Labor center urges Arroyo government to act swiftly and decisively

THE Labor Center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) today urged government officials to concentrate on its efforts to counter the consequences of the on-going US recession to the Filipino workers instead of exaggerating on supposed expansion of the Philippine economy to 7.3% in 2007.

KMU Spokesperson Prestoline Suyat said that the announcement of the National Economic Development Authority (NEDA) yesterday that the economy grew by 7.3% in 2007 and the fastest growth in 31 years is something hard for the Filipino workers to swallow and to be jubilant in the process.

" We cannot feel the supposed sweet gains from this so called growth in the economy. Aside from meager salaries we receive from our employers and the rising prices of basic commodities , what we are presently bothered with are the negative impacts of the on-going US recession that will affect the jobs of our countrymen. What will happen now to the call center industry which employs thousands of Filipino workers and which is largely dependent to the US economy? What will happen to our export processing zones? We need significant actions from the Macapagal-Arroyo government and not cold statistics of supposed improvement in our lives," Suyat said.

Suyat registered that the feared loss of jobs from call center and export processing zones because of the US economy slump will add to the series of retrenchments that happened at the start of the new year which affected thousands of workers nationwide.

The labor leader cited the cases of the 800 employees of the Philippine Skyway Corp. (PSC) who were issued walking papers effective Jan. 31, the termination of services of about 500 workers at the banana plantation owned by Lapanday Foods Corporation in Hagonoy, Davao del Sur starting February and about 1,200 workers of Franklin Baker Dessicated Coconut Company who will become jobless as the 83-year old factory in San Pablo City will close down by the end of the year.

In addition, Suyat also expressed deep concern that the US recession will also displace thousands of Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs) in the United States.

" With thousands of our countrymen from the United States who will be forced to return home and will eventually add to the thousands of workers retrenched plus the millions of Filipinos who are desperately seeking jobs in our country, we will have a a worse and terrible unemployment crisis. The Macapagal-Arroyo must prepare for this and act swiftly and decisively," Suyat stressed.

The United States' Commerce Department reported that the US economy nearly stalled in the fourth quarter of 2007 with a growth rate of just 0.6 percent, capping its worst year since 2002.