LABOR WATCH
Workers Wear Red Armbands, Rally for Wage Hike
With
red armbands, militant workers belonging to the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU or
May 1st Movement) came face to face with the Manila Police
District (MPD), as they marched Feb. 17 to Isetann Recto, demanding a P125
wage increase. Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) Chairperson Elmer Labog said the
red-colored cloth wrapped around their arms had long been their symbol of
expression of “anger” at the government for ignoring their demands.
BY
TRISTAM DE CASTRO
Bulatlat
 |
 |
RED ARMBAND DAY: Kadamay chairperson
and Anakpawis vice chairperson Carmen Deunida ties a red armband – a
new symbol of protest against the Macapagal-Arroyo administration
(left) – as workers face police in a rally for higher wages (right),
Feb. 17
PHOTOS BY
TRISTAM DE CASTRO |
With red armbands, militant workers
belonging to the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU or May 1st Movement)
came face to face with the Manila Police District (MPD), as they marched
Feb. 17 to Isetann Recto, demanding a P125 ($2.41 at $1:P51.80) wage
increase.
Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) Chairperson Elmer
Labog said the color red had long been their symbol of expression of
“anger” at the government for ignoring their demands. “It’s a welcome
development that the Magdalo officers have adopted the color red to air
their disgust with the present regime,” he added.
Other militant groups such as Kalipunan ng
Damayang Mahihirap (Kadamay or Alliance of Urban Poor Organizations) and
Anakpawis Partylist (Toiling Masses) participated in the rally and chanted
“Dagdag na pasahod! Siyento bente singko! Across the board! Nationwide!”
(P125 across-the-board wage increase, nationwide)
The workers protested against what they
call as the “Tatlong Doble Pahirap” (Three Double Burdens). These are the
issues of privatization, de-regulation, and the implementation of Charter
Change. They also said that the increase in the rate of the Expanded
Value-Added Tax (EVAT) from 10 to 12 percent, implemented last February 1,
made things worse for poor families.
They decried that prices of basic
commodities continue to soar. But the minimum wage per day is pegged at
P275 ($5.30) for the National Capital Region, P180 ($3.47) at the
Autonomous Region of Muslim Mindanao or ARMM, and P105 ($2.02) for
sugarcane workers in Iloilo. They said these are just examples of the wide
gap between actual wages and the family living wage of P613.20 ($11.83)
for a family of six – the average Filipino family – based on December 2005
data from the National Wages and Productivity Commission (NWPC).
“Walang nangyaring pagbabago ukol sa
karapatan ng mahihirap mula noong rehimeng Marcos” (Nothing has
changed since the Marcos years in the way the rights of the poor are
regarded), said Kadamay chairperson and Anakpawis vice chair
Carmen Deunida, known as Nanay Mameng.
“Kung hindi lang din
niya matutugunan ang mga hinaing namin sa lalong madaling panahon, bumaba
na siya” (If she cannot grant our demands, she had better step down), she
added. Bulatlat
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