P-Noy’s SONA: No bright future for the Filipino Workers

P-Noy’s SONA: No bright future for the Filipino Workers

For the upcoming SONA of the Aquino administration, P-Noy will further firmed up its real direction of development for the nation. The solution to the country’s basic problems would be laid down through his five year development plan, the much touted PDP or Philippine Development Plan. As concretized in the labor front, the Philippine Labor Employment Plan or PLEP was pursued to carry out his comprehensive plan for the labor sector and employment. P-Noy’s PDP is an economic development plan which is far no different from his previous predecessors. Ramos’ Philippines 2000 and GMA’s claim of strong republic were examples of this sort. Nothing is new.

P-Noy profoundly articulated that the Filipino people’s growing problems of poverty and misery is attributed to the Philippine economy’s lack of foreign investments in the country. In so doing, he is putting more weight and focused on enhancing infrastructures projects like bridges, streets, ports, airways, railways and communications to attract foreign investors.

To bolster these objectives, the P-Noy government is keen on pursuing a favorable climate for business. Such framework is patterned from the past administrations where an export oriented and import dependent economy is the tall order. Consequently, the OFW syndrome will remain and the country will even be more dependent on their earnings and remittances.

This pattern can be best exemplified to the two concrete experiences of the labor sector as to the ineptness of the Pnoy government in relation to PALEA and Hanjin Workers. Both were symbols and replica of the true state of the working class. Both were victims of the worst problem confronting the Filipino workers, the unabated and rampant contractualization in the country. Unfortunately, P-Noy is more concern on the plight of the local and foreign capitalists and so the decision to outsource the PAL workers was reaffirmed and the government is playing on deaf ears as to the plight of the Hanjin workers.

What we have experienced from the Pnoy administration is an affirmation of what he is trying to picture out to the future of the workers in the next five years. A nation where the Filipino workers will further aggravates his misery and will not enjoy the fruits of his labor. Pnoy is building a nation where the capitalists were being assured of harmonious environment and were given privileges and enormous gains and profits.

We are challenging the P-Noy government to review this early the real path of effecting genuine solution to the issues and demands of the Filipino workers. To ensure some concrete and meaningful changes in the plight of the Filipino workers, we call on the government to;

1. Putting an end to the rampant contractualization of the Filipino workers.

2. Moratorium and halting of the unabated demolition among slum dwellers and work for a comprehensive housing policy that will ensure decent housing with accompanying social services and programs.

3. Implement an industrial policy that will enhance domestic economy and thereby create jobs for the Filipino workers.

4. As a matter of policy, the government must support the passing of a bill ensuring Security of Tenure for the workers.

5. Promote the creation of Public Guaranteed Jobs for all to supplement the country’s needs for jobs and opportunities of the Filipino workers.

6. Institute a social protection package to address unemployment and the problems of the displaced workers.

We believe that the issues of concern we have enumerated above will serve as a real paradigm shift to address and strengthen the protection of the Filipino workers in these times of uncertainty and hopelessness.

We further believe that a real SONA is a concretization of fulfilling the real solutions of the marginalized sector of the country and not a litany of concerns bolstering the interests of the powerful and the ruling few.

July 23, 2011

CLC (ChurchLaborConference) Labor Sector

KONTRA (KOALISYON KONTRA KONTRAKTWALISASYON)

APL (Alliance of Progressive Labor)

AMLC (Archdiocesan Ministry Labor Conference)

BMP (Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino)

MAKABAYAN (Manggagawa para sa Kalayaan ng Bayan)

NCL (National Confederation of Labor)

NUBCW (National Union of Building and Construction Workers)

PALEA (Philippine Airlines Employees Association)

PM (Partido ng Manggaggawa)

SAMAHAN (Samahan ng mga Manggagawa ng Hanjin Shipyard)

United Seafarers Union-ITF-ALU-TUCP (Trade Union Congress of the Philippines)

UM (Urban Missionaries)