Through the working folk lies the future
At first, this writer salutes the working class on the occasion of the International Workers Day. And let this occasion celebrate the numerous contributions and struggles brought by the labouring people even in this time of pandemic crisis and the repression brought by the order.
For as the Philippines, like any other country celebrated this occasion, the laboring folk tried their best to express their grievances amidst an extra-ordinary situation with fierce lockdowns across Luzon and many parts of the country — an alleged "medical necessity" to control the spread of COVID19 and its effects. For as of April 28, 7,958 people were positively sick across the country, while 975 had survived, and 530 had died.
However, for the order, this lockdown is more than just "flattening the curve" but a basis for widespread repression be it on various organisations, or individuals whose concern for the folk includes the right to expose and oppose the unjust actions brought by the order-of trampling down civil rights, including the right for just wage and adequate medical and social care especially in this time of pandemic crisis.
And from this somehow aggravate the ever continuing tensions making the folk further assert the need for genuine social change as necessary to uplift the folk and the homeland.
Workers as most vulnerable to illness and harassments
The medical crisis brought by COVID 19 has quickly escalated into a socioeconomic one as it hits the marginalised classes at its worst. With the Duterte regime announced its "Community Quarantine" meant to flatten the curve in this pandemic situation, it hitted the workers most especially those from non-essential businesses who found themselves doing odd jobs for their families’ survival as relief assistance from the Department of Labor and Employment and from their local government units (LGUs) are frustratingly inadequate if not inaccessible.
But this situation has been weaponised by the order as means to silent those who oppose their agenda. Recent arrests of those helping the downtridden, online harassments, and threats of martial rule has made the folk worried while the administration dismissed the necessary medical measures to address the pandemic. It is the same order that disagrees the idea of mass testing or failing to make an assurance that the Department of Health has already contained the virus and its mutations, making the working class face the hard decision of foregoing work and not earning for their families, or risking contracting COVID19 and thus endangering their own households.
The order may knew about this situation, but the mismanagement of programs, of failure to address the situtions, what more of seeing a militarised agenda aggravates the problem- for Duterte is rather intent on managing the justified indignation and anger of the people more than the pandemic itself, of keeping the entire budget for his agenda more than allocating for health and social services making Local Government Units left to decide for themselves and to take the blame once things go awry for the people.
Still, the working folk carries the will to fight
Despite numerous harassments and threats, the working folk still carries the will to fight. As Duterte and his camarilla employs tried and tested fascism, he could exploit, neglect, and endanger the working class all in the same breath but nonetheless the working class, hardened by hardships, will continue to advance the struggle.
For with or without this pandemic the working class will assert further calls for real living wage, just working conditions, and an end to repression for even in this time of numerous technological achievements centuries old situations continue to prevail, what more that the order has used those to repress the folk and to consolidate their interests. Words like "Digital Transformation" has been used by the order to threaten the workers forcing to content on meagre wages and unjust conditions. What more in this pandemic crisis wherein policies like "no work no pay" has been imposed by various companies, making workers both "working at home" and those as skeletal force in the workplaces content in unlikely conditions.
Worse, most workers had to content on the insufficient aid given by the government if not forcing to work "part time" with less salary and under threat of dismissal. In Southern Tagalog, half a million workers are affected by the pandemic as factories been temporarily closed in the region.
However there are establishments wherein employees are allowed to continue operations only in limited numbers serving as a "skeletal force"; in addition, there are other factories that implement flexible work arrangements such as reducing hours or working days to comply with the enforced lockdown policy. From this situation capitalists have also taken advantage of the situation to justify illegal dismissals primarily as part of its union busting activities against progressive unions.
And according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), 99,178 in Region IV-A and 30,721 in Region IV-B were directly affected by the ongoing lockdown in Central Luzon. This is in sharp contrast to a report by the Philippine Export Zone Authority (PEZA) in which only Cavite Ecozone has lost 86,549 jobs due to the temporary closure of 309 companies in the vicinity. Also according to a report released by the Revolutionary Council of Trade Unions-Southern Tagalog (RCTU-ST), based on their near factual estimate, between 350,000-400,000 workers in CALABARZON were directly affected by the enforced lockdown.
So is the "Economic Assistance" given by the Government. Only a handful of workers have been able to provide assistance by the DOLE. According to research by the IBON Foundation, only 856,000 or 0.8% of the 10.7 million workers in the formal sector were awarded DOLE's P5,000 under the COVID19 Adjustment Measures (CAMP) while 52,000 (1%) only a total of 5.2 million non agricultural informal earners were blessed with the help of the work for pay scheme. DOLE has already admitted that they need more funding to meet the needs of Filipino workers affected by the ongoing lockdown, according to the IBON Foundation. Also according to the RCTU-ST, the cost was low and only a few workers in the South had received assistance from DOLE because of its lack of funding.
With the situation in Southern Tagalog for an example would say that the worker's situation is aggravated both by the lockdown and by the motives of scrupulous employers. As in the past, unjust wages and unfair working conditions, coupled with ever-prevailing contractualisation and outright threats of dismissals has been an issue making the working class assert further the need for decent living even despite this repressive situation, what more in this pandemic-driven crisis. The region is also the laboratory of the worst wage situation-that besides with the implementation of RA 6727 which varies with the wages of different regions, this was also the first implementation of the "two-tiered wage system" that not only regulates the national minimum wage but also reduces workers' wages in by setting two wage levels; The floor wage and incentive or productivity wage. Worse yet, the wage system varies by province, city/town and based on the development of a region such as a region.growth corridor area and emerging growth area is further worsened than are applied to the system of slave wage.
According to the December 1, 2019 data, the minimum wage applied to CALABARZON in the non-agricultural sector was from Php317-400 and Php303-372 in the agricultural sector compared to the existing of Php500-537 in Metro Manila and Central Luzon Php393-400 (P339 in Aurora). But as far as in Metro Manila goes, the minimum wage goes down and wage rationalization also sets wage variations based on the categories of areas as growth corridor area (Php325-400), emerging growth area (Php317.50- 344) and resource based area (Php317-327). In Mimaropa, the prevailing wage is Php294-320. It lacks the basic financial support equivalent to the Php1,099 needed of a family of 6 members so they can eat 3 meals a day.
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By looking back at history and in seeing the ever continuing past, the laboring folk has a duty to enlight its fellow, unite, and to fight back for their rights. This celebration of labour is more than just recognising their hard work and creativity, but also to remember the hard earned struggles to defend and to fight further in this time of repression and injustice.
In fact, this celebration has contributed to the story of a struggle for nationhood as calls for independence and sovereignty been clamoured alongside higher wages and better working conditions. These calls may somehow continue to resonate as interest seeking compradores and despotic landlords alike continues to repress the folk while pretending they are all for prosperity and development, what more that with the present administration's fascistic agenda comes a myriad of threats, harassments, and outright arrests all because of a belief in national and social liberation.
With this, right is to say that the history of the Philippines also corresponds to history of class struggles.
And that through the working folk lies a nation's future. The working masses have no hope for the impoverished, neglected and murderous order. Thus it is necessary to rely on one's own strength and act for one's own class interests and to strengthen their ranks and collective struggle. It is only necessary for the workers and the masses to be more united, alert, and organized in order to have a strong and broad voice in launching militant actions to defend its rights and to assert justice both in the workplace and in the society.