It is high time to get rid off and stop supporting policies that promote Islamophobia, xenophobia, and disregard of the democratic rights of the people masquerading as policies to “secure” the people of the United States of America. In the words of the victims of 9-11, “Not in our name!”
Working Filipino’s real wage, purchasing power weakening under Duterte
Research group IBON said that accelerating inflation is rapidly eroding the real wage and purchasing power of minimum wage earners in the National Capital Region (NCR).
Real wages show the actual value of wages after these are adjusted for inflation. After almost two years in power, the Duterte administration has only raised the minimum wage in the NCR once–in October last year–which increased this from Php491 in July 2016 to Php512 as of March 2018. The nominal Php21 increase has however not been enough to keep up with rising prices.
Inflation has been steadily accelerating since the start of the Duterte administration to reach a six-year-high of 3.7% in 2017. It is looking to become even higher this year at 4.8% already in the first quarter of 2018. Minimum wage earners have actually already lost Php16.80 per day with the real value of their wages, measured at 2012 prices, falling from Php466.70 in July 2016 to just Php449.90 in March 2018. The year 2012 is used as the reference period because this is the base year of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) in computing the consumer price index (CPI) and inflation.
As it is, the NCR minimum wage of Php512 falls far short of the estimated Php973 family living wage (FLW) for a family of five, and even further short of the Php1,168 FLW for a family of six. The eroding purchasing power of workers is resulting in even lower standards of living for minimum wage earners.
IBON said that the government should urgently address the grossly insufficient wages of workers, which is even being rapidly eroded by high inflation. Immediate and concrete steps include: implementing the Php750 national minimum wage demanded by workers’ groups; suspending implementation of the Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion (TRAIN) Package One, which is driving prices up and amending this to become genuinely progressive; and enforcing price controls such as on staple food items. ###
ORDINATION
Bishop Romulo Dela Cruz, D.D. leads the ordination of Bishop of Mati Bp. Abel Apigo, D.D. at the San Pedro Cathedral in Davao City on Tuesday, April 24, 2018. (Mark Joy G. Basallajes/davaotoday.com)
Trade union violations revealed in fact-finding mission
A National Fact Finding Mission (NFFM) headed by the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) condemned on Friday the rise of human rights violations and union busting in Compostela town.
Photo Essay | Celebrating Mangyan culture amid repression
The Mangyan Day is an annual celebration of the Mangyan indigenous people of Mindoro. The Mangyan are proud of their ethnicity, history and ancient wisdom as a people united in their quest for self-determination and the attainment of their ancestral lands. This photo essay by veteran photojournalist Raymond Panaligan taken during Mangyan Day, held in Brgy. Villafor, Puerto Galera, Oriental Mindoro from April 13-16 shows how the Mangyan people celebrate their culture and struggle amid growing repression.
Mangyan Day represents a unifying moment where the 7 Mangyan tribes (Hanunuo, Alangan, Gubatnon, Iraya, Buhid, Bangon, Tadyawan) gather to share experiences and challenges in their quest for self-determination and attainment of the Daga Kagurangan or ancestral land.
After President Duterte ordered th military “to flatten the hills,” military operations became rampant in a number of Mangyan communities accused of harboring communist revolutionaries. There were killings, disappearances, witch-hunting and illegal arrests, which caused fear and disrupted community life.
HAGIBBAT Mangyan Leaders from different tribes engaged in a dialog with Or. Mindoro Governor Rodolfo Umali, Jr. to discuss human rights issues, militarization and encroachment in Mangyan lands by foreign-owned renewable energy projects and big mining corporations.
The Mangyan people also called the government’s National Greening Project as a “bogus reforestation program” that would displace them from their lands. Likewise, energy projects and big mining wreck had already caused massive flooding and encroachment in their ancestral domain.
Mangyan leader Bapa Kalot recites an Ambahan–a traditional form of Mangyan poetry–during the dialog at the provincial capitol.
A Hanunuo woman prepares traditional Mangyan items for selling in a street market during the 11th celebration of Mangyan day.
A Hanunuo woman explains the Surat Mangyan, the traditional Mangyan writing that was declared by the United Nations as a World Heritage.
Mangyan leaders during the start of the 11th Mangyan Day celebrations.
Some Mangyan leaders have been arrested by government forces, falsely accused of being “terrorists.”
A Mangyan woman resting and smoking during the Mangyan Day celebrations.
A workshop for children, facilitated by the Salinlahi Foundation. A separate workshop on child-rearing was given to Mangyan women.
Exhibits showcasing Mangyan life and culture adorned the makeshift tents.
The Mangyan are also adapting to the use of digital tools.
Children’s books are a way for Mangyan children to learn about other Filipino cultures.
For the Mangyan people, the struggle for self-determination and a peaceful life continues.
The post Photo Essay | Celebrating Mangyan culture amid repression appeared first on Altermidya.
Php750 national minimum wage a legitimate call (IBON Facts & Figures excerpt)
The demand of progressive workers’ federations for the re-installation of a national minimum wage and pegged at Php750, along with the abolition of the regional wage boards, is an immediate, important and doable step towards making economic growth genuinely inclusive and addressing worsening inequality in the country. Based on IBON estimates, raising the average daily basic pay from the nationwide average of some Php367.35 to the proposed Php750 national minimum wage transfers just Php448 billion to workers’ pockets – this is only 27.4% decrease in profits, which still leaves employers with a significant 72.6% (Php1.18 trillion) of their clean profits. On the other hand, each worker will be able to take home, on average, an additional Php8,364.00 per month.
The amount of profits transferred to workers’ wages was computed based on data from the latest (2014) Annual Survey of Philippine Business and Industry (ASPBI) of the PSA. The census shows that 35,009 establishments with employment of over 20 or over had Php1.63 trillion in total profits and 4.13 million employees.
The country’s largest corporations and wealthiest families are the most able to absorb the wage hike. In fact, the total cost of proposed Php750 national minimum is only equivalent to 20% of the total net worth of the 10 richest Filipinos.
Meanwhile, the government can ensure special support for small producers of micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) to help them cope with the proposed national minimum wage. This includes immediately providing cheap and easy credit, giving research, development and marketing support, nurturing locally integrated supply chains, and improving their scientific and technological capabilities. (Excerpt from Continuing Wage Depression, IBON Facts & Figures, April 2017.)
Php750 national minimum wage a legitimate call
(IBON Facts & Figures excerpt) The demand of progressive workers’ federations for the re-installation of a national minimum wage and pegged at Php750, along with the abolition of the regional wage boards, is an immediate, important and doable step towards making economic growth genuinely inclusive and addressing worsening inequality in the country. Based on IBON […]
Joma won’t return to PH prematurely
National Democratic Front of the Philippines (NDFP) Chief Political Consultant Jose Maria Sison is not inclined to prematurely return to the Philippines without “significant advances” in the peace negotiations between the NDFP and the Philippine government.