TUCP to oil companies: Limit profit-making

AMID the steady rise in the prices of fuel products, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), the country's biggest labor group, called on oil companies to share the burden by moderating their profit margins, as a way of showing corporate social responsibility.

TUCP's call came following the 11th straight week of oil price hikes, eroding further workers' wages amid relentless rise in the prices of basic commodities and services.

"It is not only PUV (public utility vehicle) drivers and motorists who are taking the hit from oil price hikes but all Filipino families because when gas prices go up, it will have a second-round knockdown effect on almost all basic goods and services," said TUCP Vice President Luis Corral. "Why is it so easy for gas companies to implement price hikes while it is exceedingly hard for workers to demand pay hikes?"

"We have long urged all social partners, both in government and in business, to share the sacrifice because workers have long sacrificed, especially during the pandemic, providing a decent life to their families despite too high prices and too low wages," he pointed out.

Further, the TUCP said the lives of the working class could become more bearable if oil companies go easy on profit-making.

The group added that it supported moves by the leadership of the House of Representatives to recommend to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. the possible suspension of excise tax and value-added tax on oil.

"We join calls to review and reform the Oil Deregulation Law. This is long overdue since this policy of unbundling gas prices never ended unfair and unjust pricing borne out of price collusion. It is well-settled, after all, that liberalization and deregulation will only work in a truly free market, and not in an oligopoly filled with colluding firms," the group further said.

At the same time, it called on Congress to prioritize the study and amendment of Republic Act 9136, or the "Electric Power Industry Reform Act of 2001," more popularly known as the "Epira Law."

It pointed out that the law never achieved its purpose of making electricity in the country affordable and reliable.

"Even before assuming the presidency, the President declared that 'our mission for our country is to have adequate, reliable and affordable electricity for all' in cognizance that 'a big part of every Filipino's salary goes to paying electric bills.' We hope Congress will also [include in the] agenda amendments to Epira, such as proposed rate reduction targets," it said. - By William B. Depasupil

TUCP: Ratify ILO C-190 , a treaty ending all forms of violence and harassment in workplaces

THE TRADE Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) reiterated its call on Monday for the Philippines to be the first in the Association of Southeast Asian Countries (ASEAN) to ratify International Labor Organization Convention No. 190 (ILO C-190), a treaty ending all forms of violence and harassment in workplaces.

The ILO describes C-190, the Violence and Harassment Convention of 2019, as the first global treaty to contain the “first internationally agreed definition of violence and harassment in the world of work.”

The House in January this year adopted a resolution urging the Philippine government to ratify C-190, but the Senate has yet to concur.

In a statement, TUCP President and Party-list Representative Raymond Democrito C. Mendoza urged President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos, Jr. to support its ratification in the interest of “gender equality, women’s freedom from sexism and abuse, and closing the gender gap.”

“What better way to honor the noble legacy of the late Department of Migrant Workers (DMW) Secretary Susan ‘Toots’ V. Ople, who devoted her entire purpose-driven life to the plight of modern-day hero Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) and the advancement of women rights and empowerment than to ratify the groundbreaking ILO Convention No. 190,” Mr. Mendoza said.

Ms. Ople passed away on Aug. 22. The President cited her as a dear friend and “irreplaceable” champion of the causes of OFWs. — Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

Labor defends proposed P150 wage increase

TWO of the country's biggest labor organizations, the Nagkakaisa Labor Coalition (Nagkaisa) and the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), on Wednesday called on policymakers and businesses to recognize that investing in workers through higher wages yields significant long-term benefits.

"The positive effects cascade throughout the economy, generating a multiplier effect that contributes to overall prosperity," said Nagkaisa chairman Sonny Matula.

He debunked a statement by business groups that only a minority will benefit from the proposed P150 across-the-board legislative wage increase.

The business' arguments, he pointed out, failed to consider the broader economic effects and undermines the crucial role of fair wages in driving sustainable growth.

He added that contrary to the business sector's claims, raising wages will have a significant positive impact on the economy and the majority of workers.

He explained that ensuring fair wages for a significant portion of the workforce can create a positive ripple effect that stimulates economic activity, increases consumer spending power, and fosters social progress.

In addition, the economic benefits of wage increase can help address the persistent issue of malnutrition in the Philippines, which Unicef said has severe effects on children, including stunted growth.

Nagkaisa maintained that the first key advantage of higher wages is that workers have more money at their disposal, and with increased purchasing power, workers are empowered to spend on essential goods and services, thereby driving consumer demand.

Secondly, the group stressed that higher wages can foster employee loyalty and motivation.

"When workers are fairly compensated for their efforts, they feel valued and are more likely to be engaged and productive in their roles. This improved productivity can enhance business efficiency and output, further bolstering economic growth," it pointed out.

Likewise, it said a workforce with higher wages projects stability and helps attract investments.

For its part, the TUCP said that it is unfortunate that both employers and economic managers are now ganging up in an "overkill" on the poor workers' calls to bring up measly real wages to at least be within the poverty threshold.

Employers and economic managers had claimed that should a wage increase be granted, it would result in widespread closure of medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs), which comprise 98 percent of businesses in the country.

But on the contrary, TUCP Vice President Luis Corral said that it is precisely the high prices of food and services, rent, and electricity that are now forcing workers to call on Congress to address their desperate situation.

"The TUCP calls on our economic managers to work triply hard to address the soaring prices of basic goods and services, and their impact in further depressing already-low wages. The call for wage increase months ago should have been a wake-up call to the economic managers to save the rapidly deteriorating situation of a majority of the working poor," added Corral.

Trade unions blast govt

On the other hand, the All Philippine Trade Unions (APTU) has slammed the government for not taking seriously the recommendations of the International Labor Organization-High Level Tripartite Mission (ILO-HLTM) to get to the bottom of the killings of trade unionists and blatant violations of workers' right to unionize.

APTU, which is composed of the Federation of Free Workers (FFW), Kilusang Mayo Uno, Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), The Nagkaisa! Labor Coalition and Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, among others, has endorsed the joint workers' report to the ILO-HLTM.

The APTU representatives during Wednesday's Pandesal Forum of the Kamuning Bakery and Café in Quezon City castigated the government for allegedly continuing to leave workers out of the inter-agency committee under Executive Order 23, which was supposed to strengthen coordination and expedite the investigation, prosecution and resolution of cases for violations of the right to organize.

"Nothing about us. The workers had been left out of the new body despite being its main proponent," they said.

"Besides, as a member of the ILO and a signatory of the ILO Convention 144, the government is duty-bound to include workers and employers as their social partners in critical bodies such as this," they stressed.

Aside from violating the "spirit of the ILO-HLTM to address violations of freedom of association in a tripartite manner," EO 23's inter-agency committee also falls short of the workers' demand, APTU said.

"What we have been asking for since January when the ILO-HLTM arrived, is a presidential commission that would oversee the full realization of all the recommendations of the ILO, including the urgent need to look into the killings of 69 trade unionists from 2016 to April this year," they said.

"Also, regarding the hundreds of direct attacks on the right to freedom of association such as red-tagging that have led to abductions, enforced disappearances, forced disaffiliation and trumped-up charges against trade union leaders and organizers," the trade unions further said.

In January, the ILO-HLTM asked for a joint tripartite report on the progress made on their recommendations by the next International Labor Conference (ILC) starting on June 5, according to APTU.

"Barely two weeks before the deadline set by the ILO-HLTM to report on the progress on the recommendations, the government has nothing concrete to show at the ILO's ILC in June, except the killing of another trade unionist, Alex Dolorosa of the BPO Industry Employees Network," the group said.

At the forum, Julius Cainglet of the FFW and Mark Villena of the TUCP said that the government is in danger of being called out again by the ILC for being in the list of the worst cases of violators of freedom of association and other trade union rights.

"It is also set to be included in the International Trade Union Confederation's Top 10 Worst Places for Workers to live in. All these would have dire effects on our economy," the APTU representatives said.

"Being labeled once again as one of the Top 10 Worst Countries for workers could also cancel all the efforts of the current administration to woo investors into the country," they warned.- By William B. Depasupil and Arlie O. Calalo

Trade, labor groups to push for rule of law at ILO meet

Trade and labor groups will push for the rule of law, dispensation of justice, and speedy disposition of labor cases in the forthcoming meetings with the International Labor Organization (ILO) here in Manila

This was emphasized by the Leaders Forum (LF), which is composed of business groups and trade unions, as they welcomed and prepare for the High-Level Tripartite Mission (HLTM) on the ILO on Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention, 1948 (No. 87). The three-day meeting will start next week, Jan. 23.

“Respect for labor rights as guaranteed by the Philippine Constitution, national labor laws and ILO Conventions is indispensable for investments and economic growth,” the LF joint statement added.

“As both labor and business groups are an invaluable pillar to any administration,” the LF statement added.

However, the LF stressed that it is also keenly aware of the important role of government in putting in place the policy and operational environment towards this end.

In the spirit of bipartism, the LF is keen to take appropriate steps and make the necessary follow through actions.

Sergio Ortiz-Luis, Jr., who is president of the Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), said ILO officials will first with the employers to be followed by the employees and government and a joint meeting after.

The LF is a national bipartite dialogue mechanism consisting of the largest business organizations, including the ECOP, the Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), and the Philippine Exporters Confederation (PHILEXPORT), and the most representative trade unions in the country, including the Federation of Free Workers (FFW), Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO), and the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).

The HLTM is in line with the Committee on the Application of Standards (CAS) conclusions adopted at the 108th Session of the International Labour Conference in June 2019. - by Manila Bulletin

TUCP supports small-scale miners

THE country’s largest labor group is now pushing for new legislation which will cut red tape for the government registration of small scale miners.

In a statement on Wednesday, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) President Raymond C. Mendoza backed the pronouncement of President Ferdinand “Bongbong” R. Marcos Jr. that he wants to update Republic Act (RA) No. 7076 or the Act Creating A People’s Small-Scale Mining Program to ensure small-scale miners enjoy “social assistance and labor protection.”

Marcos said currently most of the small-scale mining activities in the country are unregistered, which leaves its workers vulnerable to precarious working conditions.

Mendoza, who is also a deputy speaker at the House of Representatives, said a possible amendment to RA 7076 will make it easier for interested parties to register in the Minahang Bayan program of the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR). Minahang Bayan or the People’s Small-Scale Mining Area is an initiative of DENR, which aims to regulate small-scale mining through registration.

Based on its October 2022 data, DENR reported that there are already 100 Minahang Bayan sites nationwide.

Mendoza said this could rise if DENR futher streamlines its processing for applicants. “This can be principally achieved by streamlining the Minahang Bayan petitioning, licensing, and registration processes by promoting localized access, simplifying documentary requirements, ensuring affordable fees, ensuring reasonable application time, establishing one-stop-shops, and leveraging technology,” Mendoza said.

TUCP said there are an estimated 200,000 to 500,000 small-scale miners nationwide, which could benefit from the “legitimization and formalization” of their operations. - BY SAMUEL P. MEDENILLA

Labor says oil price hikes dissipate wage increases

Labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) yesterday said the continued increase in fuel prices will water down the value of the salary adjustments recently approved by the regional wage boards.

In a statement, TUCP president Raymond Mendoza said the oil price increases are unacceptable as they eat away the benefits of the salary adjustments to be implemented in 14 regions.

“The buying power of the current wage adjustments are being dissipated by the series of previous and present extraordinary increases in prices of fuel, basic commodities, and cost of services,” said Mendoza.

“These will have no impact in lifting the lives of workers from worsening poverty caused by the pandemic crisis,” he added.

Mendoza pointed how the fuel price increases will trigger upward adjustments in the prices of basic commodities and the cost of services.

“Because of extraordinary inflation, the series of wage increase orders issued by the wage boards failed to restore the purchasing power of wages,” said Mendoza.

In recent weeks, 14 regional wage boards have issued wage orders granting minimum wage rate adjustments.

The 14 wage orders are to take effect starting this month, according to the Department of Labor and Employment. - By Gerard Naval

TUCP proposes P470 salary increase

Representatives of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines seek an across the board salary increase of P470 for the National Capital Region at the NCR wage board in Gen Malvar, St., Manila on Monday. The group urged the labor department to consider the proposed increase, which will bring the minimum wage to P1,007 per day, citing that no wage hike has been implemented in the past two years amid rising costs of living across the country. - ABS-CBN News

TUCP pleads wage hike

The ALU-TUCP has not filed any wage increase because we understand the situation. But as fuel prices continue to spike, which will affect prices of commodities and food, then we will appeal for a wage increase in the coming days or weeks

The Associated Labor Group-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) is set to demand a hike from P537 to P750 for daily minimum wage as the war between Russia and Ukraine is expected to impact the prices of the basic commodities.

The Brent crude — the global oil benchmark — has now ballooned to above $139 a barrel before easing back to below $130, but it has sent fuel pump prices to skyrocket.

Hefty price increases in fuel are to be implemented in the Philippines starting today.

Alan Tanjusay of ALU-TUCP, during a guesting in Daily Tribune’s morning program Gising Na! on Monday, said it’s about time that wages of workers are increased.

“It’s been two years now that the worker’s wage remained stagnant due to the pandemic. The ALU-TUCP has not filed any wage increase because we understand the situation. But as fuel prices continue to spike, which will affect prices of commodities and food, then we will appeal for a wage increase in the coming days or weeks,” he said.

Tanjusay said they will channel the wage increase petitions through the Wage Boards, which are under the Department of Labor and Employment, as Congress is currently in recess due for the 9 May elections.

“This is a rare situation amid this still persisting pandemic, as both employers and employees were greatly battered by the health emergencies. We are now trying to strike a balance between the need and the clamor of the workers for a wage increase, at the same time, addressing the need of businesses and employers to be able to survive the moment the Wage Board will allow our request,” he explained.

Tanjusay stated that P750 wage is a clamor among lawmakers supportive of the call.

The current minimum wage in National Capital Region is P537 that which took effect in October 2017.

- By Raffy Ayeng

EcoWaste, TUCP push for stronger anti-asbestos policy

There is an urgent need to improve the policy on the manufacture and use of asbestos and materials containing the disease-causing substance to protect public health, the EcoWaste Coalition (EcoWaste) and Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said Thursday, Jan. 6.

In a joint statement, EcoWaste and TUCP said that the Chemical Control Order (CCO) for Asbestos “needs serious enhancement” to protect the public from the unrestricted importation of raw asbestos and materials or products containing such substance.

According to the groups, the most common diseases caused by asbestos exposure are asbestosis or a form of lung disease, lung and ovary cancer, scarring of the lung lining, and mesothelioma or the formation of a tumor in the linings of the lungs, abdomen, or heart.

“We no longer see labels on asbestos-containing products. And we don’t see warning signages that forewarn the people and keep communities from hazards of asbestos dust exposure in demolition and disposal of asbestos,” said TUCP President Raymond Mendoza.

“The compliance to and enforcement of CCO is long gone. We fear that many workers and their families may have been exposed already, and its effects will only manifest a few years later,” he added.

Meanwhile, EcoWaste Coalition Chemical Safety Campaigner Thony Dizon said the CCO can be strengthened by expanding the ban to cover all forms of asbestos, phasing out asbestos-containing products, and promoting the commercial use of safer alternatives to such carcinogenic material.

“All stakeholders, including workers, communities, and local governments, need to be involved in raising citizens’ awareness on this public health issue and in the conduct of sustained monitoring and surveillance on asbestos exposure,” Dizon said.

The CCO on Asbestos was issued by the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) on Jan. 6, 2000.

It prohibits all forms of asbestos on toys, low-density jointing chemicals, corrugated commercial paper, and untreated textiles among others.

Moreover, it also notes that asbestos and asbestos-containing materials must be labeled in structures, construction, demolition, disposal, and packaging products.

All manufacturers are also required by the DENR to register with the Environmental Management Bureau, obtain importation clearance, and submit annual reports, among other things, to ensure compliance with the CCO. - by Faith Argosino

‘No work, no pay’ rule for unvaxxed workers unfair, say labor groups

LOCAL labor groups and even business leaders cried foul over the proposed “no work, no pay” policy that the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) plans to implement for unvaccinated employees starting December 1, 2021.

A representative of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) claims that the policy is a form of punishment and discrimination for employees who have not gotten vaccinated against the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Alan Tanjusay, TUCP national spokesperson, said the national government should provide incentives to their employees in order to convince them to get vaccinated such as giving them paid leaves, financial bonuses, rice allowance, or simply providing shuttle services going to vaccination sites.

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has issued Resolution 148 and 149 that would require all on-site employees to be vaccinated.

Labor Assistant Secretary Teresita Cucueco said in an online briefing on Monday, November 22, that employees who don’t want to get vaccinated may opt to undergo RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) testing but the payment must come from their own pocket.

Cucueco added that the “No work, no pay” rule may be applied to on-site workers who refuse to be vaccinated and cannot present a negative RT-PCR test.

Aside from TUCP, the Associated Labor Unions (ALU) Central Visayas has condemned the move of the labor department, saying that vaccination is not mandatory under Republic Act 11525 or the Covid-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021 that was signed by President Duterte in February 2021.

Lawyer Nora Ana Meterio-Diego, ALU Central Visayas vice president, told Sunstar Cebu that the government should shoulder the expenses for the swab testing and antigen test of unvaccinated employees.

“The government should incentivize rather than punish or deprive unvaccinated workers,” Diego said.

LOCAL labor groups and even business leaders cried foul over the proposed “no work, no pay” policy that the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) plans to implement for unvaccinated employees starting December 1, 2021.

A representative of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) claims that the policy is a form of punishment and discrimination for employees who have not gotten vaccinated against the Coronavirus disease (Covid-19).

Alan Tanjusay, TUCP national spokesperson, said the national government should provide incentives to their employees in order to convince them to get vaccinated such as giving them paid leaves, financial bonuses, rice allowance, or simply providing shuttle services going to vaccination sites.

The Inter-Agency Task Force for the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases (IATF) has issued Resolution 148 and 149 that would require all on-site employees to be vaccinated.

Labor Assistant Secretary Teresita Cucueco said in an online briefing on Monday, November 22, that employees who don’t want to get vaccinated may opt to undergo RT-PCR (reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction) testing but the payment must come from their own pocket.

Cucueco added that the “No work, no pay” rule may be applied to on-site workers who refuse to be vaccinated and cannot present a negative RT-PCR test.

Aside from TUCP, the Associated Labor Unions (ALU) Central Visayas has condemned the move of the labor department, saying that vaccination is not mandatory under Republic Act 11525 or the Covid-19 Vaccination Program Act of 2021 that was signed by President Duterte in February 2021.

Lawyer Nora Ana Meterio-Diego, ALU Central Visayas vice president, told Sunstar Cebu that the government should shoulder the expenses for the swab testing and antigen test of unvaccinated employees.

“The government should incentivize rather than punish or deprive unvaccinated workers,” Diego said.

Diego said this will be a disadvantage to workers who have allergic reactions and may face serious illness when inoculated with the vaccine.

The Federation of Free Workers also questioned the legality of the policy since it contradicts Section 12 of RA 11525 which bars the use of vaccine cards as a requirement for educational, employment and other similar government purposes.

The labor groups also urged employers not to wait for any directive from the government in giving incentives since this is for the welfare of their workforce.

On the management side, an official of the Filipino Cebuano Business Club (FilCeb) said that although they are for the vaccination of employees, implementing a “no work, no pay” rule for unvaccinated workers is a “counterproductive” move.

FilCeb chairman Rey Calooy said human resource (HR) personnel for various firms should offer incentives to workers or proper counseling to persuade them to get vaccinated.

“We need education within the company on the benefits of getting vaccinated. And the HR should understand why that particular employee won’t get vaccinated. Maybe that person has psychological hesitance or phobia that they can talk about,” he said.

Calooy said only a small group of employees remains unvaccinated. However, to pave the way for economic recovery, there should be understanding and assessment of employees who remain unvaccinated.

Calooy said instead of forcing them to get vaccinated, employers could offer their workers paid leave for a day just to convince them to get vaccinated or offer free rides to their workers if they are going to vaccination centers.

Meanwhile, Tanjusay added that they support the three-day national vaccination drive organized by the government and said that if November 29 and December 1 will be declared as special non-working holidays, then this is something that they would consider as an incentive for workers. (IRT, JOB)

TUCP condemns police ‘intrusion’ of group’s HQ

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) condemned the latest intrusion of six armed policemen inside the TUCP Labor Center compound along Elliptical Road corner Maharlika St., in Diliman, Quezon City last Tuesday.

“This is a clear act of harassment intended to send a chilling message to the trade union movement and specifically to cow TUCP in its advocacy and union organizing work in both the private and public sectors,” said TUCP President Raymond Mendoza.

“Without permission or even a courtesy request, the policemen, using the CIDG blue-and-white sedan vehicle with plate number SKM 714 from QC-76, entered the TUCP compound and arrogantly roamed inside our private premises, took photos of the daily attendance list, and interrogated our staff without a search warrant,” Mendoza said in a statement.

“We remind all - especially the PNP and the CIDG - to adhere and strictly observe the rule of law. The TUCP will not countenance or tolerate any legal short-cuts, especially by our supposed lawenforcers. Further, this is the fifth time that an unwarranted police intrusion has occurred within our Quezon City premises, and it has also occurred in offices and buildings of our affiliates in Mindanao,” he said.

Mendoza said “we feel that the pattern to scare off legitimate labor groups is patently clear. What they are doing to TUCP is deeply alarming in this time of profiling and ideological-tagging of labor groups.” 

“The police entered without the courtesy of a request or approaching any responsible officer of the union in the Compound to explain their purpose and in contravention of an existing protocol on rules of engagement between the PNP and trade unions,” he added.

The TUCP is the largest trade union center in the country, and an affiliate of the Brussels-based International Trade Union Congress (ITUC), which has been at the forefront of defending workers’ rights and welfare globally.

Mendoza said the police intrusion into the TUCP compound is a direct assault on the  Constitutional rights of workers and is a violation of ILO Conventions 87 and 98 which the Philippine government has ratified and is obligated to observe. -

- by Vito Barcelo

Gobyerno, mga kompanya dapat sagutin RT-PCR test ng mga manggagawa: grupo

MAYNILA - Nabibigatan pa rin ang isang labor group sa panibagong price cap na ipapataw ng Department of Health (DOH) sa mga RT-PCR test kontra COVID-19. 

Sabi ng ALU-TUCP, mabigat pa rin sa bulsa ng karaniwang economic frontliner ang inaprubahang price cap ng Department of Health, na tinatayang nasa P2,450 hanggang P3,360 depende sa kung saan magpapatingin. 

Giit nila, dapat gobyerno o mga kompanya ang umako sa gastos. 

"Stagnant ang wages simula noong March last year, walang dagdag. Pero yung mga presyo ng mga bilihin at mga serbisyo ay tumataas so ang value ng sahod ng mga manggagawa ngayong pandemya ay napakaliit. Kung idadagdag pa natin ang cost ng testing, wala na silang maiuuwi para sa kanilang mahal sa buhay," ani ALU-TUCP Spokesperson Alan Tanjusay. 

Simula Setyembre 6, nasa P2,450 hanggang P2,800 na ang RT-PCR test sa mga pampublikong pasilidad. Samantalang nasa P2,940 hanggang P3,360 naman sa mga pribadong pasilidad. 

Kung magpapa-home service ay dadagdagan ito ng P1,000. 

Noong Agosto 16 naman ay ginawang P960 ang price cap ng antigen testing. 

Ayon sa DOH, ginawa nila ito para umano pasok sa budget ng pubkliko, at para bumilis ang testing capacity ng bansa. 

"Meron tayong laging target for testing. nung una ang target natin 70K, sumunod 90-100k so that we can be able to decrease our positivity rate to 5%. Once transmisison had been reduced, we can see positivity rate decreasing as well," ani DOH Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire. 

Tutulong ang Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) at DOH sa pag-monitor sa mga laboratoryo at iba pang pasilidad na nagsasagawa ng testing kung nasusunod ito at walang nag-o-overprice. 

"So yung international price survey tapos yung mga suppliers and manufacturers nito, merong data ang DOH. We conducted also jointly with them, public consultations para sa mga suppliers, manufacturers, operators ng testing laboratories and private hospitals and public hospitals," ani DTI Undersecretary Ruth Castelo. 

Sagot naman ng Employers' Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) na di rin kakayanin ng mga kompanyang akuuin ang regular na pagte-test ng mga empleyado. 

"At the end of the day, talagang ibaba mo man nang ibaba sa kalahati yan, mahal pa rin eh dapat talaga gumawa na ng remedyo ang gobyerno. Irepurpose nila ang budget," ani ECOP President Sergio Ortiz Luis. 

Pero sabi ng DOH, nag-donate sila ng testing kits sa maraming laboratoryo kaya operational cost lang dapat ang babayaran ng magpapa-test. 

-- Ulat ni April Rafales, ABS-CBN News

TUCP backs calls for China pullout from reef

MANILA, Philippines — The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) supports the statements of Secretaries Delfin Lorenzana and Teodoro Locsin Jr. in demanding the withdrawal of Chinese naval, militia and maritime presence in and around Julian Felipe Reef.

The TUCP believes that the Chinese presence is “an encroachment both of the territorial integrity of the Philippines and a denigration of national sovereignty.”

“With these senior officials of government, we cannot, as an independent, self-respecting people, allow this brazen effrontery and continuing Chinese incursion into the Philippines, to remain unmet and unchallenged,” the group said.

It added that “not only is Chinese presence violating the rights of our fishermen to Philippine fishing waters and denying them their right to their livelihood and a decent living, the Chinese are endangering our national food security. Further, they are denying the fundamental right of the Filipino people to develop and fully exploit the bounties of our territorial seas, as well as that of our exclusive economic zone and all that is above and beneath.”

In calling on Filipinos to support defense chief Lorenzana and Locsin of foreign affairs, the TUCP noted that “too much has transpired in the near-term, including Chinese reclamation work in what are clearly Philippine territorial waters, characterized by a not-so-veiled build-up of a threatening external military presence.”

“That makes it imperative for Filipinos to now demonstrate unqualified, multisectoral support for the strong, categorical statement of both Secretaries Lorenzana and Locsin demanding that the Chinese leave and vacate what is ours,” TUCP stressed.

It noted that the Filipino people and workers are long-time friends of the Chinese working class.

“The long history of struggle of both the Filipino working class and the Chinese working class in our respective countries have been animated by both strong nationalist fervor and a rejection of foreign encroachment into our respective territories. Hundreds of thousands of Chinese now work in the Philippines, even as there are hundreds of thousands of Filipinos also working in Chinese territories,” the group said.

“We have both contributed to creating employment opportunities for each other’s peoples, as well as helping each other’s economies progress. This is the kind of confidence building and trust which our respective peoples should foster. It is in this spirit that we speak candidly and call on China to match deed to words, and respect, observe and abide with Philippine national sovereignty, if we, as peoples and nations, will truly keep the peace and build prosperity for all,” TUCP said.

Meanwhile, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said yesterday that President Duterte’s plan to use his “friendship” with Chinese President Xi Jinping to ease tensions in the West Philippine Sea “will not work as Beijing has never acted as a friend of Filipinos.”

She issued the statement following presidential spokesman Harry Roque’s assurance that Duterte would privately resolve the alarming intrusion of hundreds of Chinese militia vessels in the West Philippine Sea as he is “friends with Xi.”

“It would be a good thing if that (friendship) had been marked by mutual respect. But we’ve been too respectful that even if China has been blatantly doing wrong, we bow to them, and they’re not showing friendship or respect to us,” Hontiveros told CNN Philippines.

She said Beijing’s violations of the country’s sovereign rights and international laws have been flagrant – from enacting a sweeping and draconian coast guard law to driving away Filipino fishermen, from harassing an ABS-CBN news crew to building militarized artificial islands.

Hontiveros described Roque’s statements as a double-whammy against proper diplomacy and freedom of information.

“Malacañang, do something. China is becoming the region’s biggest bully. It’s time to unequivocally stand up to her. We must confront who supposedly is our best friend. Those vessels have been in our waters for the past many weeks. When will all these lies stop?” the senator said.

For her, the Duterte administration must be ashamed that the country does not have freedom of navigation in its own waters.

“And it’s infuriating to repeatedly hear statements from the highest office of our government, of our nation, that the Philippines and China will resolve these issues because we are ‘friends’,” Hontiveros said.

“So the call remains: we demand that every single Chinese vessel leave Philippine territory. Their continued and obstinate presence is a direct challenge to the international rules-based order in the oceans that has maintained stability in the region for so long,” she added. — Paolo Romero (The Philippine Star )  / Catherine Talavera

TUCP bucks proposal for creation of new pension system

Philstar / file photo

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) is urging Congress to strengthen the current laws on retirement rather than creating a new private pension system, which, the labor group, said, may cost minimum-wage earners between P140 and P420 of their monthly salary.

Following the hearing on the proposed Capital Market Development Act or House Bill 8939 last Wednesday, TUCP Vice President Luis Corral said strengthening the Social Security System (SSS) and Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) laws are better than creating another monthly contribution pension system amid the increasing unemployment rate due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

“The simulations given by the DOLE for mandatory monthly contributions by minimum-wage earners of from anywhere from P100 to P450 will be a draconian imposition at this time. This amount will be over and above the already large compulsory contributions the worker makes to the SSS, Pag-IBIG and PhilHealth,” he said.

“Since we already have SSS and GSIS, why not just amend the charters of these existing institutions by creating a special investment fund window in both, which allows members of the respective funds who have savings to voluntarily invest these savings in the capital markets through the intermediation of fund managers. The charters of both should be tweaked to provide portability of such investment funds between the SSS and GSIS as the worker goes through the revolving door of transferring from one employment to another through his entire employment life,” he said.

Corral asked to Congress and economic managers to consider existing variables such as massive unemployment, millions of workers on “no work, no pay” arrangements, reduced working hours, job-sharing, low wages and the spiraling inflation rate as key factors in the consideration of the bill.

“We will all grow old, and will need social protection and social assistance, so as part of the process of designing or reforming any pension system, all sectors must be properly consulted,” Corral said.

House Bill 8938, which is now pending at the committee level, cites the portability aspect of the pension fund savings of the employees. The bill aims to reform the pension fund system in order to boost the capital market in the country.

Under the bill, a portable employee pension and retirement income (EPRI) account is created at the start of the employment of the worker.

The bill said both the employee and the employer should be obliged to mandatorily contribute to the EPRI Account. The amount of such contribution, which shall be fair, equitable, affordable, adequate and sustainable, shall be determined by regulatory authorities in an implementing rules and regulations.

Citing Department of Labor and Employment’s simulation, Labor Undersecretary Benjo Benavidez said if a private minimum- wage employee contributes 3 percent of his or her monthly salary, the deduction would reach P420 or P16 per day.

He added if a private minimum-wage employee contributes 1 percent of his or her monthly salary, the contribution would be at P140 or P5 a day.  “When it comes to affordability kayang kaya ito ng isang minimum-wage earner. We are still trying to run simulation with different salary levels,” Benavidez said.

Despite this proposal, Benavidez said retiring employees from the private sector are still entitled both SSS and those provided for under the Labor Code of the Philippines through RA 7641 or Retirement Pay Law of 1993 as the proposal only meant to supplement their pensions.

“[With this bill] we are [addressing] the defect of the existing pension provision of the Labor Code brought about by RA 7641 by providing portability and pre-funding [provisions],” he added.

For his part, Dr. Renato Reside of UP School of Economics said the feasible rate for minimum-wage earners is P300 monthly.

“With this bill, we are looking at feasible rate of P300 for minimum-wage earners and P100 for low-income earners,” he said.

For his part, Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP) President Sergio Ortiz-Luis Jr. said the group is supporting the intention of the bill.

“The proposal looks okay with me, I have not seen so far any thing that we’re against with. In principle, we really support it. There’s really a need to rationalize the pension plan, this is one good way to do it,” he said.

Earlier, Ortiz-Luis told the BusinessMirror that the portability aspect of pension fund savings seems ideal “in principle,” saying he supports “anything that will make availment of the pension easier.” Ortiz-Luis said pension fund savings are usually wasted when employees decide to move to another company, saying it would be beneficial if the workers would be able to keep an account where they can continuously pour in their savings.

House Committee on Banks and Financial Intermediaries Chairman Junie Cua said he filed his HB 8938 to provide retirement and pension system that is fully funded, portable, more actuarially fair and stable that will enhance the current pension, at the same time, promoting and encouraging national savings and prudential investments on the part of employees.

“It has its own problems. Foremost of which, is the structure of the law and its implementing regulations. Republic Act [RA]  7641 does not require pensions to be prefunded, hence, pensions are paid out of pocket rather than built-up over the duration of employment, thus, no pool of investible assets is created,” he said.

“The pension benefits do not vest until they are 60 years old and on the last day of their employment. Because pension benefits only vest at their final place of employment, pensions are not portable, and the employee is at risk in the event of the employer’s bankruptcy. In addition, many are working in the informal sector which makes it difficult to enforce pension requirements under the current law,” Cua added.

Young generations

Meanwhile, Capital Market Development Council (CMDC) co-chairman Benedicta Du-Baladad said millennials and Generation Z are expected to benefit from this proposal.

“Based on a study, these people [millennials and Generation Z]…jump from one employer to the other 12 times during their lifetime of 40 years of working. The average of changing their employers is actually 12 times. If we follow the current law now nobody can get a retirement pay,” she said.

“Currently it is given when you are only about to retire and stay with your employer for about last five years and you are at least 60 years old. There is also no requirement for funding so it is a pay as you go and there are so many risks with that,” Du-Baladad said. - By JOVEE MARIE DE LA CRUZ

Solons, labor group: Security of Tenure Act in Bicam may not spell end of endo

Lawmakers and a labor group on Wednesday said the passage of the proposed Security of Tenure Act does not meet a presidential promise to end contractualization in the private sector.

Minority Leader Joseph Stephen Paduano, as one of the principal authors of House Bill 6908 during the 17th Congress, said the new bill departs from the original intent of the old bill which was to eliminate “endo.”

On Tuesday, the House of Representatives endorsed for Senate approval House Bill 7036, or the proposed Security of Tenure Act, which seeks to strengthen the rights of workers in the private sector.

“The current bill, to my mind, will not address the problem on labor-only contracting. HB 6908 outlaws contractualization, while HB 7036 legalizes job contracting. This will complicate the issue due to the very thin line that separates labor contracting from job contracting,” said Paduano.

“While manifesting my strong opposition to the bill, let me clarify that on the issue of sub-contracting, it is my position not to totally ban the same. It promotes creation of jobs as well as supports the business of MSMEs [micro small and medium enterprises] for as long as the employees or the sub-contractors have security of tenure,” Paduano added.

According to the minority leader, the bill pales in comparison to the provisions of the Labor Code of the Philippines that clearly stipulate the prohibition of abusive workers’ contracts.

For her part, Gabriela Rep. Arlene Brosas, who voted against the bill, said House Bill 7036, or the current form of the Security of Tenure bill, actually makes contractualization a rule rather than an exception.

Brosas said this measure modifies the definition of regular employees in the Labor Code by deleting the parameter “usually necessary or desirable” and replacing it with a very steep precondition that the jobs being performed are “directly related and necessary.”

“This simple change in parameters actually has far-reaching consequences and dooms the hopes of millions of contractual workers for regularization,” said Brosas.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), for its part, said it cannot support or endorse House Bill 7036, saying the Congress missed a historic chance to correct the decades-long injustice to workers under endo.

“As currently worded, it legitimizes the highly exploitative end-of-contract or endo work arrangements by perpetuating the falsehood that it is the lack of capital and control, and not the business of labor supply, that constitutes labor-only contracting, which has long been a prohibited practice,” the TUCP said in a statement.

TUCP said it has serious concerns over the bill as workers have long fought for an end to contractualization, even after an initial Presidential veto in 2019, only to be presented now with a further watered-down version which will further betray their hopes.

“Let it be said at the outset, that the bill is not just a deeply flawed bill, it is fatally flawed and squandered the historic opportunity to correct the decades-long injustice to workers under endo,” it added.

It said the essence of the fraud blurring the employer-employee relationship for millions of contractual workers remains unaddressed.

“Our position in labor remains firm:  Regardless of whether or not the contractor has capital or investments in the form of office or equipment, if all that the contractor does is to recruit and deploy workers, that is labor-only contracting, and is therefore illegal,” it added.

The group said the bill specifically legitimizes the setting up of manpower cooperative as a contractor, and as a consequence will allow the perpetuation of contractualization and exploitation.

While the bill prohibits short-term contracts, the TUCP said it specifically added probationary employment as an allowable fixed-term or short-term contract.

“It is therefore conceivable, that contractors will use this device to move away from 5-5-5, or 5 month short-term contracts to defeat the regularization of workers, towards 6-6-6, or the sequential use of 6-month probationary contracts to legitimize the practice of never-ending probationary status of the worker,” it added.

TUCP appealed to the congressional bicameral conference committee to correct those flaws, which will further loosen and expand upon the loopholes and may lead to the proliferation and exploitation of millions of contractual workers.

The House Bill 7036 seeks to amend Presidential Decree 442 as amended, or the Labor Code of the Philippines.

Once passed into law, HB 7036 would prohibit “labor-only” contracting except: when the contractor or any intermediary does not have substantial capital or investment in the form of tools, equipment, machineries, and work premises, among others; has no control over the workers’ method and means of accomplishing their work and; the workers recruited and placed are performing activities which are directly related and necessary to the principal business of such employer.

The measure also introduces a new provision requiring all persons or entities doing business as job contractors to obtain a license from the Department of Labor and Employment, including compliance with the listing requirements for such licensing, determining the period of validity of the license, and stating the responsibility of the licensee to submit an annual report.

It also declares that violation of substantive or procedural due process is equivalent to illegal dismissal. In addition, the entitlements of an illegally dismissed employee are broadened by including the payment of social welfare contributions and benefits to said employee.

The bill amplifies and clarifies the classification of employees by: mandating regular employment as the general rule; and prohibiting fixed-term employment except in cases of overseas Filipino workers, workers on probation, relievers who are temporary replacements of absent regular employees whose engagements shall not exceed six months, project employees, and seasonal employees.

The bill also provides that the rights and benefits of relievers, project, and seasonal employees are at par with regular employees consistent with the principle that all workers must be treated alike both as to rights enjoyed and obligations assumed.

The measure provides administrative penalties of a fine and possible closure of business for those engaging in prohibited end-of-contract arrangements, and labor-only contracting.

At present, there is no imposable penalty for engaging in labor-only contracting except the simple declaration of ostensible employees of the contractor as employees of the principal employer. - By Jovee Marie de la Cruz

TUCP Leaders Update November 17, 2020

Labor groups back probe into foreign workers, stress protection of their rights

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, the country's biggest labor group, is raising the alarm on an alleged influx of more Chinese workers into the country's critical infrastructure and across several industries, saying this "[brings] more serious implications to local employment and to national security."

This, while labor groups welcome a possible Senate probe into the growing number of undocumented foreign workers in construction and in Philippine Overseas Gaming Operators as well as in other industries.

Although Senate leaders have indicated support for a potential probe, no resolution — which would direct Senate committees to schedule hearings — have been filed yet.

"The Chinese workers are present or are coming in to the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines," TUCP spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said. He added that Chinese workers will be coming in through "tied-aid" projects like the Kaliwa Dam and railways projects.

"The Chinese are in strategic sectors — power, water, communications, transport, and construction where they not only take away jobs from Filipinos, but also embed themselves into our economy. There are not only negative employment implications but also national security implications," Tanjusay warned.

TUCP said that the foreign workers are going into strategic industries that are of public interest and have national security implications. 

Tanjusay said that with unemployment at 10%, "this surrender of jobs to Chinese is just going to make worse the plight of Filipino workers who can do the job that Chinese are being given in our own country."

A Social Weathers Stations survey report released earlier this week suggests that adult joblessness was at 39.5%, about 23.7 million adult Filipinos. The figure is lower than 27.3 million estimated in a similar SWS survey in July 2020.

The Sentro ng Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (Sentro) also welcomed the Senate probe but stressed the call is not out of discrimination against undocumented Chinese workers.

"We would certainly welcome that (the probe) to ascertain the truth and determine how best the country can protect migrant workers here — documented or undocumented. But such probes must look at all nationalities and not just Chinese. We can't be a party to a racist initiative," Josua Mata, secretary general of Sentro, said.

"I think our immediate response must come from the perspective of protecting the rights and welfare of foreign nationals working in our country — documented or undocumented. We need to make sure they are given the standards provided by the Labor Code. We need to show the world that we are doing exactly what we demand for our own OFWs abroad — providing them equal protection," Mata added.

Gerard Seno, national executive vice president of the Associated Labor Unions said, "facing exploitation and abuse, these hidden undocumented workers often work in inhumane conditions and zero legal protection."

He added that they welcome the Senate probe on all 'foreign' workers as a way for the nation to once and for all make these invisible workers visible and extend to them the full protection of Philippine labor laws. - Artemio Dumlao (Philstar.com) 

TUCP urges for massive job generation in the President's legacy projects to ease the COVID-19 triggered unemployment and poverty

On the President's 5th SONA

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) urges for massive job generation to be included in the President’s State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Monday, July 27, 2020, to ease the COVID-19 triggered unemployment and poverty citing the President’s legacy projects, particularly in the P35.91 billion 102-km Mindanao Railway Project (MRP), Tagum-Davao-Digos segment as having great potential for employment and development.

“The Mindanao Railway Project of the President, although a single-track diesel-run railway, has great potential to generate the much-needed jobs. It will benefit not just the workers in Tagum-Davao-Digos areas but from as far as BARMM, Regions X, XII and CARAGA if agri-industrial hubs will be developed and connected to the planned eight (8) stations which are in Tagum; Carmen; Panabo; Mundiang; Davao Terminal; Toril; Sta Cruz; and Digos,” TUCP Partylist and TUCP President Raymond Democrito C. Mendoza pointed out.

The Department of Transportation (DOTr) had earlier reported that the MRP’s Tagum-Davao-Digos segment’s design and construction will start in third quarter of this year and are expected to be completed by end of 2021.

“We do not need to reinvent the wheel or embark on new grand plans to create jobs, we just have to ensure that the ‘Build, Build, Build’ and the legacy projects of the President would be for the development and industrialization in the countryside to spur employment, and not just mere rail tracks, widened and asphalted roads,” Mendoza explained. “The President’s SONA should direct the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI), Department of Science and Technology (DOST), DOLE, DOTr and Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH) to ensure job creation,” he suggested.

The TUCP earlier projected 5 million to 10 million unemployed workers due to the pandemic, and 3 to 4 million in floating status under a “no work, no pay” arrangement, while the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) reported a 17.7 percent unemployment rate which accounts for 7.3 million unemployed in the workforce in the second quarter of 2020, nearly a four-time increase from the 5.1 percent unemployment rate in the same quarter of 2019.

The PSA also reported double-digit unemployment rates in all regions, the highest was in the Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARMM) at 29.8 percent. The rest of the regions in Mindanao island: Region IX registered an unemployment rate of 23.9 percent, Region X at 11.1 percent, Region XI at 17.9 percent, Region XII at 21.2 percent and CARAGA at 12.3 percent.

The SWS survey conducted in May 2020 noted that eighty-three percent of Filipinos believe that their quality of life has worsened in the last 12 months. The survey has 294 respondents from Metro Manila, 1,645 from Balance Luzon, 792 from Visayas, and 1,279 from Mindanao. While a separate SWS survey in the same period showed that 16.7 percent or an estimated 4.2 million Filipino families experienced involuntary hunger at least once for the past three months.

"We reiterate our call to the Government on the urgency to respond to the magnitude of the displacement of workers. Indeed, some companies are operating but it will get worse before it will get better. Companies are operating in half capacities to finish the pre-pandemic job orders and there are no new orders coming in as the economies of our markets abroad are in recession. Closures will come in the fourth quarter of the year with no assurance of rebound in 2021. There is no assurance of foreign remittance as our OFWs are coming home and those who stayed overseas have no jobs while our seafarers have become quarantine costly and unable to board the ships on time due to bottlenecks in the green lanes. It should not be ‘business-as-usual’ mode, we need to have a massive job creation program or a Philippine Agri-Industrial Development Program to stimulate the economy, and not rely on labor export or foreign investments,” TUCP Vice President Luis Corral said.

He also pointed out that this is President Duterte’s golden opportunity to “BUILD BACK BETTER” using the country’s “AAA-minus credit rating” to fund a multi-trillion-peso economic stimulus package so that the credit rating is felt by the Filipino people.

- TUCP Labor Center

TUCP sees 12 million job losses

Neda warns of 15% jobless rate in recession-hit economy

File photo / AFP

The country’s largest labor group said job losses could hit 12 million before the year ends as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, while the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said unemployment is likely to hit a 15-year high as the economy slides into recession.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said Thursday the biggest job losses come from accommodation and food services, where more than a third of workers have lost employment, followed by arts and recreation services, where 27 percent of staff have found themselves out of work.

With no end in sight for the coronavirus health crisis, calls for social distancing are taking a bite out of service sector jobs that depend on customer interactions or involve the congregation of large numbers of people.

“Workers in industries such as restaurants, hotels, school care services, retail trade, and transportation services are at a higher risk of losing their jobs,” the TUCP said.

The TUCP said other sectors hard hit by job losses were “other services” (15 percent), real estate services (12 percent), administration and support (11 percent) and agriculture, forestry and fisheries (10 percent).

The labor group said at least 50 percent workers in retail trade and food services and drinking places were displaced by the COVID 19 crisis and could see even more job losses due to public health restrictions imposed to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

These two industries alone employ nearly 3 million Filipinos, the TUCP said.

Citing Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) data, the group expressed alarm over the sharp rise in the unemployment rate, which jumped to 17.7 percent in the June quarter of 2020 from 5.1 percent in the same quarter a year earlier.

Strict stay-at-home rules forced most business operations to shut down. Those who can work from home were allowed to, but casual workers were forced into “no work, no pay” schemes since mid-March.

In a recent interview with Bloomberg TV, acting NEDA director-general and Socioeconomic Planning Secretary Karl Kendrick Chua said the country is already in recession, as recent data showed that the economy contracted by 0.2 percent in the first quarter, a reversal of the 5.7 percent growth a year ago and 6.4 percent a quarter ago due to COVID-19.

Economists predict the second-quarter numbers could be even more grim as the lockdowns were extended several times to encompass the period from April to June.

A recession is characterized by two straight quarters of economic contraction.

If that happens, a double-digit jobless rate will be the highest in 15 years since it hit 8.4 percent in April 2005.

Based on the April 2020 Labor Force Survey released by the Philippine Statistics Authority on June 5, the unemployment rate rose to a record 17.7 percent accounting to 7.3 million unemployed Filipinos. This was significantly higher than the 5.1 percent unemployment rate in April 2019.

PSA said the record-high unemployment rate “reflected the effects of the COVID-19 economic shutdown on the Philippine labor market.”

The employment rate in April 2020 fell to 82.3 percent from 94.9 percent in April 2019. It was also lower than the 94.7 percent in January 2020. This translates to 33.8 million employed persons in April 2020, sharply down from 41.8 million in April 2019.

The average number of hours worked per week also fell to 35 in April 2020 from 41.8 hours per week in April 2019.

All regions reported double-digit unemployment rates. The highest unemployment rate was in Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (BARRM) at 29.8 percent.

It was followed by Region III (Central Luzon) and Cordillera Administrative Region with unemployment rates recorded at 27.3 percent and 25.3 percent, respectively.

The International Labor Organization (ILO), meanwhile, said policies need to be put in place to protect stranded migrant workers and to ensure the reintegration of those who return to their home countries.

Tens of millions of migrant workers, forced to return home because of the COVID-19 pandemic after losing their jobs, face unemployment and poverty in their home countries, the ILO said.

As containment measures ease, millions of migrant workers may be required to return home to low and middle income countries where labor markets, which were fragile before the COVID-19 outbreak, are now further weakened by the additional strain of high levels of unemployment and serious business disruptions due to the pandemic. In addition, their families will suffer financially from the loss of the remittances normally sent to them.

Meanwhile, other migrant workers have found themselves stranded in host countries without access to social protection and little money for food or accommodation. Even those with jobs may be taking reduced wages and living in cramped worksite residences where social distancing is impossible, putting them at greater risk of contracting the virus.

Almost all of the world’s workers, some 94 percent, were living in countries with some type of workplace closure measures in place in May 2020, according to the UN Secretary-General’s Policy Brief on the World of Work and COVID-19 .

Massive losses in working hours, equivalent to 305 million full-time jobs, are predicted for the second quarter of 2020, while 38 percent of the workforce – some 1.25 billion workers – is employed in high-risk sectors.

The brief says small and medium-sized enterprises – the engine of the global economy – are suffering immensely and many may not recover. Those living in developing countries and fragile contexts face the most dramatic risks, in part because they have least resilience.

The policy brief, based on data and analysis from the ILO, warns that many of those people who have lost their jobs and livelihoods in recent months will not be able to re-enter labor markets any time soon.

Women have been particularly hard hit. They are disproportionately represented in high-risk sectors and are often amongst the first to lose employment and the last to return. Persons with disabilities, already facing exclusion in employment, are also more likely to experience greater difficulties returning to work during recovery. - by Vito Barcelo and Julito G. Rada

PH among 10 most dangerous work sites

The Philippines is among top 10 dangerous place for workers in 2020 based on the 2020 Global Rights Index issued by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP) said Saturday.

Other countries in the top 10 are Bangladesh, Brazil, Colombia, Egypt, Honduras, India, Kazakhstan, Turkey and Zimbabwe.

“The ALU-TUCP) are fully in accord with the findings of the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and stand by their listing of the Philippines as one of the top 10 most dangerous countries in the world for workers,” the country’s biggest labor group said in a statement.

“We see the handwriting clearly on the wall: workers rights and workers are and will be victims in the current political environment,” the labor group’s spokesman Alan Tanjusay said.

This, Tanjusay said, was considering the current state of labor relations policy during the quarantine allowing wage reductions and suspending labor rights inspections, the anti-labor and the anti-consumer program of the economic managers to raise anew excise taxes and opposing security of tenure, and the “dangerous political slide towards authoritarianism” evidenced by passage of the Anti-Terror Bill.

“There remains unresolved assassinations, allegedly labor-related disappearances, various repressions, red-tagging and wanton attacks on workers and workers’ fundamental rights that makes the current environment dangerous and difficult for workers,” the group said.

The ALU-TUCP also foresee the conditions to get even worse in the days ahead because of the current full operationalization of police and military offices in ecozones to combat what they describe as “radical trade unions”, the inevitable enactment and enforcement of anti-terror bill and the current aggressive push by business owners in cahoots with the economic managers for increased labor flexibilization, wage reduction and the lowering of labor standards -- using the COVID19.

Tanjusay said it is the government that now makes the country more dangerous and more difficult place for workers to live and to work and as they are promoting unproductive and very dangerous class warfare.

“We urge our national government to listen to us and to remember the lessons to history. We plead to our national leadership to step back from the brink of this totalitarian temptation and accept the path of building back better by upholding our individual civil and political liberties, respecting our collective economic rights, and by putting our workers interests first. This is the path to saving jobs and saving lives.” he said.

The ITUC Global Rights Index depicts the world’s worst countries for workers based on the degree of respect for workers’ rights by rating 139 countries on a scale from 1 to 5. Workers’ rights are absent in countries with the rating 5 and violations occur on an irregular basis in countries with the rating 1. - by Vito Barcelo