CBCP Labor Day messsage appeals to government, business owners to show compassion for displaced workers
By Leslie Ann G. Aquino
The social action arm of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) paid tribute to the country's workers on Friday, May 1, Labor Day.
(MANILA BULLETIN)
The CBCP National Secretariat for Social Action Justice & Peace (NASSA) thanked Filipino workers for the "great service and dedication" they have always given to the country and the world.
And with millions of workers displaced by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, CBCP-NASSA said this year’s Labor Day has become another frustrating commemoration for workers.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed even more the unjust treatment of Filipino workers, and our inability to effectively come to their cause. For only a span of one month, over two million workers have been displaced, with no assurance of getting back to work when the crisis is over," Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo, NASSA/Caritas Philippines national director, said in a statement.
"While we recognize and appreciate the efforts of the government to provide relief packages to our workers at this time, we also see that these are fill-gap measures only and provides no actual solutions to our labor problems," he added.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had earlier stopped accepting applications for the one-time P5,000 financial assistance under the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP), saying that its funding is very close to depletion.
Bagaforo appealed to government and business owners to show compassion for workers during this difficult time.
NASSA/Caritas Philippines then backed the call of labor groups for the government and business conglomerates to:
-Implement just policies and inclusive compensation packages (10,000 pesos or minimum pay every month during the quarantine period) particularly for informal workers.
-Ensure safety, provision of equipment, transportation, temporary shelter, full meals, and hazard pay to medical workers, including the Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) and Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNS).
-Guarantee emergency employment assistance to stranded Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
(MANILA BULLETIN)
The CBCP National Secretariat for Social Action Justice & Peace (NASSA) thanked Filipino workers for the "great service and dedication" they have always given to the country and the world.
And with millions of workers displaced by the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, CBCP-NASSA said this year’s Labor Day has become another frustrating commemoration for workers.
“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed even more the unjust treatment of Filipino workers, and our inability to effectively come to their cause. For only a span of one month, over two million workers have been displaced, with no assurance of getting back to work when the crisis is over," Bishop Jose Colin Bagaforo, NASSA/Caritas Philippines national director, said in a statement.
"While we recognize and appreciate the efforts of the government to provide relief packages to our workers at this time, we also see that these are fill-gap measures only and provides no actual solutions to our labor problems," he added.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had earlier stopped accepting applications for the one-time P5,000 financial assistance under the COVID-19 Adjustment Measures Program (CAMP), saying that its funding is very close to depletion.
Bagaforo appealed to government and business owners to show compassion for workers during this difficult time.
NASSA/Caritas Philippines then backed the call of labor groups for the government and business conglomerates to:
-Implement just policies and inclusive compensation packages (10,000 pesos or minimum pay every month during the quarantine period) particularly for informal workers.
-Ensure safety, provision of equipment, transportation, temporary shelter, full meals, and hazard pay to medical workers, including the Barangay Health Workers (BHWs) and Barangay Nutrition Scholars (BNS).
-Guarantee emergency employment assistance to stranded Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).