Monthly Archives: September 2010

SEVERAL officials of business groups in Mindanao, during a press conference for the coming 19th Mindanao Business Conference in mid-September, identified three major sectors—mining, energy and agriculture—that the Philippine government must address in order to bring lasting development to the region. Ruben Vegafria, conference director of the 19th Mindanao Business Conference that will be held…

DEAR PAO Dear PAO, What are the reasons why supervisory and managerial employees are not entitled to a 13th-month pay, and what are the legal bases aside from those that are written in the Labor Code?

THE Overseas Workers and Welfare Administration (OWWA) on Wed-nesday clarified that they had no control on deportation centers run by the host country. The clarification was made by OWWA Administrator Carmelita Dimzon after her office is being blamed for the lost of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) who have decided to leave the center. The OFWs…

LIGHTING bulbs are now to return from where they came from. The Department of Energy now wants the producers of lamps and bulbs to take responsibility for the environmental and health impacts of their products throughout their life cycle. “True, we have switched from inefficient incandescent bulbs to efficient lighting systems such as compact fluorescent…

MORE Filipinos were expected to fall into poverty in 2009 because of recent shocks that hit the country, according to the government’s think tank. Celia Reyes, research fellow of the Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS), said that it is likely that poverty incidence among the population will rise more than 32.9 percent in 2009…

Malacañang will scrap the Kilos Asenso and Kalayaan Barangay programs, and the P1.5 billion in funds allocated for the two undertakings would be used to spur investment activities in local governments and augment the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) fund. “We are now rechanneling these funds to programs which have clearer rules and will have a…

There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.

MANILA, Philippines – The number of crimes committed against foreigners in Metro Manila hit 94 last year, a leading risk consultancy firm said.

OVERSTEPPING: The media were among the victims of the hostage-taking fiasco at the Luneta last Aug. 23 — mainly with respect to news coverage allegedly interfering in, or even obstructing, negotiations and rescue operations.

MANILA, Philippines –  Indigent senior citizens aged 80 and above will receive a monthly pension of P500 starting next year as part of the Expanded Senior Citizens Act, Social Welfare Secretary Corazon Soliman said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – To provide more jobs for Filipino nurses, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is intensifying Japanese language training for those wishing to work in Japan.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has submitted to the Senate a list of new projects, which will be prioritized in the second tranche of the allocation of congressional initiatives or the pork barrel for this year.

MANILA, Philippines – The government is proposing a revolving, self-sustaining fund for exporters to replace the P1-billion emergency export support fund that was released last year.

MANILA, Philippines – The government is looking at entering into free trade agreements (FTA) with six countries led by the United States to boost foreign trade.

MANILA, Philippines – Economic managers of the Aquino administration admitted yesterday that former president and now Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo did well in managing the economy during her incumbency.

MANILA, Philippines – The Court of Appeals has upheld the refusal of the management of telecommunications leader Philippine Long Distance Telephone Co. (PLDT) to grant danger exposure allowance (DEA) to its supervisors.

MANILA, Philippines –  The Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) expects investments to hit more than P400 billion this year, surpassing the P345-billion yearend target of the government.

MANILA, Philippines— (UPDATE) Senators unanimously adopted on Wednesday a resolution urging President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to immediately suspend all the “unusually large and apparently excessive allowances, bonuses, incentives and other perks of the governing boards” of government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) as well as of government financial institutions (GFIs)

CREDIT CARD use seems to be widening the gap between the rich and poor, based on results of a study conducted by the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston. According to a Reuters report by Kristina Cooke, “Credit Card Fees Transfer Wealth to Rich, Study Finds,” credit card use acted “as a transfer of wealth from…

LEGAZPI CITY, Aug. 31 – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is reactivating its anti-child labor action team in Camarines Norte, an area in Bicol once considered by the International Labor Organization (ILO) as a province in the Philippines with high incidence of Worst Forms of Child Labor (WFCL).

After being pilloried for weeks in media regarding his alleged scandalous P26.8 million annual compensation as administrator of the Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority, Armand Arreza was finally given the chance to correct what turned out to be inaccurate reports of his actual pay.

Hong Kong’s wage commission has announced it has agreed on a figure for the territory’s first minimum wage. But the agreed level – likely to raise the earnings of 11% of the working population – is unlikely to satisfy employers or workers.

THE Philippines loses as much as P145 billion a year from underinvestment in sanitation. The World Bank, in a 122-page report entitled “Sustaining Water for All in a Changing Climate,” said Cambodia, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam lose about two percent of their annual GDP from underinvestment in sanitation.

I’ve occasionally heard it said that any law where all parties are dissatisfied in a good law. But I’m skeptical. Consider Hong Kong’s new minimum wage provision. BBC News reports that:

HOUSE Majority Leader Neptali Gonzales II is seeking an investigation into the reported large-scale fraudulent use of Home Development Mutual (Pag-ibig) Funds to finance bogus housing loans and questionable housing development projects.

The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Wednesday said it is planning to issue its first Clean Energy bond to support renewable energy projects in Asia.

The departments of Energy and Environment and Natural Resources on Wednesday said that talks are underway on how to tackle an “extended producer responsibility” program for mercury lamps, including a policy study on establishing a plan of action for it.

MANILA, Philippines – Transportation authorities are stepping up their watch on the condition of buses on the road in the wake of recent bus accidents in the country.

Liberia’s 14 year war left gaping holes in the infrastructure critical to investment and recovery and delayed a generation of youth from entering the labour market. Today, almost two-thirds of the population live in poverty. Youth between ages of 15 and 35 make up 53 per cent of the workforce, yet constitute 58 per cent…

MANILA, Philippines – Labor leader Ernesto Herrera claimed on Wednesday that reports of massive termination of Filipino maids in Hong Kong are “grossly exaggerated”.