The massive dislocation of families due to the raging armed conflict in Mindanao has spurred the trafficking of children, Rep. Emmylou Taliño-Mendoza of Cotabato warned Sunday. “A growing number of young girls and boys whose families have been displaced by constant armed strife have become extremely vulnerable to trafficking by illegal job recruiters and all…

Following the bankruptcy of US investment giant Lehman Brothers, the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) slammed the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) for lack of transparency on its overseas investments.

Sinuportahan ng pinakamalaking organisasyon ng mga manggagawa sa bansa ang bagong visa program ng Bureau of Immigration (BI) na magbibigay ng “indefinite stay” sa mga negosyanteng mamumuhunan at kukuha ng 10 Pinoy workers o higit pa.

Malacañang aims to bring before the United Nations the Moro Islamic Liberation Front’s (MILF) recruitment of children as fighters. Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita said the government has photographs to show that the MILF is using children in combat. The photographs were seized by troops from captured MILF camps, he added.

THIRTEEN girls aged 13 to 15 and recruited in Quezon City ended up being sold as prostitutes at P600 each to fishermen in Infanta, Quezon. The victims are out-of-school youths and residents of Batasan Hills, Quezon City.

PRESIDENT Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo has directed the Department of Education to step measures to end child labor and bring back these children to school. “The role of children is to study, learn and play, not to earn a living at their tender age.” President Arroyo pointed out. “I am therefore pleased that DepEd is working with…

At the outset, it must be stressed that this is an administrative case for dishonesty, grave misconduct, and falsification of an official document. To sustain a finding of administrative culpability only substantial evidence is required, not overwhelming or preponderant, and very much less than proof beyond reasonable doubt as required in criminal cases.

If control of a private corporation is acquired by the government through one of its agencies, are its employees subject to civil service laws? This is the question answered in this case of Pablo.

The injury or death of an employee is compensable if it is sustained (1) while performing his official functions (2) at the place where his work requires him to be or if sustained elsewhere (3) he must have been executing an order of his employer. These requirements are illustrated in this case of Bert.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said yesterday a proposal by the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) to subject outbound domestic helpers to a psychiatric test is “downright ridiculous.”

“Break the chain of abuse. Pass the Anti-Child Pornography Bill,” urged Gabriela Women’s Party Rep. Luz Ilagan after a study conducted by Talikala Foundation, a group helping prostituted women in Davao, revealed that a large number of prostituted women were once victims of child pornography. “The increase in the number of cases of child pornography…

The National Bureau of Investigation alerted the public on Sunday over the rampant smuggling of human organs in the Philippines. The NBI said smugglers are now targeting childen who are kidnapped and taken abroad where their organs are sold to foreign nationals.

GOVERNMENT agencies have been asked to look into reports that workers of Gaisano Capital South in downtown Cebu City were using children as shields during a strike protesting the department store’s allegedly unfair labor practices.

The imposition of sanctions on officials of the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) and the Bureau of Customs (BOC) who failed to meet their revenue targets have been slow.

Under Article 291 of the Labor Code, all money claims arising from employer-employee relationship like recovery of unpaid wages, separation pay and 13th month pay must be filed within three years from the time the cause of action accrued, otherwise they shall forever be barred. This case of Alma and her late husband Jim is…

The country’s largest labor group has expressed strong opposition to the planned sale of the government’s 40-percent stake in Petron Corp.

PROTESTING workers of Gaisano Mactan temporarily lifted their labor strike before noon yesterday, following an agreement with the store management and officials of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board 7 to meet today for a dialogue.

GOVERNMENT agencies have been asked to look into reports that workers of Gaisano Capital South in downtown Cebu City were using children as shields during a strike protesting the department store’s allegedly unfair labor practices.

Mga menor-de-edad pa lang sina Ma. Jennifer Abalos, 12; Jevelyn Devara, 14; at Gessa Clemente, 13, at halos magkapareho ang kanilang hangarin na makatulong sa kanilang mga magulang at makaahon sa kahirapan.

MANILA, Philippines — India and China have bigger economies but the Philippines has a higher “educational density” and thus in a better position to move ahead in offshore outsourcing, according to an economics professor from Europe.

MANILA, Philippines—Monaco-based designer Josef Crisanto was a sickly child who grew up in a dysfunctional family environment in Davao. Since he was too weak to play outdoors, his mother supplied him with paper, pens and crayons. A Piscean, he lived in his own world of imagination which was reflected in his drawings.

President Gloria Arroyo has the power, strength and ability to address one of the most serious challenges of her presidency—the significant curtailment of human trafficking and sex slavery in the Philippines.

LOS ANGELES, California — Thirteen-year-old Filipino Catherine Loria from Tiaong, Quezon shared honors with senior contestant Andrew Clarke from Jamaica when they were proclaimed Grand Champion Performers of the World in the 2008 World Championships of Performing Arts (WCOPA) or the Hollywood Olympics.

Workers of Sulpicio Lines Inc. (SLI) urged the government yesterday to allow the firm to resume its passenger service to prevent employees from getting laid off.

Calamba City — In line with the directives of President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo to implement pro-poor programs, the Regional Inter-Agency committee (RIAC) on the non-wage benefits spearheaded by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) entered into a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) recently with 43 companies regionwide aimed at helping workers to cope up with the…

A Philippine Navy reserve officer and former dean of the Mapua Institute of Technology’s School of Mechanical Engineering has led an R & D team in that school in developing an affordable robot to defuse and remove bombs planted by terrorists; its first commercially produced model is set for delivery soon to the Philippine National…

MANILA, Philippines — Around 100 bank employees went to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) Friday to protest alleged massive contractualization and “union busting.”

ALTHOUGH a law prohibits the employment of persons below 15 years old, this poverty stricken nation of more than 90 million people is teeming with child workers.

MANILA, Philippines — Seven Filipino students have earned perfect math scores and made the country one of seven overall champions in an international competition, an official from the Philippine team said in a statement to media.

The country’s largest labor organization yesterday expressed concern over the proposed four-day workweek, saying that it could lead to lower take home pay for workers.