Filipino Women Workers Sinking Deeper into Poverty
Women
minimum wage earners find it increasingly difficult to cope with ever
increasing prices. With the practice of contractualization of labor, more
women workers are being deprived of their rights. Women’s groups hit this
practice of the Arroyo administration as “feminization of poverty”. They
cite this as one of the reasons for their demand that Arroyo step down.
BY MARYA
SALAMAT
Bulatlat
|
High-speed sewer Gilda Sumilang has been working in a garments factory for
14 years now. Her factory churns out polo shirts and boxer shorts with
brand names such as Nautica, Levis, Dockers and Eddie Bauer. All original,
these clothing are not for sale in the Philippine market; instead, these
are for re-export to US, Canada, and other first world countries where the
"buyers" and the materials come from.
For the
remaining employed in the same factory for 14 years, Gilda is considered
'lucky'. Many export-oriented garment factories in Metro Manila that used
to employ tens of thousands of high-speed sewers, expert cutters and
sample-makers had closed down or downsized in the past years in order to
shift their production to export processing zones or industrial parks
outside Metro Manila where wages are lower and unionism is prohibited.
|
CGC women workers
join International Women’s Day rally in Makati City, March 8
PHOTO
BY BENJIE OLIVER |
But
despite Gilda's improved work experience and taking part in their union,
her so-called luck is fast slipping nowadays. "Our wages just can't keep
up with the increasing prices of transportation, basic commodities and
services," she lamented. She shared that five years ago, their shuttle
services cost P15 ($0.29 at 1$:P51.30), now it's P35 ($0.69). All in all
they need at least P100 to get to the workplace. If after paying their
bills and serving something at their table they're left with little money
to drag their bodies to the factory, they turn to usurious '5-6' money
lenders, referring to lenders charging a 20 percent interest on short-term
loans.
Vicky
Ilao, high-speed sewer in the same company for 22 years, says "If I were
the sole breadwinner in our family, my earnings wouldn't be enough for us
to live on even if we have only two kids." Both she and her husband have
jobs, but they still find it hard to make both ends meet. Like the rest of
her co-workers, Vicky's next month pay check is already earmarked for
paying off debts.
More
than 90 percent of their fellow workers, men or women, are neck-deep in
debt, the two women workers told Bulatlat. They said that whenever
they hear the current president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo pounding on the
benefits of her 'sound economic fundamentals,' they feel insulted. Due to
unmitigated oil price increases and tax hikes, prices are spiking
drastically and continuously, shrinking the real value of their wages by
leaps and bounds.
"Even if
our P125 wage hike demand is finally granted, and that's a big IF, it
won't be enough to totally recover the eroded value of our wages,"
lamented the women. And yet, they are the 'lucky' ones – for remaining as
employed, regular and unionized workers.
A growing
number of workers are not as 'lucky'
With the
government's drive to make the labor market more flexible, many workers
are now ending up as permanent contractuals – they work under a 5-month
contract which, if they're good, or if they're still needed, gets renewed
again and again. But they remain as contractuals, not regular employees
of the firm they're working for, and as such, not entitled to benefits
being enjoyed by regular employees.
In the
garments factory where Gilda and Vicky work, there are three contractuals
for every two regulars. Their union has to work double time to plug up its
ranks as more members leave due to extreme fatigue or age. Retirement
comes earlier in the garments industry. Workers here started young and
after more than 20 years of pounding at the sewing machine, even if
they're just in their forties, their bodies couldn't keep up anymore with
high quotas, needles and the heat inside the work premises.
The
union and the management where Gilda works arrived at an agreement to
maintain a certain number of regular workers, thus compelling the
management to regularize the top performers from among contractual
workers. But factory bosses warn them that if no buyers place orders,
they'll soon be saying goodbye to their jobs. Still, the number of
contractuals keeps on increasing, from around 100 some five years ago to
the current 300.
Contractualization is the practice in many factories today, said Gilda
Sumilang. In a textile company where former co-workers found work, there
are one thousand contractuals to every one hundred regulars. The trend is
even more obvious in the popular chains of malls where more women are
employed.
As less
women find regular jobs, their membership and participation in unions also
suffer. Data from the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women
reveals that women's participation in trade unions decreased from 59.6
percent in 1996 to 34.2 percent in 2000. The percentage of women in
leadership positions in unions also went down from 35 percent in 1998 to
25.6 percent in 2000.
Women’s
protests mark International Women’s Day
Protesting against what they called as another “repressive government”,
women from all over the country held simultaneous rallies in commemoration
of International Women’s Day March 8 in Tuguegarao City and Isabela,
Baguio City, and Ifugao in Northern Luzon; San Jose City in Nueva Ecija;
the Export Processing Zone in Rosario, Cavite, Batangas City and Lipa City
in Batangas; Calamba Crossing, San Pedro, Sta. Rosa, Sta. Cruz and San
Pablo in Laguna; Antipolo City in Rizal; Lucena City in Quezon; Albay and
Camarines Sur in the Bicol region; Mindoro Occidental and Puerto Princesa
in Palawan. In the Visayas Islands, women’s rallies were held in Cebu
City, Bacolod City, Dumaguete City, and Bohol. In Mindanao, rallies were
held at Davao City, in the CARAGA region, Tagum City, Kidapawan City, and
Butuan City.
In
National Capital Region, around 12,000 women belonging to different
political affiliations, united under the theme, “A woman’s place is in the
struggle – oust Gloria Arroyo,” marched along Ayala Ave. in Makati.
Women
belonging to Gabriela and Gabriela Women’s Party, Forces of the Middle
Class, Global Call to Action against Poverty-Philippines, OFW Family Club,
Womenspeak, NCCV, Bangon Pilipinas-Women, Black & White Movement, Laban ng
Masa (Masses’ Fight), Pwersa ng Masang Pilipino (Force of the Philippine
Masses) and many others, held a “Martsa ng Kababaihan” (Women’s March).
“What is
ironic in this year’s March 8 celebration is that the women’s movement is
deliberately being attacked by a woman – Mrs. Gloria Arroyo,” said Emmi de
Jesus, secretary general of Gabriela. In fact, said the other women
speakers, in holding a nationally-coordinated street protests they’re
actually defying the orders of “repressive Arroyo regime”. Indeed, as the
women’s program in Makati went on, numerous shield and stick-wielding
policemen positioned themselves at various intersections around Ayala,
warning the women against extending their program and beating their
shields from time to time.
Emmi de
Jesus cited the plight of Gabriela Women’s Party (GWP) Rep. Liza Maza, who
for the first time in her involvement in the women’s movement since 1987
cannot join any of the women’s day activities because of an impending
arrest. Rep. Maza and five other progressive party-list representatives
are charged with rebellion. They’re currently under protective custody of
the House of Representatives. Also included in the government’s wanted
list is GWP founding vice-chairperson and former Gabriela International
relations officer Elisa Tita Lubi.
Women’s
groups disclosed that women have found no support from Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo,
a woman president. According to them, Arroyo’s 10-point development agenda
doesn’t mention any gender concern. Arroyo, said women’s groups, has
denied official support for full reproductive health and family planning
services, thus putting at risk women’s health and lives. They lamented
that the National Commission on the Role of Filipino Women that is
mandated to ensure gender responsive policies has one of the smallest
budgets in the bureaucracy. Also, they said that despite the 25th
year of the celebration of the Convention on the Elimination of all Forms
of Discrimination Against Women or CEDAW, to which the Philippine
Government is a signatory, the fundamental rights of women remain a
pipedream to millions of women who are daughters, wives, mothers to
millions of households.
The
women’s groups also demanded “that the Arroyo administration be held
accountable for abetting feminization of migration and poverty.” They
claimed that under Arroyo’s watch, “women have become more vulnerable to
disasters, natural or human-made, as experienced by those in the Ultra
tragedy and Southern Leyte mudslide.” But according to the women’s group,
“Gloria is tragedy herself” because of the policies she imposes on the
people. The women’s groups concluded with a demand for Arroyo to step
down. Bulatlat
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