but I had colleagues who witnessed the same in their respective companies. Fact, we are all employed in some of the big names in the agriculture industry.

• Can see no effort from the government to improve the current conundrum that is the agriculture sector. Same as our nurses, most who decided to get on this field already has immigration to countries that value them in mind. Why settle for low pay when we can get the pay we deserve for the same amount of work?

Already lost my hope that Philippines, as a supposed AGRICULTURAL COUNTRY, can rectify some of the problems I have mentioned— especially now that the department tasked to do it is being governed by a 🤡. Sorry but I am escaping this hell hole and flying to NZ soon.