THE country’s worker sector yesterday expressed dissatisfaction over the creation of an inter-agency committee that will look into long-standing labor issues in the Philippines as recommended by the International Labor Organization (ILO) – High-Level Tripartite Mission (HLTM).
In a statement, the All Philippine Trade Union (APTU) said they are not satisfied over the issuance of Executive Order 23 as the body excludes representation from the workers and employers’ sectors.
“The Philippines is obliged to involve workers and employers in decision making, especially on issues that directly affect them, especially on matters pertaining to the resolution of long-standing cases of killings of trade unionists and other violations of freedom of association,” said APTU.
“The glaring absence of any worker and employer representation under the proposed interagency set-up already falls far short of the HLTM recommendations. It appears that the established presidential inter-agency committee on freedom of association does not align with what we envisioned,” it added.
The labor sector said this only shows how the Marcos administration, through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE), is “cherry picking” the ILO-HLTM’s recommendations.
“The government does not seem to take its responsibilities seriously and is not effectively addressing the problems at hand. The DOLE is cherry-picking the recommendations,” said APTU.
Given such a response, the labor groups warned that the Philippines may face serious consequences from the ILO.
