The pandemic has rendered most of the Filipino workforce jobless. Many businesses shut down or even laid off their employees, causing another employment crisis. However, pandemic or not, life has to continue for many Filipinos.

If you are a Spanish-speaking Filipino, there are a lot of jobs available for you — even in the midst of a global pandemic. All you need are some technical skills; some you can even learn online for free. Put your Spanish skills to use with these Spanish-speaking jobs in the Philippines:

Call Center Agent

The Philippines is undoubtedly the BPO center of the world, and it’s not difficult to see why. Since Filipinos are multilingual and their accent can sound “neutral,” they are the top choice for global companies seeking customer service solutions.

But did you know that there is a booming local market for Spanish-speaking call center agents as well?

If you search the databases of popular job portals like Jobstreet and Indeed, you’ll find a lot of companies hiring Filipinos who can speak Spanish. These companies pay thrice compared with English-speaking agents. Now that’s something you shouldn’t miss.

This is definitely a perfect time to brush up your Spanish conversational skills. And in case you need a school to get started, Hola Amigos in Makati is a foreign language center that caters to BPO professionals.

Some companies discourage native Spanish speakers — preferring Filipino ones — so there’s very little competition in this game.

Teacher

Interestingly, some schools have also offered Spanish as an elective course or subject. Hence, some are also hiring Spanish teachers.

If you are qualified to teach Spanish (like passing the DELE test and getting an ELE certification), this is something you shouldn’t miss.

Social media specialist

Some companies also recognized the power of over 560 million Spanish speakers worldwide (second-most-spoken language in the world). Hence, they are now hiring Spanish speakers to do marketing jobs.

This is an exciting opportunity for those who love to use social media.

Translator

Although Spanish is not dominating in this area yet, some local companies are already hiring Spanish speakers to translate articles for them. Here’s one.

Writer or Journalist

If you are a Spanish-speaking freelance journalist, you can certainly pitch article ideas to international news outlets or publications. The pay varies per outlet, and they usually give you a byline. This is the best way to build a portfolio as a writer.

At La Jornada Filipina, we accept freelance article pitches.

How To Get Started

If you’re a total beginner, you can start by studying Spanish first.

Here’s how I learned enough Spanish in just two years. I’ve been actually studying it for five years now, but I poured all my energy into it in the couple of years.

Aside from Hola Amigos, here are some schools and language centers where you can learn Spanish in the Philippines.

Where To Find Those Jobs

If searching on Indeed and Jobstreet doesn’t yield results, you can try Facebook groups for Spanish-speaking Filipinos. I myself see job advertisements from time to time in these groups. A group named “Spanish Speakers Manila (Hispanohablantes Manila)” is one of my go-to places on Facebook.

Though the pandemic crashed world economies, it doesn’t have to crush our spirits as well. With perseverance and skills, I’m sure you’ll get back on your feet soon.

Arvyn Cerézo

Arvyn Cerézo is the editor of La Jornada Filipina, the first and largest Spanish-language news magazine in the Philippines. His work has appeared in South China Morning Post, Publishers Weekly, AudioFile Magazine, Asian Review of Books and Book Riot. You can find him on arvyncerezo.com.