by Cris Evert Lato from Cebu Daily News CEBU CITY, Philippines – About 30 percent of overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are working in the United States, according to research group Ibon Foundation.

by Cielito Habito from Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines – Ever notice how our economy has been behaving strangely lately? The latest strange (but welcome) behavior is how job generation based on the last two quarterly Labor Force Surveys (July and October 2008) appeared healthy even in the face of the world economic slowdown that…

MANILA, Philippines–Despite the lingering global economic crisis, major Philippine business process outsourcing (BPO) providers, mostly contact center operators, have been aggressively recruiting new staff, a labor group said on Sunday.

by Jerome Aning from Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines—A moderate workers’ group on Sunday said it was joining the growing opposition led by civil society and Church-based groups to the renewed drive by allies of President Macapagal-Arroyo to amend the Constitution.

from People’s Journal The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines yesterday said it was closing ranks with civil society groups and Church-based organizations opposing fresh attempts to amend the 1987 Constitution to allow a term extension for President Macapagal-Arroyo and other elected officials.

by Patricia Evangelista from Inquirer MANILA, Philippines — There is a reason why traditional democratic discourse rejects active military involvement in politics, and stresses civilian supremacy. The reason is this: that violence, or the threat of violence, which the military utilizes in the enforcement of its goals, must be without bias in its service to…

by Mayen Jaymalin from The Philippine Star In what could be the start of a looming mass displacement of workers due to the financial crisis, about 900 workers at a business process outsourcing (BPO) company were laid off from their jobs. The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), the country’s largest labor group, reported…

from ABS-CBNNews.com The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) should look after the 900 workers recently laid off by a business process outsourcing (BPO) company, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said Wednesday.

by Paul M. Gutierrez from People’s Journal THE Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), called on the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) to “stop bullying the press” with libel complaints, saying journalists who have been highly critical of the state-run pension fund’s management “are merely doing their job as guardians of the public interest.”

Union Debt Help Paying off debt is a matter of making more money than you spend, and then allocating the extra funds to outstanding balances — easier said than done, right? To some it may be just that easy, but to most, debt is so common that it eventually becomes a way of life. In…

from The Daily Tribune The State pension fund Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) has said its president and general manager, Winston Garcia, filed libel suits against certain newspaper columnists last week not to “bully the media,” but rather to remind journalists that they, too, have a responsibility to bear.

by Alexander Villafania from INQUIRER.net MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines took home the silver medal at the recently held World Robot Olympiad 2008 in Yokohama, Japan. The Philippine team known as “Gracean Whizkids” from Grace Christian Elementary School beats 21 other schools.

by Butch Quejada from Pilipino Star Ngayon Pumalag ang iba’t-ibang grupo ng mga manggagawa sa bantang “zero remittance” ng International Migrants Alliance (IMG) bunsod na rin ng malaking epekto sa ekonomiya lalu na ngayong may nararanasang global financial crisis.

by Marlon Ramos from Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines — Mac, the Filipino-made explosives disposal robot, has just succeeded in first mission. The one-armed, night-seeing robot developed by students from the Mapua Institute of Technology won the top prize in the recently held First World Cup of Computer-Implemented Inventions in Shanghai, China, said Senior Supt.…

by Mayen Jaymalin from The Philippine Star The country’s largest labor union warned the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) yesterday against pouring $400 million more into overseas investments. Ernesto Herrera, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) secretary-general, said the global financial crisis could worsen in the coming months.

by Moira Herbst from BusinessWeek Economic woe usually leads to layoffs in certain industries, but this time the pink slips will be widespread When the dot-com and housing bubbles burst, it was easy to see what types of jobs would disappear. But these days as nervous lenders cower and credit contracts, virtually every industry is…

by ALEXANDER G. HIGGINS Associated Press Writer from FindLaw GENEVA (AP) – The global financial crisis will add at least 20 million people to the world’s unemployed, bringing the total to 210 million by the end of next year, the U.N. labor agency said Monday. That will be the first time in a decade of…

by Mahar Mangahas from Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines—The third quarter 2008 Social Weather Survey, fielded Sept. 24-27, had two modules on the topic of reproductive health (RH), one module of three items done on SWS’ own initiative, and a second module of three items commissioned by the Forum for Family Planning and Development (FFPD),…

MANILA, Philippines — The Philippines ranked as the 10th most competitive IT industry environment in the Asia-Pacific, a recent study showed.

by Mayen Jaymalin from The Philippine Star Labor Secretary Marianito Roque gave assurances yesterday that the world economic crisis would not cause Filipino workers in the United States and other countries to lose their jobs. “It may affect us, but it will not hit us like a tidal wave, not suddenly,” he said. “With the…

by Lee Ann Pattugalan from People’s Tonight IN a bid to strengthen multi-sectoral collaboration in the efforts to provide for more full, decent, and productive employment for Filipino workers, the Department of Labor and Employment yesterday launched the third cycle of the Philippine agenda on decent work.

by Ernesto F. Herrera from The Manila Times The Philippine economy is already seeing the effects of a global economic slowdown through a decrease in foreign investments flows. The Bangko Sentral ng Pili–pinas (BSP) reported that net foreign direct investments from January to July dropped 60.2 percent and was less than half the $2.41 billion…

by Ernesto F. Herrera from The Manila Times CAN age have something to do with one’s ability to do a job? I would have to say it could. But don’t get me wrong. I am not advocating age discrimination. I am in fact very much against it. But age can have a bearing in a…

by Rene Martel from The Manila Times ADHERING to the tried and tested adage that if you can’t beat them join them, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines—concerned by the high price of medicines—is well on the way establishing a network of outlets to help resell high quality, low-priced medicines to marginal families, particularly…

Cito Beltran Philippine Star What you trained for all your life is not necessarily your destiny. This “gem” of a thought came to mind as I watched the animated movie “Kung Fu Panda”. I must confess that I am my daughter’s equal when it comes to being cartoon movie addicts. Perhaps I am a child…

from The Philippine Star Three Filipino students bagged first prize of the poster-making competition in the recently concluded Asian Science Summit held in Bali, Indonesia, the Science Education Institute (SEI) reported yesterday.

by Margaux Ortiz from Philippine Daily Inquirer MANILA, Philippines—The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines on Tuesday called on the Department of Finance to exercise transparency and hold consultations with workers’ groups in the realization of the implementing rules and regulation of the tax relief law passed in June.

from The Manila Times The Senate and House committees on labor and employment should investigate “the unusually high incidence of accidental deaths” of building workers at the $1.6-billion shipyard project of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction-Philippines Inc. in the Subic Bay Freeport Zone, a labor group official said Wednesday.

by Mayen Jaymalin from The Philippine Star The country’s largest labor group yesterday rejected a proposed measure restricting the deployment of Filipino doctors and other medical workers abroad. Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said the proposed bill requiring Filipino professionals to render compulsory service prior to working overseas is highly discriminatory.

by Mayen Jaymalin from The Philippine Star The country’s largest labor group yesterday rejected a proposed measure restricting the deployment of Filipino doctors and other medical workers abroad.