Kung may SONA si PNoy, may SOWA naman si Usec at OFW advocate Susan Ople. Dear Readers, listen up, here’s my State-of-the-Workers Address (SOWA). In declaring its aspiration for inclusive growth, the Philippine government needs to realize how precarious or temporary work arrangements in various agencies continue to deprive government workers of much-needed security of tenure. Inclusivity must start in government’s own backyard where so many labels have been conjured to legitimize flexible but far from desirable hiring schemes: job orders, casuals, contractuals, emergency workers, and “volunteers.” According to PSLink, a confederation of public sector unions headed by my good friend, Annie Geron, the National Anti-Poverty Commission has more than a hundred casuals compared to around 20-30 regular employees. Casual workers, unlike contractual employees, have no social protection entitlements, because they are not considered as employees of government. Mr. President and distinguished Cabinet secretaries, this is one area where social justice once restored would lead to decent work and stable futures for those in government service. You have the power to make things right for our casual workers. For overseas Filipino workers, all they ask is better government services at every step of the recruitment and reintegration process, instead of having to deal with arrogant local or overseas personnel, some of whom would shout at OFWs thinking that these are just kasambahays anyway. Yet, these overseas workers, over a million-strong, represent consumers with spending money that fuel our economy. The e-VAT collected from OFW families on a daily basis goes to public spending including the salaries of our civil servants and top officials. They may be away for now, but these workers make up an economic powerhouse that should not be ignored or denied in policy-making initiatives. Why were they not consulted during a recent decision of the Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA) to integrate international terminal fees into the purchase of tickets? MIAA officials are aware that the law exempts OFWs from paying such fees. Why even think of asking our OFWs to refund something that they are exempted from paying in the first place? Respect is what our OFWs deserve, and that’s all they ask for from their own government. Here at home, our workers are befuddled by, besieged, and burdened with rising prices, shrinking incomes, and inefficiencies especially in the transport sector. Long queues at the MRT stations, taxis that don’t accept weary and wet passengers in the middle of a storm, buses that risk the lives of commuters—civility has left a “do not disturb” sign on its window. We buy garlic at prices that grant its importers and traders more than a hundred pesos in profit margins. All these at the expense of ordinary workers who find their salaries shrinking as personal debts grow. What about the unemployed? They are turned away because of age discrimination, or because their looks fail to exude a “pleasing personality.” It is a buyer’s market after all and employers have millions of applicants to choose from. The burden is shifting to younger workers, they who are now the de facto breadwinners of the family because they are more easily employed. This is the State-of-the-Workers address as seen through this labor advocate’s eyes. Biased, I am, of course. The bright spots are the optimism that every Filipino worker possesses, and the sense of humor that makes all things bearable. Surmounting such problems requires political will, clarity of thought and vision, and a focused, unified national effort to obtain inclusive growth, for all Filipinos. This administration has two years left to go. I hope that tomorrow’s State of the Nation Address will tell us more of their plans for labor. ~Knj
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 15:27:09 +0000
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