CEBU, Philippines – Hundreds of workers have been retrenched by four garment factories at the Mactan Export Processing Zone, including Metrowear, Mactan Apparel, Fedder Apparel, and Global.

LONDON – FINANCIAL markets are likely to remain buffeted by uncertainty over government policy despite an unprecedented pledge by the world’s top finance officials to cooperate as the global economy emerges from recession.

The lingering global crisis has bought enough time to build new power plants in Luzon and Mindanao that was anticipated earlier to suffer electricity shortages very soon.

The Department of the Interior and Local Government (DILG) has helped set up Local Councils for the Protection of Children (LCPCs) in 24,093 barangays nationwide (covering 54 provinces, 101 cities and 963 towns) as of June 2009, as part of its heightened campaign to uphold the welfare and rights of Filipino minors.

A year after Lehman collapse WASHINGTON, D.C.: A year ago, the financial system appeared to be on the brink of a meltdown and the future of American-style capitalism in doubt.

EXPORTERS are shifting their focus to Asian markets as the US, Japan and Europe took a hit from the global financial crisis, an official of the Philippine Exporters Confederation (Philexport) said.“With recession hitting three of our top markets—US, Japan and Europe—we shifted marketing promotions to fast-growing Asia, particularly India and China,” Aniano Bagabaldo, Philexport executive…

PETALING JAYA – INDONESIA’S demand that its maids be paid a minimum RM800 (S$326) monthly salary has hit a raw nerve among Malaysians.

Mr Trichet (left) noted that central bankers from industrialised and emerging economies meeting at the Bank for International Settlements agreed that ‘we were observing a confirmation of some better indicators than previously anticipated.’

Internet in the Philippines (First of two parts) MANILA, Philippines – Internet use in the Philippines remains free, with most, if not all form of content, becoming available to all 24 million or so Internet users, about half of them below the age of 19.

Subic, Zambales, Philippines — House committee on labor and employment members have expressed appreciation for the implementation of work safety measures inside the Hanjin Heavy Industries Corp. (HHIC) shipyard in Subic, but said they wanted to see more improvement in labor safety inside the facility.

MANILA, Philippines – Agriculture Undersecretary Bernie Fondevilla assured yesterday that the government would “maintain sufficient protection measures” for the agriculture sector.

MANILA, Philippines – It’s a bank, but it doesn’t make loans or pay interest on deposits.

This is a record third consecutive long weekend. And choosing my topic today inexorably brought me back to that oft-invoked but still misunderstood principle of Church-State separation which our Constitution says is inviolable (Article II Section 6). Obviously the reasons behind Malacañang’s declaration of September 7 (today) and September 21, 2009 as special non-working holidays…

MANILA, Philippines – The government plans to implement some P2.5 billion in environmental programs to generate emergency employment for more than 114,000 people this year, Malacañang said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – The government will subsidize about 700,000 students in private high schools next year to the tune of P3.9 billion, Cebu Rep. Eduardo Gullas said yesterday.

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MANILA, Philippines—More than 200 Filipino and Asian domestic helpers marched to the Hong Kong Central Government Office Sunday to protest the local government’s decision to peg the minimum allowable wage (MAW) of foreign maids at HK$3,580 (P22,520) a month.

LONDON—British Prime Minister Gordon Brown will warn Saturday against withdrawing the massive stimulus measures launched to tackle the global credit crisis, saying it would be a “serious mistake”.

TAIPEI—With the thawing of once icy relations between China and Taiwan, new opportunities might just open up for Filipinos who want to work overseas but are not happy with just scrubbing floors and toiling in sweatshops.

Former senator and three-term Makati Rep. Agapito Aquino recently called on the marginalized sectors to organize themselves into cooperatives to improve their stations in life.

MANILA, Philippines—A total of P3.9 billion in new funding has been apportioned to subsidize the tuition of 703,318 students enrolled in private high schools, Cebu Representative Eduardo Gullas said in a statement Sunday.

A THOUSAND workers are being retrenched by four garment factories in the Mactan Export Processing Zone in Cebu, the Partido ng Manggagawa or Workers’ Party labor group said yesterday.

Making businesses grow need not always require huge investments. This is what we have learned when we studied nine out of some 350 micro, small and medium-scale enterprises currently assisted by the Business Advisory Program (BAP) of Philippine Business for Social Progress (PBSP).

CEBU, Philippines – The Alliance of Progressive Labor plans to file a petition for a wage increase anytime this month after they deferred their plans to file for a similar petition last January due to the global economic crisis.

MANILA, Philippines – Two very important pieces of legislation – the Climate Change Act of 2009 and Anti-Torture Act of 2009 – have been approved in the bicameral conference committee and are just awaiting approval from President Arroyo.

MANILA, Philippines – Malacañang has exempted the business process outsourcing and electronics industries from tomorrow’s special non-working holiday.

MANILA, Philippines – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) reported yesterday that only four strikes took place in the country during the first eight months of 2009.

AFTER we succeeded in convincing the government to set up Policewomen’s Desks in each precinct in 1994, our organization, Kalakasan, has been involved in organizing community-support mechanisms for victims of violence and abuse.

FOR MANY years, women NGOs (non-government organizations) lobbied for the passage of the Magna Carta of Women (MCW). It was their fervent wish that a permanent statute be enacted that would recognize the rights of women in nation building and ensure the substantive equality of men and women.

(AS HUNDREDS of women activists and advocates begin to draft proposals for the implementing rules of the recently signed Republic Act No. 9710 or the Magna Carta of Women, Talk of the Town asked women leaders why the new law is an important achievement. The Magna Carta translates into law the spirit and letter of…