In the year 1903, when the Republic of the Philippines was still recovering from the aftermath of the Philippine Revolution and Philippine Insurrection, local workers and laborers finally saw the light of day thanks to the Union Obrera Democratica de Filipina, the Philippines' first labor organization. The aforementioned group was led by Isabelo de los Reyes, who was born in the Heritage City of Vigan and is remembered as the father of the Philippine labor movement as well as the father of Filipino socialism. Through Don Belong's efforts, the country had its first Labor Day celebration, and the rest is history.
Labor Day is commemorated annually in our country to celebrate the contributions and hardships of Filipino workers and laborers all around the world. Job fairs, concerts, activities, and celebrations alike are done and conducted around the nation every May 1st, but are these measures undertaken by the government enough to combat economic abuse and discrimination against local workers? Do workers earn enough to provide for their families? Do Filipinos have a safe, stable, and secured workplace, or do they experience the exact opposite of it daily as they enter their offices?
According to Statista.com, in 2020, nearly five thousand cases of maltreatment of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) were reported, the majority of which came from the Middle East with 4,302 cases. Different departments and agencies are designed to cater the needs and fight for the rights of our migrant workers abroad, such as the Overseas Workers Welfare Administration (OWWA) and Department of Migrant Workers (DMW), but it seems like the action given by the government are not enough to even minimize the cases of abuse and maltreatment experienced by Overseas Filipino Workers (OFW) abroad, whom they have to leave their motherland in exchange for higher pay offered in other countries, reflecting the unfavorable situation faced by local workers and laborers in the country, settling for the bare minimum as wages in the country had flunked even more due to the COVID-19 pandemic and record-high economic inflations.
On the other hand, in a report released by Amnesty Philippines in the year 2021 entitled "Undermining Workers Rights: Labor Rights Abuses in Nickel Supply Chains, wherein it examines labor practices in the nickel mining sector on Dinagat Islands and outlines numerous examples of workers being employed without contracts, receiving delayed payment of wages, and non-payment of compulsory employee benefits such as Social Security System (SSS), PagIBIG, and PhilHealth contributions, it presents the reality that there is a clear power asymmetry between workers, on one side, and the mining and subcontractors companies, on the other. Fear of retribution is a factor; many of them said they simply do not make complaints “to avoid trouble". It also exposes abuses of workers’ rights within Dinagat Island, and it represents the general need for the Philippine government to address pre-existing conditions of poverty and a lack of access to better work opportunities, further driving insecurity that brings people to their knees. Their rights are unattended and unappreciated because, as the workers say, "they're merely laborers", in the eyes of their employers.
Furthermore, according to a survey, Filipino employees continue to be among the lowest-paid people in the world. According to data released by the e-commerce site Picodi, the Philippines placed 95th out of 106 nations in terms of the average wage, which was $308 or PHP 15,200 in 2020. As a result, people tend to choose to work abroad in nations with higher pay rather than settle to work in the Philippines with such low wages, causing them to leave the country and having brain and brawn drain as consequences for our country's state and economy.
Additionally, in an article released by the Philippine Star earlier this year, it was reported that twenty-two percent of women and 18 percent of men in the Philippines have experienced violence and harassment at work, according to a study by the Lloyd's Register Foundation and pollster Gallup. Many of the victims—47% among women and 60% among men — did not report the incident because of the fear of repercussions and the belief that nothing would come of it. In addition, according to the World Risk Poll: 2021, more than half of men who experienced violence and harassment suffered psychological harassment, while 47% of women respondents reported experiencing the same. The same study also found that 60% of Filipinos who have experienced workplace violence and harassment say this has happened "three or more times."
The mentioned experiences above by Filipino workers here in the hands of their fellow countrymen and from the clutches of their employers abroad are just the tip of the iceberg, and a handful of untold stories and secrets are still buried beneath the firm mountain of ice that stayed in tact over decades of time for their desire to stay silent to avoid trouble, but these blocks of ice served their sentence enough, and it's time for us to melt those and uncover the truth.
The truth is, how many Labor Days do we need to wait for us to open our eyes and take action on what is currently experienced by our fellow countrymen in the job sector? That the rights of Filipino workers, employees, and laborers are unappreciated and unacknowledged, which makes them more vulnerable to such acts of abuse and maltreatment inside and outside the country. The protection being given to them is not powerful enough to keep them safeguarded nowadays from the hands of evil. Foreigners deem Filipino workers as worthless, incapable, and inferior to them, which makes them more susceptible to hate, profanity, and obscenities abroad. Minimum wages set by the government are low enough, and consequently, workers are unable to provide for their families' necessities, depriving them of food, health, and family security. The government's actions in combating such issues regarding the rights of Filipino laborers are barely enough to put a stop to these kinds of situations and to strengthen the rights and protection awarded by the Constitution to our hardworking employees and workers. And lastly, P.D. 442 or the Labor Code of the Philippines is not relevant enough today compared to what it was almost five decades ago. With today's kind of economy, which is booming with the help of industrialization and modern technology, it should be revised and redesigned to fit the interests of present Filipinos as well as cater to the very needs of local workers and employees, in or out of the borders of the Philippines.
As the only day given by the government for us Filipinos to understand, reflect, and celebrate the hard-earned rights of workers and also to commemorate the acts, services, and contributions done by Filipino laborers and workers all across the globe, let us make the 1st of May worthwhile. Instead of laying on our beds and enjoying the comforts of the four corners of our room, let us try to make a difference and make an effort for our voices to be heard, wanting a better workplace for our fellow Filipinos. Many deem them helpless, mediocre, and commoners, but they are far more than society has named these unsung heroes of ours. Their hard work, passion, and determination to ease and improve the lives of every Filipino, including themselves, create scaffolding for us to reach another adamantine mission of ours, which is to create and have a healthy, secured, and habitable place to live for present and future generations to come. These unsung heroes are the reason we survive today, for their irreplaceable, priceless efforts glue and fill in the gaps present in our already plummeting economy, reviving and supporting the plan we have set for our country and its people. Resiliency is something that we do not need even the slightest bit to fill those potholes. We have had enough, and change is what we all need. Instilling it and finding real solutions will definitely solve our problems regarding certain issues concerning local workers, and not just merely depending on Filipinos' inborn resiliency to problems.
Filipino workers are not just merely laborers and employees; they are our present-day prime architects and builders of progress and prosperity. We should start addressing issues concerning them instead of closing our eyes and pretending that workplaces do not need fixing. Our countrymen are at stake, and we should have the desire to act now. In all that we do, we should remember the effects inflicted on local laborers treated with abuse and maltreatment. We should always keep in mind that, in search of long-term solutions, safety pins would never mend the cracks brought by the situation faced by our countrymen at the present. As the lyrics from multi-Grammy award-winning American singer/songwriter Taylor Swift's song "Bad Blood" go, band-aids don't fix bullet holes.
References:
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