Report on contractualization

CHEERS TO the Philippine Daily Inquirer for its Labor Day special report addressing the plight of the Filipino worker.

In “Worker hired, fired every 5 months,” the first of a two-part series published on May 1, the Inquirer looked into the prevalence of contractualization in the country which deprives workers of their right to employment security. The scheme, according to the Inquirer, allows employers to hire workers within a five-month timeframe, only to be fired at the end of that period so they won’t have to be hired as regular employees. 

The report pointed out how companies make “immense profits” from the scheme while workers only receive “minimum mandatory benefits.”

It also revealed the growing number of non-regular workers, the labor surplus which “assures” companies of easily finding “new and willing contractual workers,” and the need for unions to fight for the regularization of workers.

“The ‘informalization’ of Philippine workers,” the second part of the series published on May 2, focused on the plight of those who work for the informal sector where they don’t get to sign contracts and receive social and health benefits. The report mentioned the risks that informal workers face and cited the government’s efforts to help and protect them.

The report also gave suggestions on how to create an “enabling environment” for workers.