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news
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Migrante
to GMA: ‘genuine jobs’ in the Philippines,
not in Kazakhstan
Migante Sectoral Party called on President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo Nov. 12 to
provide “genuine jobs” in the country istead of “satisfying the cheap
labor requirements of foreign lands.”
John
Monterona, its spokesperson, said that aside from low wages for migrant workers
in Kazakhstan, where the president promised “about 100,000 new jobs await
Filipinos,” it actually has the highest unemployment rate of 8.8 percent in
five years.
“We
do not want our fellow Filipinos to fall into the trap of low-paying jobs in
difficult conditions abroad,” Monterona said. “President Arroyo should take
stock of our own jobless workers and create stable, well-paying jobs here in the
Philippines, not in foreign lands like Kazakhstan and elsewhere.
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Discontent
on Meralco's refund
The
national chair of Samahan ng Nagtataguyod ng Agham at Teknolohiya para sa
Sambayanan (Agham, a group of scientists and techonologists) Giovanni Tapang,
Ph. D., last week expressed discontent over Meralco’s refund scheme.
In
a statement, Tapang said that aside from the prolonged refund period, it does
not refund the overcharge in Currency Exchange Rate Adjustment (CERA)
collections “when it is quite plain in the bills that CERA is a percentage of
the basic charge.”
“They
are not also paying us the interests on
our billions which they used in business and earned for them huge profits,”
Tapang added.
Tapang
said that despite these issues in their refund scheme, Meralco has petitioned
for another 16.46 centavos increase in rates.
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Lucio Tan’s Foremost delays CBA
Foremost
workers under the Samahan ng mga Manggagawa sa Foremost Farm (SMF), an affiliate
organization of the Alliance of Nationalist and Genuine Labor Organization-Kilusang
Mayo Uno (ANGLO-KMU) with 396 members, went on strike on Nov. 7 following a
deadlock with management over a new Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).
SMF-ANGLO-KMU
president Jerry Pier Gonzaga said for almost eight months of negotiating the CBA,
the management has been harassing, dismissing, and firing workers to weaken the
union and give in to the company’s cheap offer.
The
strikers belong to the company’s plant in Santolan, Pasig and from the farms
in Pantay, Teresa and Pinugay, Baras, both in Rizal. Foremost, which claims to
be the biggest piggery farm in the Philippines and the whole of Asia, is owned
by taipan Lucio Tan.
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HK OFWs ask Consulate to lift protest ban, issue free E-card
“No
amount of rain or suppression can hinder us from asserting our rights.”
Despite the unfavorable weather, Migrante Sectoral Party-Hong Kong (MSP-HK)
spearheaded the protest at the Philippine Consulate General (PCG) Nov. 9 with
over 1,000 overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) participating.
In
a petition signed by 92 federations and organizations submitted to the
Consulate, the protesters demanded the free issuance of the Electronic Card
(E-Card) to all OFW and the immediate lifting of the consulate’s protest ban
policy. Meanwhile, Cordillera Alliance submitted another petition demanding the
swift justice to Grace, an OFW reportedly raped and jailed in Dubai.
MSP-HK
Chairperson Connie Bragas-Regalado said that the “treacherous disinformation
of OFWs and business-like dealing on the supposedly free e-card, a government
service ” smacks not only of government’s abandonment of its responsibility
to its people but a violation of the OFWs’ Magna Carta. The Magna Carta states
that “Government fees and other administrative costs of recruitment,
introduction, placement and assistance to migrant workers shall be rendered
free…”
Bulatlat.com
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