Workers in the National Capital Region will not go to regional wage boards for pay hikes as the Department of Labor and Employment suggested.
What workers need now is an across the board wage increase that would help close the gap between minimum wage and the living wage. After all, the Constitution guarantees a living wage, not a minimum wage!
However, the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Boards (RTWPBs) will not be able to do this for several reasons.
First, employers in cahoots with government representatives, can easily dominate decisions in the RTWPBs. The RTWPBs are composed of three representatives from government, and two each from the employers and workers. This means, all they need is the vote of 1 of the 2 labor representatives and they can railroad a decision.
Second, the RTWPBs usually grant minimum wage adjustment only. This means that only those who earn the minimum wage (and below) will enjoy such an adjustment. How about those who are getting above the minimum wage but still can barely able to survive the daily cost of living?
Third, all wage orders issued by the RTWPBs are replete with exemptions that effectively reduce the number of covered workers. It was for this reason that in the last wage order granted by the NCR RTWPBs, 90% of wage and salary earners were effectively excluded.
After 18 years of its existence, the RTWPBs, created by RA 6727 in 1989, has failed to: live up to its mandate of rationalizing the fixing of minimum wages to ensure a decent standard of living for the workers and their families; guarantee the rights of labor to its just share in the fruits of production; and enhance employment generation in the countryside through industry dispersal.”
Instead of creating a rational minimum wage system, the RTWPBs have created more than 300 minimum wage levels around the country.
DOLE records in 2005 showed ARMM region in Mindanao posted the lowest average daily minimum wage level at P140 while the needed wage to support a family of 6 at poverty level is P282. We found that all minimum wage levels around the country are below the poverty threshold!
A study by Labor Education and Research Network (LEARN) showed that instead of guaranteeing the rights of labor to its just share in the fruits of production, RTWPBs ensured that real wages continue to fall despite increasing labor productivity.
And rather than enhance employment generation in the countryside through industry dispersal, jobs generation has faltered despite the respectable economic growth these past few years.
Obviously, all these redound to the benefit of the employers. Thus, if there is anything that the RTWPBs have achieved, it is only its mandate to allow business and industry reasonable returns on investment, expansion and growth.
This government is essentially asking workers to beg for loose change from the regional wage boards which only a few, if any at all, would actually enjoy!
What we needed now is legislated wage increase and the reform of the wage determination system. There is a need not only to prioritize the bill providing for a wage hike, but also to ensure the passage of House Bill 1487 abolishing the tripartite regional wage boards and providing for a new structure that will determine wages nationwide and to determine minimum wages along industry lines as well.
However, both the bill calling for a P125 wage increase and the HB 1487 authored by AKBAYAN has been largely ignored because it will upset a lot of employers.
This only goes to show government’s neglect of workers rights.
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Thursday, May 3, 2007
FDC sees no light ahead with ADB’s power privatization program
"ADB's power privatization program will only lure us deeper into total darkness!" cried Freedom from Debt Coalition as it held a demonstration before the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) main office in ADB Avenue, Ortigas Center, while lugging a huge, black light bulb to symbolize the country's bleak future if high power rates imposed upon, and shouldered by the Filipino people remain unfettered.
"The country is in bad shape, and our people's suffering is more palpable than ever," according to FDC Vice President Wilson Fortaleza. "Filipino people now pay for P9/kwh-P9.50/kwh, from only P5/kwh prior to the passage of Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), while National Power Corporation (NPC) and government debts continue to balloon because of onerous power projects," he continued.
"ADB has a lot to do with the accelerating suffering of the Filipino people. It financed, designed, and pushed for the passage of EPIRA, which mandates the privatization of the power industry," explained Fortaleza.
In 1998, ADB approved the Power Sector Restructuring Program (PSRP) loan amounting to $300 million, which outlined the policy prescription for privatization and restructuring of the power industry. The release of two-thirds (2/3) of the PSRP loan depended on the passage of EPIRA in 2001.
EPIRA mandates the restructuring of the power industry and the privatization of NPC, the transfer of P200 billion NPC debts to the national government, the condonation of debts of the electric cooperatives, removal of cross subsidies and the collection of universal charge, which include charging electricity consumers for stranded debts of NPC and stranded contract costs of NPC, arising from onerous contracts with independent power producers (IPPs).
Even if on its face, EPIRA obviously passes on NPC's debt burdens to the people and intensifies monopolistic control and practice by few power companies by allowing for a mere handful to gain a stranglehold over the industry, ADB succeeded in compelling the Philippine government to promulgate EPIRA because some $550 million -- $200 million from ADB and JEXIM Bank for the interconnection project and $350 million ADB guarantee for NPC bonds in 2002 -- was also hinged on its passage.
"ADB's evil influence did not weaken through time. In fact, the impending P1.73/kWh increase in Meralco's electricity charges is highly attributable to the flawed wholesale electricity spot market (WESM) it prescribes. This was petitioned by the biggest distribution utility in the country for collection of its under-recoveries in December 2006 and January 2007 in generation costs due to increase in WESM prices and system losses," Fortaleza explained.
Instead of delivering its promised low power rates, WESM was found riddled with price manipulations during its first three months of operation consequently increasing the generation rates by about P1/kWh.
"ADB has left our country little breathing room, if at all, in our own affairs. Its suggested policies for reforms are tainted with its own interests alone. We demand that it leave the country, cease meddling in our affairs and cancel illegitimate debts from onerous power projects such as IPP contracts. The suffering must stop now," Fortaleza suggested.
"The ADB has the gall to claim it is owned by its member countries, and that it works towards improving the welfare of their people. But mere common sense dictates that the increases it imposes in support of big businesses and profiteers are unjust to a people who live in substandard conditions. This callousness must be made known, and their loathsome propensity for gains at the expense of everything else must be stopped," the FDC officer said.
Aptly, as ADB and government officials proceed to Kyoto, Japan this coming May 6 for the 40th ADB Annual Governors Meeting, FDC said that anti-debt and anti-privatization advocacy groups will make sure that the Filipino peoples' protests against ADB's power privatization program will resound persistently until it deafens and earns due attention and regard.
- Freedom from Debt Coalition
"The country is in bad shape, and our people's suffering is more palpable than ever," according to FDC Vice President Wilson Fortaleza. "Filipino people now pay for P9/kwh-P9.50/kwh, from only P5/kwh prior to the passage of Electric Power Industry Reform Act (EPIRA), while National Power Corporation (NPC) and government debts continue to balloon because of onerous power projects," he continued.
"ADB has a lot to do with the accelerating suffering of the Filipino people. It financed, designed, and pushed for the passage of EPIRA, which mandates the privatization of the power industry," explained Fortaleza.
In 1998, ADB approved the Power Sector Restructuring Program (PSRP) loan amounting to $300 million, which outlined the policy prescription for privatization and restructuring of the power industry. The release of two-thirds (2/3) of the PSRP loan depended on the passage of EPIRA in 2001.
EPIRA mandates the restructuring of the power industry and the privatization of NPC, the transfer of P200 billion NPC debts to the national government, the condonation of debts of the electric cooperatives, removal of cross subsidies and the collection of universal charge, which include charging electricity consumers for stranded debts of NPC and stranded contract costs of NPC, arising from onerous contracts with independent power producers (IPPs).
Even if on its face, EPIRA obviously passes on NPC's debt burdens to the people and intensifies monopolistic control and practice by few power companies by allowing for a mere handful to gain a stranglehold over the industry, ADB succeeded in compelling the Philippine government to promulgate EPIRA because some $550 million -- $200 million from ADB and JEXIM Bank for the interconnection project and $350 million ADB guarantee for NPC bonds in 2002 -- was also hinged on its passage.
"ADB's evil influence did not weaken through time. In fact, the impending P1.73/kWh increase in Meralco's electricity charges is highly attributable to the flawed wholesale electricity spot market (WESM) it prescribes. This was petitioned by the biggest distribution utility in the country for collection of its under-recoveries in December 2006 and January 2007 in generation costs due to increase in WESM prices and system losses," Fortaleza explained.
Instead of delivering its promised low power rates, WESM was found riddled with price manipulations during its first three months of operation consequently increasing the generation rates by about P1/kWh.
"ADB has left our country little breathing room, if at all, in our own affairs. Its suggested policies for reforms are tainted with its own interests alone. We demand that it leave the country, cease meddling in our affairs and cancel illegitimate debts from onerous power projects such as IPP contracts. The suffering must stop now," Fortaleza suggested.
"The ADB has the gall to claim it is owned by its member countries, and that it works towards improving the welfare of their people. But mere common sense dictates that the increases it imposes in support of big businesses and profiteers are unjust to a people who live in substandard conditions. This callousness must be made known, and their loathsome propensity for gains at the expense of everything else must be stopped," the FDC officer said.
Aptly, as ADB and government officials proceed to Kyoto, Japan this coming May 6 for the 40th ADB Annual Governors Meeting, FDC said that anti-debt and anti-privatization advocacy groups will make sure that the Filipino peoples' protests against ADB's power privatization program will resound persistently until it deafens and earns due attention and regard.
- Freedom from Debt Coalition
Wednesday, May 2, 2007
Labor group hits GMA’s Labor Day pronouncements
The Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL) welcomes the 40 billion pesos worth of workers’ benefits announced by President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo yesterday but criticized her lack of substantial policy pronouncements on the workers’ demands for full employment that would generate sustainable jobs, for a living wage and for the provision of solid guarantees for workers and trade union rights.
“The President provided long-overdue benefits for the workers but these are just make-over, band-aid solutions to allay workers’ discontent about this administration’s performance to address the worsening jobs crisis,” said Josua Mata, APL Secretary General.
President Arroyo announced on Labor Day the 40-billion peso worth of benefits for the workers that include, among others, standardizing the salaries of government employees and condoning loan surcharges and penalties for members of the Social Security System (SSS) and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).
“These are the handiwork of a leader that is an expert in propaganda blitz but sorely amiss in providing structural solutions to the problem,” Mata said.
Mata dismissed the 500 million pesos allotted for training scholarship for call centers and business process outsourcing as symptomatic of the government’s myopic view of the jobs deficit problem.
He said statistics from the Department of Labor and Employment revealed employment opportunities for cyberservices are estimated at 1,383,892 compared with the projected number of 1,791,489 professionals for 2006-2010. Graduates of the various cyberservices disciplines are projected to reach 1,633,605 from 2006 to 2010.
“They are already short by almost 400,000 jobs by 2010 not even counting the number of the existing unemployed workers in this sector,” Mata explained.
APL earlier declared that unemployment is now of crisis proportions and is one of the crimes against the workers committed by the Arroyo administration.
Figures from the National Statistics Office revealed that close to 11 million workers or 30% of the 32-million strong labor force were looking for work in 2005. This number included over four million jobless Filipinos and seven million underemployed workers.
The Bureau of Labor and Employment Services (BLES) Integrated Survey in June 2004 showed non-regular workers accounted for 26% of total employment in establishments with 20 or more workers. In 2004, there were some 628,000 non-regular workers out of a total employment of 2.4 million.
“The proliferation of part-time jobs and higher unemployment undermine the power of workers to bargain for higher wages and demand for security of tenure. Contractual workers are not allowed to join the union. So, Mrs. Arroyo’s appeal to employers to reach a middle ground with workers in granting a wage hike is a hoax,” said Mata.
Mata explained that real wages continue to slide down as the purchasing power of peso continue to decline from P0.79 in January 2005 to P0.74 in January of this year. “No wonder all minimum wage earners live below the poverty threshold,” Mata added.
“The President provided long-overdue benefits for the workers but these are just make-over, band-aid solutions to allay workers’ discontent about this administration’s performance to address the worsening jobs crisis,” said Josua Mata, APL Secretary General.
President Arroyo announced on Labor Day the 40-billion peso worth of benefits for the workers that include, among others, standardizing the salaries of government employees and condoning loan surcharges and penalties for members of the Social Security System (SSS) and the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS).
“These are the handiwork of a leader that is an expert in propaganda blitz but sorely amiss in providing structural solutions to the problem,” Mata said.
Mata dismissed the 500 million pesos allotted for training scholarship for call centers and business process outsourcing as symptomatic of the government’s myopic view of the jobs deficit problem.
He said statistics from the Department of Labor and Employment revealed employment opportunities for cyberservices are estimated at 1,383,892 compared with the projected number of 1,791,489 professionals for 2006-2010. Graduates of the various cyberservices disciplines are projected to reach 1,633,605 from 2006 to 2010.
“They are already short by almost 400,000 jobs by 2010 not even counting the number of the existing unemployed workers in this sector,” Mata explained.
APL earlier declared that unemployment is now of crisis proportions and is one of the crimes against the workers committed by the Arroyo administration.
Figures from the National Statistics Office revealed that close to 11 million workers or 30% of the 32-million strong labor force were looking for work in 2005. This number included over four million jobless Filipinos and seven million underemployed workers.
The Bureau of Labor and Employment Services (BLES) Integrated Survey in June 2004 showed non-regular workers accounted for 26% of total employment in establishments with 20 or more workers. In 2004, there were some 628,000 non-regular workers out of a total employment of 2.4 million.
“The proliferation of part-time jobs and higher unemployment undermine the power of workers to bargain for higher wages and demand for security of tenure. Contractual workers are not allowed to join the union. So, Mrs. Arroyo’s appeal to employers to reach a middle ground with workers in granting a wage hike is a hoax,” said Mata.
Mata explained that real wages continue to slide down as the purchasing power of peso continue to decline from P0.79 in January 2005 to P0.74 in January of this year. “No wonder all minimum wage earners live below the poverty threshold,” Mata added.
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