Sajahatra!

Manila, Philippines – SOMETHING remarkable happened last week but may have escaped the attention of many Filipinos. Last week, for the first time in history, the country’s highest official set foot in Camp Darapanan in the town of Sultan Kudarat, Maguindanao province to personally download vital socio-economic dividends to combatants and families of the Moro Islamic Liberation... 

Seafarer’s story

Manila, Philippines – 8 AM, March 29, 2010. 31-year old Gerald Gonzales of Iloilo City had only three hours of sleep when the fire alarm sounded. The lone Filipino in a crew of 23 seafarers aboard cargo ship Iceberg 1, Gonzales dragged himself out of bed still dreaming about finally coming home. He was literally counting the days till the end of his contract on April 12, 2010. Incoming... 

Boy’s life

Manila, Philippines – THIS is my ode to the Philippine Ambassador to Iraq Reynaldo “Boy“ Parungao who recently died of cancer and its myriad complications. He was known in labor circles as a true-blue, original Ople boy: good-natured, jolly, and loyal to his boss, then labor secretary Blas Ople. I was still a kid when a batch of new recruits mainly from various law schools helped... 

Labor matters

Manila, Philippines – LABOR attachés and welfare attachés from all over the world gathered for a year-endassessment and planning conference last December at the Taal Vista Hotel in Tagaytay City. Former dean of the Asian Institute of Management and labor secretary Nieves Confesor and Professor Ponch Macaranas served as facilitators of the two-day event.  Read More »

Job principles

Manila, Philippines – YOUR first job shapes you. You come in, timid and careful, soaking the environment in while wanting to blend with the wall. Days and weeks after, you passed the first hurdle, a simple task, and made contact with your first-to-be friend and confidante. Life proceeds from there, and your first job becomes a process of self-discovery like no other. Incoming search... 

Be content

Manila, Philippines – AS you read this on a glorious Sunday, note that the world has not ended contrary to the doomsday interpretation of the Mayan calendar. Imagine that to be the worse scenario for 2012: that you and I no longer exist, and there are no Sundays to speak of. It didn’t happen. Isn’t that enough reason to celebrate the coming of a New Year?  Read More »

OFW Christmas

Manila, Philippines – THE Christmas season is a playground of emotions. Once the “-ber” months dominate one’s desk calendar, the percentage of yearning rises despite stagnant incomes pending the release of the most beloved Christmas bonus. Can you imagine if your parents named you “Bonus”? You’d be the most in demand employee come Christmas time! Oh, but I digress. Incoming... 

Modern slavery

Manila, Philippines – WHAT is the difference between forced labor and human slavery? Forced labor and slavery is defined by the Anti-Trafficking Act of 2003 as the extraction of work or services from a person by means of enticement, violence, intimidation or threat, use of force or coercion, including deprivation of freedom, abuse of authority or moral ascendancy, debt bondage or... 

Joselito Zapanta

Manila, Philippines – WHAT would you do if you have only four months to raise R40-million to save your son from execution? It sounds like a plot of a suspense movie but unfortunately, the premise is real and the person involved is an overseas Filipino worker now on Saudi Arabia’s death row. Incoming search terms:joselito zapanta case (153)joselito zapanta story (62)joselito... 

OFW stories

Manila, Philippines – AS a labor advocate and writer, I come across different sets of people everyday. Every working morning is different because the people who come to the Blas F. Ople Policy Center where I work bring a variety of concerns, some unimaginable even to a writer like myself. Incoming search terms:ofw stories (51)life of an ofw (1)ofw story (1)story of ofw (1) Read More »