14th International Commemoration Day for the Dead and Injured Workers, 28 April 2009

Forty participants, 13 of whom are women, lighted candles in remembrance of fellow workers who have died, got injured or got sick because of unhealthy, unsafe and unsustainable working conditions. They held placards calling for the ban of asbestos use emphasizing the fact that no level of exposure to the substance is safe. “Asbestos kills! Ban asbestos, now!” was the mantra.

The participants represent 12 global union federations, national labor centers and local unions; eight national government agencies; two local government units; five media outfits; one UN organization; one organization of asbestos-affected workers; and two party-list organizations.

Trade unions: Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), Building and Woodworkers International (BWI); Associated Labor Unions (ALU); Trade Unions of the Philippines and Allied Services (TUPAS); Association of Construction and Informal Workers (ACIW); Development Action for Women of TUCP (DAWN-TUCP); EEI Supervisory Union; National Labor Union (NLU); Philippine Seafarers Union (PSU); Alyansa ng Mga Mangagawa at Pilipinong Organisado (AMAPO); Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL); National Union of Building and Construction Workers (NUBCW). National Government Agencies: Bureau of Working Conditions (BWC) and Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC) of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE); Philippine Health Insurance Corporation (PhilHealth); Social Security System (SSS); Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC); Department of Science and Technology (DOST); Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH); Local Governments: Quezon City and Marikina City. Media: Manila Bulletin; Philippine Star; Remate; Police Files Tonite; Hataw; UN Organization: World Health Organization (WHO). Asbestos –Affected Organization: Subic Asbestosis Victims Association (SAVA). Party-list Organizations: TUCP Party-List and Akbayan.

The program culminated with the development of an Inter-agency Action Program for the Elimination of Asbestos-Related Diseases.