P6-B Labor Day ‘gifts’

source: mb.com.ph

MANILA, Philippines -- President Aquino announced Sunday a mix of wage and non-wage benefits for the country’s workforce on Labor Day, including a P4.23-billion rice subsidy program and P2-billion in farm implements support for small farmers and fishermen, totalling over P6.23 billion.

Speaking in Malacañang, Aquino said over a million government workers can receive another salary increase in June, or a month earlier than scheduled, due to the government’s prudent fiscal management.

He instructed regional wage boards to hasten deliberations on proposed salary adjustments for workers in the private sector within this month.

The President announced these during the breakfast dialogue with representatives of public and private labor groups and employers to mark Labor Day at the Palace.

In the meeting, he offered to quarterly dialogues with labor groups and employers to find solutions to the concerns of the industry, as well as craft better labor policies.

He said his administration is working hard to address the concerns of the labor sector for higher pay and improved benefits, but admitted that problems cannot be solved overnight.

“Government workers will have a salary increase this June, and not July. We advanced the release by a month because I know this will be a big help especially as school enrolment approaches. We won't postpone this if we can afford to give it today. That's our promise from the start, and that will remain our policy,” he said in Filipino.

The forthcoming salary increase for state workers is the third tranche under the Salary Standardization Law (SSL) 3 originally slated on July. Aquino explained the early release of the wage increase for government workers was made possible due to government savings.

Budget Secretary Florencio Abad said the funding requirement for the advanced implementation of SSL 3, amounting P2.8 billion, will come from personal services savings. This will be on top of the P19.46 billion already set aside for the pay hike of state workers this year.

The President said he also asked authorities to start the process of giving mid-year bonuses to government workers, which are originally scheduled on May 15. Abad said P14.9 billion is needed for the mid-year bonuses of government employees.

While acknowledging the concerns of small businesses, the President also said the government cannot bear to ignore the pleas of minimum wage earners for a reasonable salary increase amid high oil costs and other consumer goods.

“The tension between workers and management is increasing pending these wage hike petitions. I am appealing to the wage boards to act swiftly on this issue so our workers can focus on their work and we can all breath smoothly,” he said.

The wage board in the National Capital Region is expected to make a decision on proposed wage adjustment next week, said Aquino.

Other regional wage boards are expected to issue their decisions this month.

“We cannot promise that within the month everybody would be finished but we will be pressing them to finish within the month,” he said in a later interview with reporters.

In the same Labor Day assembly, the President said the government will distribute rice subsidies to small farmers and fishermen while waiting for their next harvest.

At least P4.23 billion will be spent for the rice distribution plan that will be implemented by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD).

Aquino said they will also spend P2 billion in the distribution of seedlings, pesticides and other farm implements for the farm sector. Apart from the public transport beneficiaries, he said the government is also finalizing details of the fuel subsidy program for farmers and fishermen.

The President likewise disclosed various government programs to reduce the country's unemployment, including the deployment of nearly 10,000 jobless nurses to rural poor communities.

Not enough, says bishop

Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) said the Aquino administration’s grant of non-wage benefits for common employees is but a mere consolation.

“Parang pampalubag loob lang. Gusto ba nila talaga tulungan ang mga tao o gusto lang patahimikin (It’s like an appeasement package. Do they really want to help the people or just keep them quiet)?” asked Pabillo, chairman of the CBCP Na¬tional Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace (NASSA-JP).

Pabillo said Aquino’s refusal to heed the workers’ call for a much-needed wage hike only proves that he is siding with the “powerful” capitalists.

Good wages sought

Anakpawis Rep. Joel Maglungsod blasted government’s claim that Filipino workers enjoy high wages, arguing that payroll expenditures account for only six percent of all corporate expenses.

Maglungsod told journalists at the “Kapihan sa QC” forum at Annabel’s Restaurant in Quezon City that “if these corporations are spending more than they should, they must not blame labor since wages are low, not high, and food prices are rising while corporate profits are skyrocketing.”

The labor representative stressed that the P404 wage in the National Capital Region (NCR) is not even half of the P957 wage needed to keep body and soul together and maintain the life of a family of six.

Economic relief

Labor Day rallyists urged Aquino to certify as urgent two pending bills at the House of Representatives that would give economic relief to the country’s workforce in the wake of galloping oil prices and spiraling cost of basic commodities.

Bayan Muna party-list Rep. Teddy Casiño called for the passage of House Bills 375 and 3746 that seek a legislated P125 across- the- board daily wage hike for private sector workers and an increase of P6,000 per month for government employ¬ees, respectively.

“Aquino should stop buying greedy business owners’ baseless alibi that wage hikes would result in layoffs, cost-cutting measures, and company shutdowns,” Casiño said.

Citing the 2008 National Statistics Office (NSO) survey, he disclosed that companies with over 20 employees each collectively realize profits of about P895.2 billion.

Protect working women

Sen. Edgardo Angara urged Sunday the labor industry to provide equal opportunities for women in the workforce as most of them are at risk of losing employment amid the ensuing economic crisis.

Angara said both the government and private business firms should ensure gender-sensitive policies to level the playing field between male and female workers.

“The government and private sector institutions should develop and strictly implement gender-fair policies that protect women workers as well as promote opportunities for women’s economic empowerment,” Angara said.

The same study said that around 45 percent of working age women in Asia do not have regular employment, compared to only 19 percent of men.

He said female workers are more vulnerable to losing their jobs being seen only as secondary or supplementary providers of income for households in Asia Pacific countries based on a study by the International Labor Organization and the World Bank.

source: mb.com.ph