Monthly Archives: March 2012

LONG HOURS. Many call center agents lead unhealthy lives.LONG HOURS. Many call center agents lead unhealthy lives. MANILA, Philippines – The Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP) wants call center workers to become active in fitness programs to keep not only themselves, but the businesses they sustain, healthy.

European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines launched a four-month Call Center Olympics Manila:  The European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines launched a four-month Call Center Olympics starting April, to help agents of business outsourcing companies (BPO) reform themselves from unhealthy lifestyle. The European Chamber of Commerce in the Philippines (ECCP), with the help…

KUWAIT: Owners of a number of domestic workers’ agencies in Kuwait held a press conference Thursday night to discuss the recent progress regarding the exportation of domestic workers from Philippines and the ban threat that was made, unless a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was to be signed.

Manila, Philippines – Vice President Jejomar C. Binay said yesterday that majority of migrant Filipino workers are safe from abuse and maltreatment.

Despite aggressive health and wellness campaigns by their employers, two out of three workers in business process outsourcing (BPO) companies continue to live unhealthy lifestyles, with chain smoking and heavy drinking listed as the major vices among the more than 600,000 workers in the industry.

THE demand for Filipino maids is increasing despite the higher wage employers have to pay for their services. The minimum wage for Filipino maids is set at US$400 (RM1,228) per month compared with RM600 to RM800 price-range for Indonesians.

The proposed across-the-board P125 daily wage increase is not feasible because it will have more negative effects on the economy, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said.

Even Malacaang is now alarmed by the rising cases of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) in the country.

Have you noticed that some of the children you know are autistic? That you now see more of them among your relatives’ and friends’ families? This is because globally more children will be diagnosed with autism than diabetes, cancer and AIDS combined perhaps within the decade?

THE Commission on Audit (COA) opined that the refund program of the Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) is a failure since only two percent of the total P142.39 million refundable money was returned.

The electricity spaghetti hit the ceiling fan last week, and the stench of the power oligarchs reeks all over the place. Now it’s not just electricity consumers charging the oligarchs and their captive government officials with conspiracy; local officials, such as North Cotabato Gov. Emilou Taliño-Mendoza and General Santos City Mayor Darlene Antonino-Custodio, are saying…

Malacaang has avoided tackling the clamor for higher daily wages head on, although a recent assessment made by Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz that wage hikes of between P13 to P21 may be imposed by the Regional Wage Boards (RWB), a range way below the P125 increment that labor groups have been asking.

Mobile subscribers can now access English lessons anytime, anywhere via their cellphone, for only P15 a week. This is made possible via a new e-learning value-added service (VAS) from wireless leader Smart Communications Inc. (Smart), called Kandoo4AII. Developed by La-Mark Vision Ltd., the mobile language learning choice of over 10,000,000 users worldwide, Kandoo4All is an…

LEGAZPI CITY, Philippines—The Department of Labor and Employment in Bicol has warned it would shut down hazardous workplaces following the deaths of two male workers in separate incidents this month.

The power crisis sweeping Mindanao is not borne out of inept leadership, but one of conspiracy.   Maybe President Aquino can fire all his officials headed by Energy Secretary Jose Rene Almendras, but that would not solve the problem of power outage that last daily from four to eight hours.  The problem is the result of…

ILO News, 29 March 2012 – Over a hundred youth leaders and representatives met with government agency officials, workers and employers group, academe, and civil society organizations in a youth employment forum dubbed, “Kahit Saan, Kahit Kailan: Marangal na Trabaho para sa Kabataan Matatagpuan (Any Time, Any Where: Decent Work for Young Filipinos).” The event…

COMPANIES that are able to understand and connect with Filipino teens and young adults are the most successful top-of-mind brands for these high-value segments, key findings of “The TRU Study: 2012 Philippines Edition” revealed.

High-ranking officials of the Philippine and Japanese governments on Thursday discussed ways to improve the two countries economic relations under the Philippines-Japan Economic Partnership Agreement (JPEPA) especially as trade volume and investment opportunities continue to increase under the said agreement since it came into effect in 2008.

The government’s troop, Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) on Thursday said that the Communist Party of the Philippines-New People’s Army’s (CPP-NPA) strength has waned after the rebel movement’s heyday in the 1980s. The APF said the CPP-NPA’s numbers have dropped from 24,430 to less than 5,000 fighters in the past two decades.

TECHNICAL-VOCATIONAL education and training (TVET) graduates, particularly those who went through a ladderized program, have equal if not better chances of getting hired in various industries, according to employment data from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (Tesda).

HONG KONG: Hong Kong’s Court of Appeal on Wednesday overturned a landmark ruling that opened the door for thousands of foreign maids to claim residency in the southern Chinese city.

MANILA, Philippines – Here’s good news for fresh graduates and young professionals: almost all local job vacancies in the country this year are for the youth. About 2.7 million job openings are available for 2012, according to Internet recruitment site JobStreet.com.

ERC allows increase in generation costs Power consumers should brace themselves for higher electricity rates starting May as the Energy Regulatory Commission allowed state-run National Power Corp. (Napocor) to jack up its generation charges in Luzon, the Visayas and even in brownout-plagued Mindanao.

BRAGGING that his administration has made headway against corruption and that the Philippines is no longer the “sick man of Asia,” President Benigno Aquino 3rd on Tuesday urged businessmen to put their money in three sectors—infrastructure, agriculture and tourism.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Health (DOH) admitted on Tuesday the need to improve healthcare services to prevent the spread of HIV.

Foreign maids gather in Central, business district in Hong Kong. AP photo/Kin Cheung Hong Kong – Hong Kong’s court of appeal on Wednesday overturned a landmark ruling that opened the door for thousands of foreign maids to claim residency in the southern Chinese city.

The woman looked ancient. Her sunburned skin glistened under the noon sun, white hair carelessly tied in a bun; her back was crooked under the weight of sack of copra.

THIRTEEN Filipino nurses out of the 160 who took  Japan’s national licensure examinations for nurses this year passed the tests called  Kangoshi, which is considered one of the most difficult nursing tests in the world.

HONG KONG’S government, facing calls to limit the strains on the city’s health and social services, won an appeal against a ruling that would have cleared the way for foreign maids to seek permanent residency in the territory.

Sen. Franklin Drilon on Tuesday sought for the conversion of national government hospitals into government-owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) saying it will improve the delivery of health services throughout the country.