MANILA, Philippines—The Philippines continues to be on the US Trade Representatives’ Special 301 “ordinary” watch list amid efforts to curb all forms of intellectual property piracy in the country.

Isang maalab at mainit na pagbati sa Araw ng Paggawa! Muli, sa araw na ito ating ipakita ang mahigpit na pagkakaisa ng ating hanay,  mga manggagawa sa Pilipinas at sa ibayong dagat.   Ipinapaabot rin natin ang ating pakikipagkaisa sa mga manggagawa sa buong daigdig sa dakilang araw ng pandaigdigang paggawa.

MANILA, Philippines – The government will hold a three-day job fair starting June 12, Independence Day, to help workers who lost their jobs due to the global economic crisis.

When the Supreme Court (SC) declares a law unconstitutional it is exercising its power of judicial review explicitly granted by the Constitution itself (Section 5 (2) (a) and (b) Article VIII). This does not mean judicial supremacy but merely the performance of a duty as part of the system of checks and balances (Dabuet vs.…

MANILA, Philippines – Lawmakers are seeking measures to provide workers, employers and those retrenched ample benefits and other forms of assistance in the face of the worsening global economic crisis.

MANILA, Philippines – Even the combination of monetary easing and fiscal stimulus would not be enough to fully offset the impact of a slowing global demand and declining remittances, international ratings agency Standard & Poor’s Rating said yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Only about three million Filipinos are registered as individual taxpayers with the Bureau of Internal Revenues (BIR), the Department of Finance (DOF) announced yesterday.

MANILA, Philippines – Government spending on infrastructure projects is the major reason why the construction industry is growing despite the global financial crisis, the Philippine Contractors Association (PCA) said yesterday.

After a grueling day at the JOBapalooza ’09, where throngs of workers are expected to converge for the job and livelihood fairs highlighting this year’s Labor Day commemoration, a special concert is set to entertain workers and their families to cap the day’s celebration.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) today said that some 250,000 local and overseas jobs will be offered to graduates, new entrants to the labor force, and other workers especially those who were affected by the global crisis at May 1 Jobapalooza ’09 job fair marking the Labor Day celebrations in 16 regions nationwide.

More and more new graduates and jobseekers are riding on the wave of opportunity by registering with the country’s biggest jobs fair dubbed “Tayo Na! Trabaho Na! JOBapalooza ’09” as Labor Day approaches, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) today reported.

In celebration of Labor Day on Friday, May 1, 2009, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in partnership with Globe Telecom will launch a call, text, and online hotline service for the local workforce and overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) seeking immediate information on local and overseas jobs and other relevant updates and services.

Filipino consumers are not likely to buy new mobile-phone handset this year because of the global financial crisis, the International Data Corp. (IDC) said Thursday. In its Asia/Pacific Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, IDC said that mobile-phone shipments in the Philippines fell 20 percent in the fourth quarter of last year and expected to continue in…

EMPLOYMENT in Philippine industries in the fourth quarter of last year dropped at its fastest pace since the third quarter of 2007, the National Statistical Coordination Board (NSCB) said Thursday.

Many, many years ago when I was still rather new to the Philippines, a Filipino said to me if the Philippines was a centipede it would shoot itself in every foot—well, there aren’t many feet left, but here we go again.

At least 100,000 families can save their homes from foreclosure under an amnesty program that will take effect on May 4, the National Housing Authority said yesterday.

A food export leader has called on the Arroyo government to take the current crisis as a platform to institute lasting reforms in the farm sector, the first of which is a permanent ban on the conversion of irrigated and prime agriculture lands to non-agricultural uses.

The United Nations (UN) reiterated yesterday the Arroyo administration’s lack of commitment to uphold human rights despite the insistence of Executive Secretary Eduardo Ermita, who represented the government in the UN meeting at Geneva, that President Arroyo remained committed to the ideals and vision of the UN’s Universal Declaration on Human Rights of attaining “dignity…

MANILA, Philippines – Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) officials are cautiously optimistic that foreign investments could actually be higher than expected this year, possibly pushing the country’s forex reserves higher and the balance of payments (BOP) stronger.

MANILA, Philippines – President Arroyo ordered yesterday the release of P1 billion next month to help the country’s export industries survive the global economic crisis.

MANILA, Philippines – New homes, jobs and livelihood grants await Filipino workers on Labor Day.

I can’t say I am ecstatic over the addition of more party-list congressmen as a consequence of the Supreme Court’s reading of the law.

CONFUSION: That the April 21 decision of the Supreme Court on the Party-List system of congressional representation sowed confusion is an understatement.

MANILA, Philippines – Dangerous Drugs Board (DDB) chairman Vicente Sotto III disclosed yesterday that 33 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) are now detained in several prisons in Brazil and Suriname because of drug-related offenses.

MANILA, Philippines – Environmental groups yesterday called on the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR) to actively support global action to ban nine more “extremely nasty” chemicals that pose significant risk to human and ecological health, as they pushed for the expansion of the original 12 Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) under the Stockholm Convention.

Electronics and semiconductor firms have started recalling 7,000 workers that were earlier displaced due to the global economic crisis.

If a company or product manufacturer is to influence consumers’ purchasing decisions and earn their trust, they should improve on their social responsibility record and not just rely on good customer service. This was evident based on the latest results of the 2009 Reader’s Digest Trusted Brands Survey in the Philippines.

Anakpawis party-list Rep. Rafael Mariano yesterday assailed Malacañang for its continuing “no wage hike policy,” stressing “at this time of worsening economic crisis, it is far more just for the working class to demand a wage increase.”

The Philippine mission to the United Nations in Geneva yesterday belied reports that the country has been taken off a UN list of model countries for migrant workers for failing to protect its workers from abuses.

The Department of Trade and Industry said it will not extend the zero duty on cement since its price has not gone down since its implementation.