Opposition Senator Francis ‘’Kiko’’ Pangilinan on Friday, April 30, said Filipinos should honor the dignity of labor of Filipino workers not only in words but in deeds; not only once a year, but every day, pandemic or not.
“This Labor Day, let’s thank and honor all those who have kept our country running this year amid the coronavirus pandemic—medical frontliners, teachers, delivery drivers, security guards, food service workers, police, work-from-home staff, entertainers, and many more workers,’’ Pangilinan said as the country observes Labor Day tomorrow (May 1).
Excerpts of the statement of Pangilinan, president of the opposition Liberal Party (LP), follow:
- We recognize our overseas Filipino workers, who continue to brave the daily grind abroad for their families.
- With what probably is the most challenging health and economic crisis upon us, we have become more cognizant of the essential roles of our workers, whose daily toil and sacrifices are often unseen.
- The pathway to giving back is treating our workers with dignity, giving them decent wage, ensuring their protection in the workplace and alleviating the impacts of unemployment.
- We laud the recent decision of the Employees’ Compensation Commission to add Covid-19 in its list of occupational and work-related diseases. We hope this will be soon institutionalized in the employees’ compensation system, with streamlined processes, so that our workers who will fall ill in the line of duty will not have a hard time claiming their benefits.
- Our workers show up every day and put their lives at risk so that everyone else could stay home and be safe. They deserve the protection they need.