Most women are hired as casuals, underpaid workers

Most women are hired as laborers, unskilled and casual workers according to the labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) in response to the statement by the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) yesterday that female workers now command higher salaries than male workers using the recently-released study made by the Bureau of Labor and Empoyment statistics on employees in private establishments.

According to KMU Women's Department Secretary Nenita Gonzaga, in the private establishments, women are mostly hired as casuals and contractuals due to the massive labor flexibilization. Short-term, seasonal and casual women workers add up to 786,000 according to the same study while those employed by different employers or customers (from day to day basis or week to week basis) is 173,000.

In major occupation groups, 961,000 women were hired as laborers and unskilled workers while 741,000 women workers are service workers and shop and market sales workers who usually work long hours while being underpaid, "Only 4.7% of the total women employees in the private sector are corporate executives, managers, managing proprietors and supervisors while 8.8 % were professionals. These were the ones who can command high salaries."

Skilled women workers on the other hand, can be found in the manufacturing sector, as factory workers, sewers and assembly line workers in export processing zones and various enterprises. Many also seek employment in contact center and outsourcing companies. More often than not, professional Filipinas go abroad for whatever employment they can get, either as nurses, caregivers, hospital attendants and teachers. Those without enough educational background are forced to go abroad as entertainers and domestic helpers. Proof of which is the fact that almost 90% of the repatriated OFWs from Lebanon are Filipinas. If there are enough, sufficient-paying jobs available for Filipinas here, then they won't be forced to work like modern-day slaves' abroad."

The woman labor leader said that majority of women in the labor force are unpaid family workers in farmlands, plantations and haciendas. Others are employed in the service sector as sales clerks, cashiers, promo girls, as own account workers like vendors, sari-sari store sellers, AVON and Natasha dealers and the like. "Due to the severe unavailability of employment, women are forced to take on odd jobs as their source of income."

Gonzaga further explained that women and children populated even the recent increase in employment in agriculture as shown by the rise in unpaid family workers by 175,000. There are currently 3.9 million unpaid family workers which is 11.9 % of the total employment data.

Pakyawan, per piece

Many women workers are also not receiving the mandated minimum wage requirement as proven by the fact of 'pakyawan, per piece and other exploitative means of compensation. There are about 130,000 and 170,000 women workers compensated through 'pakyawan, per piece' respectively. Statistics in the male workers shows bleaker picture.