Workers versus Heat: Demanding Hazard Pay for Health

Kiko, a platform rider, worker aged 42, lamented, “Summer in Manila has never been this hot.” With temperatures soaring to an off-the-charts 47 degrees Celsius, this past summer is not just a…


Why is essential domestic and care work so disregarded? (Part 1 of 3)

Every Filipino home has someone looking after the children’s needs, nursing an ill or elderly relative, doing the cooking, cleaning, and other usually undervalued but crucial activities needed for…


Ano’ng pwede natin gawin? AI is coming for your job

When the network giant GMA-7 presented to the public their newest sportscasters Marco and Maia, the Internet was all abuzz. Why? They look normal for sports reporters except for one thing—they are…


What does high food prices mean for Filipino working-class families?

Most Filipino workers, especially those in the informal sector, live on low-paying insecure jobs. So as food prices go up and wages remain low, more Filipino working-class families are unable to meet…


Wages and (₱)rice Control

Mainstream economists and opinion writers were quick to sense a boo-boo on the issuance by President Ferdinand Marcos, Jr. of Executive Order No. 39 which imposes mandatory caps or price ceilings on…


#SONA2023: Mataas pa rin ang presyo ng mga bilihin

“The state of the nation is sound, and is improving. Dumating na po ang Bagong Pilipinas,” declared Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr. in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA) on July 24, 2023.…


Gig delivery riders: Workers or independent contractors?

The Covid-19 pandemic saw the rise of digital platform workers who were mostly invisible in normal times. The new workers in the digital economic universe -- commonly called platform or gig economy…


The party-list system in the Philippines: Mangled and twisted beyond recognition

In the recently held Philippine national elections on 9 May 2022, a total of 55 party-list groups1 filled up 62 seats in the House of Representatives. Joining the party-list representatives are 253…


Nag-freelancer ka ba dahil sa pandemya? Pros & Cons

Katakot-takot na problema ang dinulot ng Covid-19 sa buong mundo, di lang sa Pinas. Dito, lubhang apektado ang lahat dahil sa iba’t ibang CQ (community quarantine) na bara-barang pinataw habang…


Araw ng Kagitingan: The untold story of resistance and bravery of the working people

For most Filipinos not aware of US objectives in the Pacific Rim, its return to reclaim the Philippines from Japanese occupation through excessive bombing was an acceptable price to pay for what was…