Higher Quality of Life Among Families with OFWs — Research

Filipino families with overseas Filipino worker (OFW) relatives are observed to have more leisure activities and own more gadgets compared to those without, according to a study conducted by market research consulting firm Synergy Business Consultancy.

OFW families are more inclined to eat out, socialize, travel, go to the mall, purchase gadgets, and do recreational activities, as well as allot a budget for charitable acts.

“Because they have higher purchase capacity, more of those with OFW families engage in certain leisure activities compared to those without. For example, 43 percent of respondents with OFW relatives go malling while only 32 percent of respondents without an OFW relative had this as one of their leisure activities.

The only similar behavior observed is media consumption,” shares Synergy managing director Germaine Reyes. The research noted that both groups like to watch TV, listen to the radio, and read newspapers.

Spending and Consumer Habits - OFW families are fond of eating out whether in fast foods or fine dining restaurants, comprising 54 percent and 19 percent of respondents, respectively. Traveling is also more common to OFW families, at 16 percent, while only 7 percent of respondents without OFW relatives noted this as one of their leisure activities.

Moreover, recreational activities such as going to the gym, playing musical instruments, playing board games, going to the salon or spa, playing video games, or engaging in sports are popular with OFW families. OFW families also allot budget for charitable acts such as participating in the parish and community civic activities, as well as other religious activities.

Gadget ownership with OFW families is prevalent compared to those without, particularly with owning computers or laptops. Thirty-five percent of OFW families have a computer or laptop while only 11 percent of families without OFW relatives own this gadget at home.

“There is a higher incidence of gadget ownership among OFW families, including mobile phones, computers, and digital cameras, among others. It may be that since computers are communication tools, the families of OFWs use them more readily to stay in touch. Thus, ownership of computer peripherals seem to be higher as well,” expounds Reyes.

The survey involved 1,000 households in Metro Manila and the interviews were done from September to October 2010. In Metro Manila, two in every five households have an OFW immediate household member or relative, which is represented by 929,000 households or 4.7 million household members.

In terms of socio-economic profile, 54 percent of OFW families interviewed belong to the D class. Meanwhile, only 9 percent of families with OFW relatives are in the ABC class, compared with 4 percent of families without an OFW immediate household member or relative.

According to Reyes, this is a higher-than-usual representation of the ABC households of OFW families compared with those without, and may indicate that having OFW relatives can potentially improve their ability to go up the socio-economic ladder.

“This is because close to 6 in 10 families receive remittances from OFW family members or relatives and this proportion is much higher compared with class E, thus possibly augmenting their income capacity and/or disposable income,” ends Reyes.