Today, Filipino workers mark World Day for Decent Work amidst corruption scandals in government and continuing serious violations of workers’ labor and human rights. We join the Filipino workers and people in protesting widespread corruption in government and in fighting for workers’ rights.

Corruption hinders the government from protecting workers’ rights. It takes away funds from labor inspection, which should ensure that labor standards are observed in workplaces. It steals money from the judiciary, which should ensure that cases of violations of workers’ rights are promptly resolved.

Violation of workers’ rights enables government corruption. A living wage, regular employment and union participation will enable workers’ active democratic participation. These will empower workers to vote wisely, guard against corruption, and push for transparency and accountability in how politicians handle public funds.

We call on the Filipino workers and people to continue being vigilant towards the corruption cases that are being exposed in the media. We demand that the Ferdinand Marcos Jr government carry out a fair and impartial investigation into the corruption cases and hold those guilty accountable.

We support national labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU, May First Movement) and other labor groups in working with the Makabayang Koalisyon ng mga Mamamayan (Makabayan) bloc in Congress to file proposed laws that aim to further safeguard workers’ rights.

The bills on Anti-Union Interference, amendments to the Occupational Health and Safety (OSH) Law, and the repeal of the Labor Secretary’s power to assume jurisdiction over labor disputes are welcome legislative efforts. They will help compel the government and employers to uphold workers’ rights to freedom of association, to strike, and to a safe and healthy workplace.

These bills are made urgent by cases of rights violations that continue to pile up to this day. The National Task Force to End Local Communist Armed Conflict’s (NTF-ELCAC) disaffiliation campaign among union members and unions makes the Anti-Union Interference Bill, and the agency’s abolition, urgentBusiness process outsourcing (BPO) companies in Cebu that were exposed to have been lacking a disaster preparedness plan when the September 30 earthquake hit make amendments to the existing OSH Law urgent. Recent labor disputes, such as that in electronics giant Nexperia Philippines, make the junking of the Labor Secretary’s assumption of jurisdiction power urgent.

The current situation of Filipino workers is captured by the theme chosen by the International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC), the biggest labor alliance in the globe, for this year’s World Day of Decent Work: a “democracy that delivers decent work, and urgent action to stop the corporate capture of public policy.”