Monthly Archives: October 2013

MANILA, Philippines — Saudi Arabia has issued regulations listing the rights and obligations of migrant household service workers and their employers, the Department of Labor and Employment said Thursday.

MANILA, Philippines – The Philippines was among 10 economies which made the biggest improvement in business regulation in the past year, according to the World Bank (WB) and International Finance Corp. (IFC).

MANILA, Philippines – A total 427 new cases of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) had been reported in September, according to the Department of Health Tuesday.

PARIS – Nearly a third of the world’s economic output, some $44 trillion (32 trillion euros), will by 2025 be in countries at the highest risk of climate change effects, said research published Wednesday.

When it comes to recognising the rights of domestic workers, Asia is lagging behind. About 40% of domestic workers globally are employed in Asia, but most of the region lacks legislation to protect them.

MANILA, Philippines—Communist insurgents who have battled government forces for decades turned their fury on hundreds of pigs at a farm in the southern Philippines, a military spokesman said.

THERE are at least one million under-aged domestic workers in Filipino households although the Philippines is the second country to ratify the International Convention on Domestic Workers, which went into effect a year ago in September.

The International Labour Organisation (ILO) has reviewed the progress made on the situation of domestic workers worldwide.

TUCP appeal letter for Farai Katsande

THE Philippines has advanced in an annual ease of doing business list by the World Bank. According to the just-released joint World Bank and International Finance Corp. Doing Business 2014 report, the Philippines jumped 30 places to 108 out of 189 economies from last year’s 138.

It’s a piece of good news, certainly, but also puzzling, if not at times contradicting reality. I’m talking about recent news that the Philippines has just emerged as “Asia’s best performing country” in closing gender disparity this year, at least according to the 2013 Global Gender Gap Report.

Fiscal, nonfiscal perks eyed to make sector more competitive Reviving the country’s manufacturing industry through new fiscal and nonfiscal policies may be crucial for the Philippines to take advantage of the opportunities presented by the establishment of the Asean Economic Community by 2015.

REFORM PARTNERS As members of the National Industry-Academe Council, university presidents and industry and government representatives map out a three- to five-year higher education reform agenda that aims to curb youth unemployment and produce a globally competitive work force.

New statistics reveal the number of people who have HIV has stabilised in Pacific nations while the rate is rising in Asia.

The Middle East depends heavily on domestic workers but trails other regions in adopting critical reforms to protect their rights, the International Domestic Workers Network (IDWN), the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), and Human Rights Watch said today. The groups released a report assessing progress since the 2011 adoption of the Domestic Workers Convention, a…

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MONTEVIDEO — Unions representing domestic workers met here Saturday to urge countries to ratify a year-old international convention that sets minimal labor standards for domestic workers.

Newly launched TV drama cast, crew discuss HIV and LGBT issues with stakeholders Its first home-grown TV series directly dealing with HIV/AIDS has debuted in the Philippines, raising stakeholders’ hopes that it would generate public awareness as well as sensitivity.

The organization’s executive body discusses the measures that countries have adopted since the adoption of the ILO’s Domestic Workers Convention, as well as the steps that are needed to achieve decent working conditions for the world’s 53 million domestic workers.

(Updated 8:05 p.m.) All the alpha Filipinas currently holding powerful positions in government – including chief justice and justice secretary – are just the tip of a larger truth: women are more empowered in the Philippines than in most countries in the world.

The world’s gender gaps narrowed slightly this year, when compared to the previous year, according to the Global Gender Gap Report 2013, published by the World Economic Forum on Friday.

MANILA, Philippines (UPDATED) – The Philippines was better able to address inequalities between men and women in 2013 than the year before.

In the last of three postings on wealth distribution, we ask who benefits from the relentless rise of the rich. Even in the world of high-flying soccer salaries, the deal announced late this summer between Real Madrid and Welsh player Gareth Bale was eye-popping – £85 million (about $120 million). The 24-year-old will now earn…

ARAKAN, Cotabato —Suspected New People’s Army (NPA) rebels on Monday morning raided an oil palm plantation and seized high-powered firearms in Bgy. Gambudes in Arakan, Cotabato.

Officials of the Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) explains the industry roadmap through 2016 during the International Outsourcing Summit held in Manila.

Once again, hundreds of thousands of Bay Area commuters face a perilous commute stemming from a paralyzed transportation system. The culprit? Another bargaining impasse between workers and management at the region’s commuter rail system, BART. The Bay Area’s congestion is a daily headache for many even when the BART trains are all operating, and thus…

The Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) dole-outs extended to poor Filipino families nationwide are not enough to reduce child labor in the Philippines, according to a study authored by Senior Research Fellows at the state-owned think tank Philippine Institute for Development Studies (PIDS).

A new ILO book analyses labour market trends and regulations in various emerging markets and presents a number of policies that can lead to a synergy between economic growth and decent job creation.

WASHINGTON—“The future is grim for us women smallholder farmers,” a group from Togo told a UN global consultation on future development goals. In keeping with local custom, they said, “Only men inherit land, although women do most of the work in fields. This keeps us dependent on men and shackles us in poverty.”

MANILA, Philippines – A ranking United Nations official and former vice president of Costa Rica has hailed the Philippine government through the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD) for its conditional cash transfer program (CCT).