TUCP to Noy: Raise minimium salary of workers

A labor group once again calls on the Aquino administration to raise the minimum wage of workers in the country.

MANILA, Philippines - Labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines-Nagkaisa (TUCP-Nagkaisa) said President Benigno Aquino III has a little to help an estimated P24.4 million poor workers whose income still cannot cope with the cost of basic goods and services.

TUCP Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said he is baffled why the government remains reluctant to raise the wages of poor working people amid results of government’s Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) survey, showing big disparity between family income and barest expenditures.

The poverty threshold set by the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) for 2014 was at P8,778 a month for a family of five to survive. However, in the first semester of 2014, average incomes of poor families were short by 27 percent of the poverty threshold.

NEDA said that poverty threshold is the minimum income set by government as required to meet basic food and non-food needs for a family of five to ensure that one remains economically and socially productive.

It showed poor workers in the informal economy, estimated to be at P21 million, who received less than the mandated minimum wage, were found to earn average monthly income of measly P6,408. This means they needed P2,370 more per month to move out of poverty in that year.

"It's very alarming that a huge problem confronting workers who fell through the cracks has not been acted upon ever since. Right now, they are coping on their own, coping by the means available to them and we feel they are totally excluded from the agenda sharing the profits," TUCP-Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said.

Workers in the informal economy include construction workers, farmers, vendors, jeepney, bus, tricycle, pedicab drivers, conductors, salesladies, barbers, street-sweepers and garbage collectors.

For minimum wage earners in Metro Manila, a disparity of P1,082.31 a month from the prescribed P8,778 poverty threshold amount last year.

PSA figures show the real value of P466 minimum wage for the National Capital Region (NCR) last year was P356.64 a day or P7,695.69 a month.

This year, the current value of the current highest minimum wage of P481 is only P371.64 a day or P8,176.08 a month— still a P601.92 short compared with the 2014 P8,778 threshold.

Today, TUCP-Nagkaisa estimated the mid-year poverty threshold at P9,177 a month.

Meanwhile, Gerard Seno, executive vice president of the Associated Labor Unions, said the latest ideal minimum wage should be at P1,068 a day to cover the rising costs of prices of basic food and non-food needs.

Seno said that this can be achieved through a priority legislated wage hike measure or through a uniform decision of regional wage boards.

"That is why with less than a year in office, we are still hoping President Aquino to make tough policy decisions in raising Filipino family income both at the formal and informal sector workers," Seno said. - By Dennis Carcamo (philstar.com)

Sona not a venue for fashion show — TUCP

A labor group has urged senators and congressmen, including guests not to make the State of the Nation Address (SONA) occasion a fashion show venue; it suggested a simple, formal and acceptable wear.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines-Nagkaisa (TUCP-Nagkaisa) observed that SONA for many years, has become a fashion event for legislators, their spouses and families.

President Benigno Aquino III will deliver his last SONA on Monday, July 27, at the Batasan complex in Quezon city.

“First of all, the SONA is not a fashion show. Second, working people feel it is illogical and unethical for our lawmakers to parade in the halls of congress wearing costly, extravagant clothes during the SONA when millions of their constituent Filipinos are languishing in hunger and poverty,” Gerard Seno, executive vice president of the Associated Labor Unions said.

He said senators and members of the House of the Representatives should lead lives of simplicity and modesty as representatives of the people’s plight and aspiration.

For his part, TUCP-Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said there should be a committee at both Houses that sets an internal rules teaching our lawmakers the simple way to dress and putting a cap on the cost of clothes they wear during SONA and during sessions.

“The focus of the SONA is the state of well-being of tax-paying Filipino people not the expensive clothes our solons are wearing. The essence of the gathering is not to showcase their brand new and top of the line SUVs. The center of the SONA is the people, the ordinary working people who will listen to the report of the president and validate his direction for the incoming year,” Tanjusay said.

He said the budget of P700 per head for snacks and dinner for the day is too expensive. Rather, the budget should not exceed P481 pesos the highest current amount of daily minimum wage in Metro Manila. - By Vito Barcelo / Manila Standard Today

Labor group pushes for P92 wage increase in Central Visayas

The proposed wage hike is 'too high,' says the head of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry. 'Let us not kill each other. Let us survive together.'

Rappler file photo by Roy Lagarde

CEBU CITY, Philippines – The Associated Labor Union (ALU) is pushing for a P92 across-the-board wage increase for workers in Central Visayas, but the business sector thinks the amount is too much.

In its proposal submitted to the Regional Tripartite Wage and Productivity Board in Central Visayas (RTWPB-VII) onTuesday, July 21, the labor group said the increase is needed even though the prices of petroleum has significantly dropped.

The commodities and the cost of living, however, did not drop like the petroleum prices, according to Art Barrit of the ALU.

Other labor groups have asked for a higher across-the-board wage increase. On July 13, the Cebu Labor Coalition and the Alliance of Progressive Labor sought a P140 across-the-board wage increase for the region.

All labor groups agree that the Central Visayas' minimum wage – P340 – is lower compared to that of the National Capital Region.

The regional wage board will hold a meeting on July 31 to discuss the proposals.

In an interview with dyLA-AM, a radio station operated by the ALU-TUCP, Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry president Maria Teresa Chan said both proposals are too high.

Based on an inflation rate of 3-4%, the increase should only be between P13.6 and P15, she said.

An amount higher than that would hurt the industry, she added. “Let us not kill each other. Let us survive together.”

She explained that 60% of Cebu businesses are anchored on the services sector, and will be significantly affected if wages are increased.

In a services business, majority of the cost is manpower, Chan said.

Chan also said that the BPO companies, which are multinational, may be able to afford the P15 increase, but other “indpenedent BPOs” will have a difficult time coping with such cost, much more with the proposed P92 and P140 across-the-board wage increase. – Rappler.com / Dale G. Israel

DOLE warns against hiring foreign workers

MANILA - Amid reports of rising number of illegal foreign workers in the country, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) yesterday warned local commercial establishments against hiring of foreign nationals without securing necessary employment permits.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said local employers hiring foreign workers without the necessary permit from DOLE face imprisonment and other penalties.

“DOLE is strictly enforcing the revised rules for the issuance of alien employment permits (AEPs), for which our regional offices have direct responsibility,” Baldoz noted.

Baldoz has already directed all DOLE regional offices to strictly enforce the rules on the issuance of alien employment permit.

Under the Labor Code, Baldoz said, any foreign national seeking admission to the Philippines for employment purposes, and any domestic or foreign employer who desires to engage a foreign national for employment in the Philippines, are requested to obtain an Alien Employment Permit from DOLE.

“The AEP is a permit issued to a non-resident alien or foreign national seeking admission to the Philippines for work after it has been determined a competent and able Filipino citizen is unavailable or unwilling at the time of application to perform the services for which the alien is desired,” Baldoz explained.

She said an AEP is also required for foreign nationals who assume a new job position within their current organizations or those who transferred to a new position within related companies.

Based on DOLE guidelines, DOLE regional directors are authorized to conduct ocular inspection to verify legitimacy of employment of foreign national and a verification inspection of the establishment employing foreign nationals within 30 days after issuance of the AEP.

Baldoz said foreign nationals found to be working in the Philippines without a valid AEP would be fined P10,000 for every year of illegal work or fraction, while companies that illegally employed them would also be subject to a fine of P10,000 for every year of illegal employment or a fraction thereof.

DOLE will publish an AEP application to allow the general public to object to the new employment or job change of the foreign national within 30 days from the time of publication.

Baldoz said DOLE regional directors could deny an application for an AEP if the applicant has been convicted of a criminal offense or is a fugitive from justice. DOLE may also may also motu proprio, or upon petition, cancel or revoke an AEP after due process based on meritorious objection or information against the employment of the foreign nationals.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) earlier reported a continuing growth in the number of illegal foreign workers in the country for the past years.

The greater bulk of the undocumented foreign workers here, TUCP claimed are Chinese nationals while others are Koreans, Japanese, Indonesians, Malaysians and Vietnamese.

Undocumented foreign workers are employed commonly in the construction, manufacturing, electronics, and services industries located in Metro Manila, Central Visayas, Davao Region, Zamboanga Peninsula, Bataan and Batangas. -By Mayen Jaymalin, The Philippine Star

Gov't urged to sack 16 Chinese experts in NGCP

A labor group claims that the Chinese experts working at the National Grid Corp.of the Philippines have installed fiber optics to the command and control of the entire grid without the appropriate franchise from Congress. 

MANILA, Philippines - The 16 Chinese experts working at the country’s National Grid Corp. of the Philippines (NGCP) should be replaced by Filipino experts, labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines - Nagkaisa (TUCP-Nagkaisa) said on Monday.

The foreigners' Alien Employment Permit will expire on July 31.

"We have a very delicate situation rife with national security interest issue where a very critical and a very strategic government facility is in the hands of and controlled by foreigners. We would like to see this corrected as quickly as possible by having the Department of Energy (DOE) and the Department of Labor and Employment ensure the immediate termination of their work permits immediately and not allow it renewed," TUCP-Nagkaisa executive director Louie Corral said.

He said the labor group expects DOE to ensure that operations manual for the NGCP has been translated into English from Chinese in time for the transition.

"It's scandalous and irresponsible for us to have allowed that the NGCP operations manual - the command and control of the entire electricity system - to be hostaged to a foreign language and hostaged to foreign experts," Corral said.

TUCP-Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said the labor group is also urging the Energy Regulatory Commission and the National Telecommunication Commission to conduct due diligence in the integrity of the entire NGCP transmission system.

"We received a reliable information alleging State Grid of China have installed fiber optics attached to the command and control of the entire grid without the appropriate franchise from the House of Representaives. This poses, we have a serious national security concern given the current state of play of China-Philippine relations," Tanjusay said.

The Philippines and China are now locked in an arbitration before a tribunal at The Hague, Netherlands in connection with West Philippine Sea dispute. - By Dennis Carcamo (philstar.com)

Passage of Typhoon Code Law sought

MANILA, Philippines - Employers would be required to adopt a policy disallowing deduction from salaries of employees unable to report for work during typhoons when a bill seeking a Typhoon Code is passed into law.

Labor unions Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) and Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) are asking Congress to immediately pass into law the bill of Diwa Rep. Emmeline Aglipay-Villar.

“We look forward for the immediate approval of the bill because it will enhance workers’ productivity when it becomes a law,” TUCP spokesman Alan Tanjusay said.

KMU said companies not related to saving lives should be prohibited from forcing their workers to report for work during typhoons.

“To simplify things, I think the (rules) in suspension of classes could serve as a gauge when workers could stay home and not report for work,” KMU said.

Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) needs to study the bill before coming out with an official position.

“If this code will cover wages and benefits of workers during typhoons, they are in full conformity with the labor code, in which case I have no objections,” she said.- By Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)

Govt urged to prepare contingency plans for Pinoys in Greece

A labor group on Tuesday urged the government to prepare contingency plans for Filipinos who may be affected by Greece's economic crisis, less than a week after the debt-ridden European nation voted no to bailout reform proposals.

"The current events had already resulted in a major decline in the service and tourism industry—hotels, restaurants, cruise ships— where majority of Filipino OFWs are employed," said Louie Corral, executive director of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines-Nagkaisa (TUCP-Nagkaisa), in a statement.

"Clearly, cash will be tight for Greeks and many do not even know where their next paycheck will come from. What more for our OFWs?" Corral added.

Filipinos were unable to remit their money home last week after Greek banks limited their activities due to capital control. Greek nationals were also limited to €60 per ATM withdrawal.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said on Monday that Filipinos were secure in their jobs despite the economic crisis and that they may still find jobs in other countries should they need new employment.

Despite this, TUCP-Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay called on the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to create contingency plans to support OFW's to relieve the impact the Greek financial crisis may have on them.

DFA spokesperson Charles Jose said the government is now studying the effects of the Greek referendum on OFW prospects and that it has already advised Filipinos in Greece to prepare for any eventuality.

There is an estimated 61,500 Filipino workers in Greece. Of this, 11,500, mostly domestic helpers, are land-based, while 60,000 are seafarers.

Majority of Greeks voted against an international bailout offer on Sunday, in a move opposition members warned could result in Greece being booted out of the Eurozone. —Rie Takumi/KBK, GMA News

Salon worker says celebrity boss fired him due to HIV

Celebrity hairstylist Ricky Reyes (left) faces complaints from a former salon employee and now HIV sufferer, Rene Nocos, who has found supporters among labor groups. ALU

A former employee of a beauty salon chain has come out to accuse celebrity hairstylist and makeup artist Ricky Reyes of firing him because he had tested positive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).

Rene Nocos, 47, filed in March last year a complaint against Reyes for discrimination, unlawful termination and nonpayment of benefits in the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC).

On Wednesday, Nocos went more public about his case in a press conference held by the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) and the Associated Labor Unions (ALU).

“I have committed wrong choices in the past and suffered heavily for it. My entire family has disowned me. My friends have abandoned me. My coworkers have condemned me,’’ he said.

“Despite all these, I need my life back. But I can’t rebuild my life because I was laid off from my job just because I have HIV. I want to put the pieces back together but my employer, Ricky Reyes, denied me of my social protection through SSS (Social Security System) and PhilHealth.”

Nocos said he tried to avail himself of free outpatient HIV/AIDS treatment through PhilHealth, “but I discovered only last year that my employer was not making any payment at all. So I confronted him (Reyes). He then fired me after learning that I have HIV right there and then.”

Fired on Feb. 28, 2014, Nocos filed a complaint in the NLRC three days later against Reyes and Tonette Moreno, vice president of Ricky Superstyle Color Salon.

But in a press statement on Wednesday, Ricky Reyes Corp. gave a different version of the events leading to Nocos’ unemployment and maintained that discrimination had nothing to do with it.

“Based on our records, Nocos became ill in 2013. The company allowed him to go on sick leave, paying him his monthly salary in full. This went on for six months,’’ the company said, without specifying the illness.

Nocos later “recuperated from his sickness” and presented to the head office a medical certificate stating he was fit to work again, it recalled. “So the head office assigned him to a salon branch on España, Manila. But after some time, his illness recurred and he again went on sick leave for three months, with full payment of his salary.”

He was soon working again at the España salon but “his illness was on and off and, sad to say, the salon was not doing good… so management decided to close shop.’’

The affected employees were told to wait as management worked out their relocation to other branches. At this point, “it was best for Nocos to recuperate and have complete rest until such time we could hire him again,” the company said.

“But Nocos demanded to still have his salary in full, [a demand] which management declined. The company waited for him to report back [but] he never did.”

According to the company, the case was unprecedented in the 40-year operations of the Ricky Reyes Group Of Companies. “With the highest degree of respect for persons, we will not allow acts of discrimination, whether from the management or the rank and file.”

At the press conference, ALU policy advocacy officer Alan Tanjusay said they would request the Department of Labor and Employment to conduct an inspection and assessment of all salon outlets owned by Reyes and Moreno for compliance with labor and wage laws.

“We are appealing to the NLRC, SSS and PhilHealth to render as quickly as possible their judgment on the case filed by Rene. The justice rendered by these institutions is very important in Rene’s struggle to move on. There is no closure and there is no new beginning for him if there is injustice.’’ said ALU executive vice president Gerard Seno. - Philippine Daily Inquirer