by Renzo Acosta, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 23 Jan 2021 (First of two parts) (Note: Names of sex workers interviewed for this article are pseudonyms or internet personae.) MANILA, Philippines — Delilah, 23 years old, has been doing sex work since she was 18. “There was a time when I was so ashamed to label myself…

by Agence France-Presse, 23 Jan 2021 GENEVA, Switzerland – The World Health Organization said Friday it had no plans to change its guidance recommending fabric facemasks as new coronavirus variants spread, because the mutated strains are transmitted in the same way.

by Joana Rose Aglibot, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 23 Jan 2021 SAN ANTONIO, ZAMBALES – Three solar farm workers in Palauig, Zambales have tested positive for the coronavirus disease 2019 (Covid-19), raising the total number of active cases (patients currently undergoing treatment) in the province to 49.

by Ben O. de Vera, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 23 Jan 2021 The Duterte administration’s remaining months would be spent on ensuring that Filipinos have access to universal health care while reversing the damage wrought by the COVID-19 pandemic on the education and labor sectors, the country’s chief economist said on Friday.

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Year-on-year inflation rose to an ave. of 3.1% in Q4 2020 from the year- and quarter-ago rates of 1.6% and 2.5%, respectively. Bringing full-year average inflation to 2.6%, w/in the National Govt’s target range of 3.0% ± 1.0 percentage point for the year. https://t.co/1Gb5ofgs5O pic.twitter.com/O13tdDJZqO — Bangko Sentral (@BangkoSentral) January 22, 2021

More business groups (now 10) reject economic charter change at this time, says passage of the Public Service Act that eases foreign investment limits on some sectors will do for now | @meltlopez pic.twitter.com/bzRPcEseJ7 — CNN Philippines (@cnnphilippines) January 22, 2021

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By: Daphne Galvez, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 22 Jan 2021 MANILA, Philippines — The state-run pension fund Social Security System stands to lose over P41 billion worth of contributions if the scheduled increase in contribution rate is shelved, an official said Thursday.

By Emmet Lyons, CNN, 21 Jan 2021 (CNN) — Dave Russell is a light sleeper, but he never had any issues sharing a bed with his girlfriend, Izzy James, before the pandemic.

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by Roy Stephen C. Canivel, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 21 Jan 2021 More than 916,000 enterprises registered and renewed their business names under the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) last year, driven mostly by pandemic-weary entrepreneurs who wanted to start their own mom-and-pop stores or sell products online.

by Ben O. de Vera, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 21 Jan 2021 MANILA, Philippines—If current COVID-19 quarantine restrictions drag on until end of 2021 and mass vaccination lags behind, the Philippine economy cold eke out only a 2.9 percent growth, according to economists at the Ateneo de Manila University on Thursday (Jan. 21).

by Ian Nicolas Cigaral (Philstar.com), 21 Jan 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Nissan Motor Philippines became the third car manufacturer in 3 years to halt assembly in the Philippines, highlighting the struggles of the broader automobile industry that government has been trying to revive for years.

By: Ben O. de Vera, Philippine Daily Inquirer, 21 Jan 2021 The Philippines’ two biggest dollar-earning export sectors have made inroads in trying to minimize the potential impact on jobs of the automation of goods and services production under a looming “fourth industrial revolution” (4IR), the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said on Wednesday.

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by Beatrice M. Laforga, 20 Jan 2021 THE PHILIPPINES needs to improve its technical and vocational education to offset the expected loss of 24% of the jobs in the business process outsourcing (BPO) and electronics manufacturing industries by 2030, due to increased automation, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) said.

by Zandro Ochona, ABS-CBN News, 20 Jan 2021 MANILA — The number of recorded online sexual exploitation cases among children in the Philippines continues to rise despite the pandemic, and one of its youngest victims was a barely-month-old baby, the country’s inter-agency council against trafficking revealed on Wednesday.

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by Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star), 20 Jan 2021 MANILA, Philippines — Contracting COVID-19 does not constitute grounds to terminate household service workers (HSWs) or “kasambahay,” according to the Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC).

By Andrew J. Masigan, BusinessWorld, 17 Jan 2021 Filipinos are worried about the future of the economy — and for good reason. The heavy handed lockdown pushed many businesses to bankruptcy, especially micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs). While there is no exact data as to how many businesses have closed, a United Nations survey…

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By Dr. Jaime Jimenez, BusinessWorld, 19 Jan 2021 In a pandemic, the prevention of a wider spread of a virus and economic recovery are the essentials of the day. Among other things, budgeting during a pandemic needs to focus on three things: response measures, social protection, and economic stimulus.

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by Cai Ordinario, 18 Jan 2021 THE Philippines’s recovery from its “corona coma” could take longer, as the economy will likely post a growth of around 3 percent to 4 percent this year, according to the Ateneo Center for Economic Research and Development (Acerd).

by January 15, 2021, 2:37 PM by Leslie Ann Aquino, Manila Bulletin, 15 Jan 2021 Only 77 percent of the 72,000 establishments inspected last year were found compliant with occupational health and safety standards, the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) said Friday.