Monthly Archives: June 2012

Last week, preparatory to considering recent developments regarding both wings of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, this column began viewing the history of disunity within the labor movement up to the 1950s. Let’s now deal briefly with the following half-century.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz warned anew Filipino jobseekers from applying for work in Syria owing to the present ban on the deployment of overseas Filipino workers (OFW) to that country due to continuing conflict.

MANILA, Philippines – British banking giant Hong Kong and Shanghai Banking Corp. (HSBC) expects remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) growing by 5.4 percent this year.

Manila, Philippines – Party-list groups may just have to rely on luck to get to the top of the list in ballots and get more attention from voters, as the Commission on Elections (Comelec) has decided to do away with the system of listing their names in alphabetical order beginning in the 2013 polls.

Manila, Philippines – Health Secretary Enrique Ona disclosed that the latest survey of the National Statistics Office (NSO) showed an alarming increase in the number of deaths caused by pregnancy or childbirth complications. Based on the 2011 Family Health Survey, maternal mortality rate in the country went up to 221 deaths per 100,000 live births…

One of the most tragic events that can befall a labor federation, and any organization and movement for that matter, is when its great leaders would split to the great damage and prejudice of the general membership. But the very unfortunate parting of ways between the venerable Democrito “Kito” Mendoza and former Senator Ernesto “Boy”…

How healthy is the Philippine job market? Its condition has remained weak, and may have even deteriorated slightly, from where it was a year ago, according to the April 2012 Labor Force Survey (LFS) results. While the unemployment rate eased slightly to 6.9% this April from 7.2% a year ago, the overall quality of jobs…

The World Bank launched on Tuesday a program that seeks to assist policy-makers and other stakeholders engaged in poverty-reduction work.

MANILA, Philippines – More Filipino mothers are dying during childbirth, underscoring their “unmet need” for modern family planning services, the Department of Health said Monday.

The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said personal remittances from overseas Filipinos (OFs) amounted to $1.9 billion in April 2012, rising by 5.5 percent year-on-year.

MANILA, Philippines – Banana growers are seeking assistance in the form of subsidies from the government amid the imposition of strict requirements of Chinese authorities on the entry of Philippine bananas as well as talks between the Chinese government and Ecuador for the supply of Cavendish bananas in China.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Agriculture (DA) is optimistic that it will attain its rice sufficiency program goal for 2012 with the building of more irrigation systems across the country this year.

MANILA, Philippines – The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said the decline in hot money brought about by the crisis in the euro zone is temporary and that these portfolio inflows would start pouring in again once investors realize that the Philippines is a safe haven for their funds.

Consumer sentiment in the second quarter (Q2) of 2012 as well as the overall Confidence Index (CI) declined to -19.5 percent from the -14.7 percent in the first quarter (Q1). Respondents cited some reasons for their outlook which includes perceived high cost of goods and services, rising unemployment, low salary and income and the expected…

One of the topics reportedly taken up in the last “monumental” one on one meeting between PNoy and US President Obama at the Oval Office was the passage of the RH bill by the Philippine legislature. So its proponents and supporters are once more making a lot of noise about the eventual approval of the…

The Philippines has gained a higher mark in environmental performance, outranking Australia, United States, Singapore and Israel, Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) Secretary Ramon Paje announced during his recent visit to Central Visayas on June 11 during the silver anniversary of the department.

MANILA, Philippines – The European Union has put off for at least a year a ban on Filipino seafarers on board European EU-registered ships.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Education (DepEd)’s ambitious Kindergarten to 12 (K+12) basic education curriculum program is getting more support from the public.

DAVAO CITY—Unlike developed economies, the Philippines has a current and definite advantage: a steady supply of a young work force capable of sustaining its economic growth, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) said.

The Philippines on Monday signed a partnership with the United States to protect the rights and interest of Filipino workers overseas. The partnership was signed between the US Department of Labor Secretary Hilda Solis and the Philippine ambassador to Washington.

THE head of the International Labor Organization (ILO) said there is “no room for complacency” in addressing child labor problems as 215 million children worldwide remain trapped in exploitative labor, most of whom children of migrant workers and those in the informal economy.

MANILA, Philippines — Senate Minority Leader Alan Peter Cayetano called on the Aquino administration to implement stronger interventions in addressing child labor in the country, including stiffer penalties for private companies that employ minors in hazardous working conditions.

WASHINGTON D.C. – US Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis signed a partnership agreement with the Philippine Embassy and three other international posts that would benefit migrant workers employed in the United States.

Small businesses, one of the pillars of the country’s economy, stand to benefit the most from the implementation of the so-called K to 12 system this year, local officials from website Jobstreet.com said.

MANILA, Philippines – Three Filipino law students took home the top prize in a worldwide video contest organized by the International Labor Organisation (ILO).

MANILA, Philippines – Mining will be banned in protected areas and in tourism sites – including Palawan and Boracay – while no new permits for mining operations will be issued until Congress passes a new revenue sharing scheme that is more advantageous to the government.

CITY OF SAN FERNANDO , Pampanga, June 10 (PIA) — Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) Regional Office 3 recently led the forging of a Memorandum of Agreement and Joint Administrative Order (MOA-JAO) on Construction Safety held at the DOLE Regional Office 3 Conference Room, Regional Government Center, here in a bid to ensure safety…

The Philippine government pushed for the protection of migrant workers regardless of their migration status at an inter-government meeting in Austria last May 30 to June 1.

A growing number of Filipinos have been infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) as a result of using injecting drugs with contaminated needles, according to Rep. Arnel Ty of the LPG Marketers’ Association (LPG-MA). Ty said that contaminated needle-sharing among drug users was rapidly emerging as the second leading mode of spread of HIV…

THE head of the International Labor Organization (ILO) urged economies to redefine their priorities that focus too much on financial policies but lack sensitivity to human needs in getting jobs and lifting themselves out of poverty.