(690397859) precarious-work-edralin-2013.docx

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CBRDCenter for Business Research & Development

Working Paper 2013-01

Precarious Work:TheUnionized Hotels

Workers’Experience

Prof. Divina M. Edralin,

D.M.

June

2013


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CBRDWorkingPaper

2013-01

Center for Business Research & Development

Precarious work: The

unionizedhotels workers’ experience

Prof Divina ! "dralin# D!De La Salle Univeri!"

June 2013

#$e %&'D Working Paper Serie (on!i!u!e !udie !$a! arepreli)inar" and u*+e(! !o fur!$er reviion. #$e" are *eing(ir(ula!ed in a li)i!ed nu)*er of (opie onl" for purpoe of oli(i!ing (o))en! and ugge!ion for fur!$er rene)en!. #$e!udie under !$e Serie are unedi!ed and unrevieed. #$e vie andopinion epreed are !$oe of !$e au!$or and do no! ne(earil"re/e(! !$oe of !$e %en!er. o! for uo!a!ion i!$ou! per)iion fro)!$e au!$or and !$e %en!er.


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4 2013 DLSU-%&'D


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1

Precarious work: The unionized hotels workers’ experience

Abstract

Precarious work refers to “forms of work characterized by atypical employment contracts,

limited or no social benefits and statutory entitlements, hih derees of !ob insecurities, low !obtenure, low waes and hih risks of occupational in!ury and diseases" #$%ans and &ibb, '(()*+rom a workers- point of %iew, it is related to uncertain, unpredictable and risky employment+

.his study aims to determine the employment practices that are often associated with precariouswork in the hotel industry in the Philippines, to determine the factors that dri%e hotels to resort to precarious work practices+ /t also aims to identify strateies that can be taken by unions,employers, o%ernment, and the /0 to combat precarious work practices+

.o achie%e these ob!ecti%es, a sur%ey was conducted in 11 unionized hotel establishmentsaffiliated with the 2ational 3nion of 4orkers in 5otel Restaurant and Allied /ndustries

#2345RA/26 /3* in the Philippines+ f the 11 participatin hotels, eiht are located in 7etro7anila and four are operatin in the pro%inces+ A total of 89 %alid responses from super%isoryand rank6and6file employees- union officers and members were used for the data analysis+

.he most common practices associated with precarious work in the participatin hotels are thefollowin: hirin of labor %ia employment aencies or labor brokers #; on6call ? daily ? per function hirin #')+1(=*> contractin out functions ? tasks to other companies #'disuised employment trainin contracts #''+;=*> and limited employment to less than si@months #'1+8=*+ .he unionists belie%e that these practices ha%e resulted into the declinin li%instandards of the workers and it is contributin to the risin po%erty in the country+

.he top reasons why hotels resort to precarious work practices, accordin to trade unionrespondents, are as follows: lower e@penses or costs for salaries and benefits #8(=*> reducenumber of reular workers #8=*> promote fle@ibility of labor #=*> weaken union or pre%entunionization #9=*> and eliminate or reduce cost of dismissal or payment of retirement benefits#9=*+

&i%en the pre%alence of precarious work in the hotel industry, trade unionists see the need tolobby for chanes in laws to promote !ob security #=*, to recruit or oranize precariousworkers into unions #=*, and to include contract workers in collecti%e baraininarranements #


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“Work is a good belonging to all people and must be made available to all whoare capable of engaging in it.” (PCJP, !!"#

Background of the study

4ork is an essential human acti%ity in society+ /t transforms people, sustainsoranizations, and empowers nations+ 4ork i%es meanin and is an e@pression of ones feelins,thouhts, and full humanity+ /t is a source of self6esteem, self6actualization, and security+ 4ork isalso a source of li%elihood for a decent life+ “4ork is a fundamental riht and a ood for mankind, a useful ood, worthy of man because it is an appropriate way for him to i%ee@pression to and enhance his human dinity" #Pontifical Council for ustice and Peace, '((9, p+18(*+ 4ork, for so lon in the past, has meant as stable, full6time !ob, representin substantial proress o%er an earlier ae when labor was treated little differently to products #$%ans E &ibb,'(()*+

Rooted on the principles of human dinity and the riht to work is the “Decent 4ork Aenda" which was introduced in 1))) by uan Fomo%ia, the lon6ser%in Director6&eneral of the /nternational 0abour ffice+ Decent work embodies the principles of workers- rihts, social protection, employment promotion, and social dialoue+ .he principle of the workers’ rights isto ensure that work is associated with dinity, euality, freedom, adeuate remuneration, socialsecurity, and %oice for representation and participation for all cateories of workers+ .he principle of social protection is aimed to pro%ide security aainst a %ariety of continencies and%ulnerabilities to reduce sufferin, an@iety, insecurity, and material depri%ation+ .he principle of employment promotion is to pro%ide adeuate employment opportunities for all who seek work and work should yield remuneration that meets the essential needs of the workers and the familymembers+ .he principle of social dialogue is to pro%ide %oice and representation to participantsin the production process+ /t means they should be able to defend their interests, to articulate their

concerns and priorities, and to enae in neotiations and discussions with other actors in the production system and with the public authorities on social and economic policies+

Decent work therefore, “emphasizes the importance of work in people-s li%es,independence and dinity+ /t i%es eual reconition to all workers and underlines work as thesource of %alue creation, re!ectin ideoloical and class6based concepts like entrepreneurship,where the rich sinle out a specific form of work as superior to others, and implicitly diminishthe contribution of teachers, desiners, and carei%ers to wealth creation"#5offer,'(1',p+;69*+Decent work which emphasizes uality employment creates social %alue for the common anddinity of persons reardless of reliion, race, ender, and ae+ /t means it includes the “millionsof workers outside the formal economy and demands decent li%in conditions for all who work,

as well as for those who should not work or who cannot find adeuate work #5offer, '(1', p+9*+Decent work is not only bein paid the minimum wae for work done in a day+ Althouh,accordin to the &lobal 4ae Report of '(1(, de%elopin countries are now increasinly relyinon minimum waes, and o%erall, minimum waes are applied in about )( per cent of countries inthe world+

5owe%er, in the past decades, the traditional work process and the standard employmentmodel #a worker with one employer, worked full year and full6time without a pre6determined end


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date, mostly on employer premises, and was entitled to benefits i%en by the employer or throuh the social security system* ha%e been chanin in a number of %ital ways #$%ans E&ibb, '(()*+ Partly, this is due to lobalization, intensified lobal competition, technoloicalchane, and corporate restructurin #$%ans E &ibb, '(()*+ 7oreo%er, lobalization as a“mo%ement across boundaries has brouht new efficiencies and %ast new markets for business

but it has also e@acerbated ineualities and lessened the power of states to control business for the common ood" #4illiams,'(1;*+ /t seems that lobalization, increasin dereulation of labor market, stiffenin of competition, as well as the lobal financial, economic, and social crises thatwe ha%e been e@periencin since '(( has brouht about worldwide, the nosedi%e in theobser%ance of decent work but the re6emerence and continuous rowth of precariousemployment o%er the years+ Recent data on the incidence of precarious employment in ad%ancedecomomies is shown below+

Source: /nternational /nstitute for 0abor Ftudies 4orld of 4ork Report '(1'

Figure 1 !ncidence of precarious employment" ad#anced economies" $%%& and $%1%

Panel ' !n#oluntary part(time employment )percentage of part(time employment*


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+ote: &rey bar denotes countries where employment rate increasedSource: /nternational /nstitute for 0abor Ftudies 4orld of 4ork Report '(1'

Accordin to $%ans and &ibb #'(()*, precarious work refers to “forms of work characterized by atypical employment contracts, limited or no social benefits and statutoryentitlements, hih derees of !ob insecurities, low !ob tenure, low waes and hih risks of occupational in!ury and diseases+" rom a workers- point of %iew, it is related to uncertain,unpredictable and risky employment+ .he main dri%ers of precarious work are: #1* “low road"approaches to competition whereby cost6cuttin is achie%ed at the e@pense of product and the !obuality, waes and a clean en%ironment> #'* new forms of subcontractin and outsourcin,

facilitated by fallin costs of coordination and transportation afforded by new information andcommunication technoloies> and #;* new manaement and contractual forms, which loosen thetraditional ties between workers and employers, as indicated by the increase in low wae !obs,temporary employment and self6employment, often takin the form of disuised employment#$%ans E &ibb, '(()*+

Corollarily, /0 #'((* stated that precarious work is characterized by a combination of factors such as: #1* a limited duration or a hih probability of the worker-s losin the !ob> #'*little or no opportunity for workers to control the workin conditions> #;* absence of benefits or social security pro%isions> and #9* a low income in tandem with po%erty+

.he rapid increase in precarious work is bein dri%en both by corporations ando%ernments+ Across the world, national labor laws are bein amended to better enableemployers to create yet more precarious !obs at the e@pense of stable employment+ /n '((, theAustralian o%ernment introduced new labor laws that immediately pluned millions of workersinto precarious employment by takin away their riht to protection from unfair dismissal+ .helaws also encourae contract and temporary work #7etal 4orld, '((*+ 2ow the $uropean3nion has launched a consultation paper promotin Gfle@icurity-, the idea that employmentrowth is stimulated when employment protections such as unfair dismissal laws are reduced and

Panel B !n#oluntary temporary employment )percentage of temporary employment*


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casual employment is increased+ 3H affiliate Amicus has responded by pointin out the neati%eimpact that Britain-s weak labor laws ha%e had on manufacturin !obs+ &eneral Fecretary Derek Fimpson says that, “well paid secure !obs can only be protected by striner employment lawsthan we currently ha%e in the 3H #7etal 4orld, '((*+

/t is interestin to note that worldwide, women are more often in precarious work situations than men, who are more likely to be in permanent, full6time, reular and better6paid !obs as shown in iure '+ As pointed out by Burrow #'(1'*, precarious employment as work that is not permanent, indirect, informal and?or otherwise insecure+ $@amples are casual,temporary, part6time, or fi@ed6term contract workers+ /ts increased usae by employers isintended to ma@imize short6term profitability and fle@ibility at the e@pense of the worker+

Figure $ ,mployed persons in #ulnera-le employment -y region and sex" $%%. ( $%%&

+ote: 3nweihted a%eraes> the numbers in brackets indicate the number of countries a%eraed+ .his a%erae for $astern Asia does not include China+ 4estern Asia e@cludes Armenia, Azerbai!an and &eoria> C/F in Asia

Source: Bureau of 0abor and $mployment Ftatistics 0ABF.A. 3pdates 1#;1* '(1'


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Precarious work practices of selected countries

Below are some actual precarious work practices of selected countries with ad%anceeconomies which were taken from the research of $%ans and &ibb #'(()* entitled, “Moving from precarious employment to decent work.”

/anada

Part time, contract and temporary work as well as self6employment, nowcorresponds to around one6third of the Canadian workforce nationally+ .hismeans that in Canada, about a third of the workforce enaes in Gnon6standard-work, “that de%iates from the standard full6time, permanent employment contactin a sinle employer+"

or contract and aency workers in particular, often the same work is beincompleted as permanent workers but for less pay+ /mportantly, contract workersare only paid while on assinment, it is often difficult to maintain sufficienthours in order to earn a li%in wae+ 7any temporary workers are classified asself6employed workers or independent contractors for the purposes of labor and

employment rihts, benefits and protections+

0S'

.he 3F &o%ernment Accountability ffice #&A* has reported that the number of Gcontinent- workers who are independent contractors, temporary workers,subcontracted and leased workers and part6time workers stood at appro@imately;1= of the total workforce+ .he &A also reported that the absolute number of workers in these cateories increased by three million #to 9'+ million workers* between 1))< and '((< while their percentae of the total workforce remainedstable+ .his means that continent work continued to row steadily alon6sidethe rest of the economy+

7any more firms in the 3F than some other de%eloped countries took the Glowroad- stratey of reducin labor costs throuh continent work arranements+Fome firms ha%e adopted a combination of strateies for different kinds of workers+ GCore periphery- or Gfle@ible firms- use continent workers to buffer their most %aluable, core workers from fluctuations in supply and demand+ .heemployer6based system of social protection has clearly facilitated thesee@ceptional characteristics+ An additional peculiar feature in the 3F is the “reatlimits on probability of key social protection across !obs and employers+"

1apan

Fimilar to other countries, apan started to see Gnonstandard- employment buildin the (s then rise rapidly in the )(s+ .he rise of precarious work in apan has

particularly se%ere ender, ineuality and broader social implications+

/n addition to a broad conte@t of dereulation, apanese companies ha%e builtand acted on an e@plicit stratey of creatin different employment statuses+ .heapan ederation of $mployers- Association, or 2ikkeiren, has popularized thenotion of a Gmulti6track personnel system-+ .here are three main tracksarticulated: “1* a core or Gelite- roup of lon6term employees> #'* a peripheralroup for simple routine tasks+" > and the third roup is described as a Gfle@ible-workforce and corresponds to the rise in non6reular employment in apan+ .hespread of this multi6track model has recei%ed continuous support from the


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apanese Business ederation I 2ippon Heidanren I and apanese employersha%e “steadily pursued this initiati%e+"

Part6time workers are by far the larest numerical roup within the non6reular cateory+ .hey make up rouhly three6uarters of the non6reular roup+ .hea%erae hourly wae of part6time workers is 9(= of what reular workers make+7any of these workers are women, youn people, and older workers+

.emporary work in apan is endered to an e%en reater deree than part6timework+ 4omen make up more than 8(= of temporary staff+ #&ottfried '((8:18*+apan stands alone in the $CD by the total absence of any e@plicit articulationsof eual treatment pro%isions for temporary workers+

Precarious work practices of global companies

Below are some actual precarious work practices of lobal companies who claim to bemodel employers and socially responsible companies+

/oca(/ola in /olom-ia

Coca6Cola in Colombia was once known for hirin paramilitaries to kill their union leaders+ 2ow Coca6Cola is takin a different approach to destroyin theunion by indirectly contractin out the ma!ority of its workforce+ A uly '((8/0 mission to in%estiate labor relations and workin conditions at Coca6Cola bottlin plants found a clear difference between the employers- relationship andtreatment of directly employed workers as compared to outsourced workers+ /none Boota plant, (= of the operatin staff and 8


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recei%e double for o%ertime?holiday work, aency workers simply recei%e the basic hourly wae+ rom one week to the ne@t, they not know their assinmentor work schedules I or whether they will ha%e work #/nternational 0abor Rihtsorum, n+d+*+

+estl4 Philippines

At 2estlK Philippines labor hire aencies are used for almost all positions, bothin production and sales force offices+ 4orkers contracted throuh labor hirinaencies are assined to all types of positions normally filled by reular workers, and a substantial proportion of the workforce is now recruited andemployed in this way+ .hese workers are not allowed for work for more thanfi%e months I otherwise they may become reulars because of the pro%isions of the labor law and they are ne%er recalled e%en if they had performede@ceptionally well simply because they would accumulate the number of months #6month period* reuired by law to become permanent+ .hese contractworkers #whose pay is considerably less that that of permanent workers* arereplaced with new workers who ha%e ne%er been hired in any 2estlKworksite #/3,'(1;*+

0nile#er in Pakistan

Corporations can of course completely e%ade employer responsibility by 1((=outsourcin+ /n '((8, the 4orld ood Proramme announced “a !oint %enturewith the employees of industrial iant 3nile%er to help combat child huner inPakistan+" Part of this scheme in%ol%ed the promotion of 3nile%er-s brandedBlue Band mararine throuh the school system+

3nile%er thus recei%es promotion from the 32 for a product which it does notmanufacture and for whose industrial relations it denies all responsibility+ /n'((9, 3nile%er Pakistan sold its Dalda brand plant in Harachi to a roup of former company manaers, who incorporated as Dalda oods #P%t+* 0imited+

Dalma makes Blue Brand #and other trademark products* under license from3nile%er+

At Dalda oods factory, which employs


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$ brief on precarious work in the Philippines

.he Department of 0abor and $mployment defines employees in precarious work arethose that “relates to wae and salary workers in any work arranements, that differ from thecommonly percei%ed norm of “full6time protected reular wae and salary employment", such as

short6term, casual and low payin !obs that do not pro%ide the usual non6wae benefits andsocial security normally found in reular employment contracts+ Data in iure ; show thatemployees in precarious work in percentae of total employment from 1))< to '(11 a%eraed1;+8;= in an increasin trend+ /n .able 1, data re%eal that by type of non6reular employment,there are more hire contractual, followed by casuals, and then part6time+

Figure 5 ,mployees in Precarious 3ork )6 of total employment*

Source: Bureau of 0abor and $mployment Ftatistics 0ABF.A. 3pdates 1#;1* #'(1'*+

Ta-le 1 Types of non(regular employment in the Philippines as 6 of total employment )1787(177&*9ear Part(time /asual /ontractual Totals

1)8) 1+; 9+1 8+; 1;+

1))( 1+B ;+ 8+' 1;+<

1))1 1+< 9+1 +( 1'+B1))' 1+< 9+1 1(+( 1


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-;ecti#es of the Study

7ost of the data on precarious work that are found in the /0 publications are on $CDcountries, Africa, and 0atin America, re%ealin little knowlede comin from transitional

economies in Asia, such as the Philippines+ /t is with the aim to acuire more information andcontribute to the body of knowlede on precarious employment that this paper in%estiated thisre6emerin old phenomenon that is seriously affectin the hotel industry in the Philippines+Fpecifically, the ob!ecti%es of the study are focused on the followin:

1+ .o determine the employment practices that are often associated with precarious work inthe hotel industry>

'+ .o know the factors that dri%e the hotels to resort to precarious work practices>

;+ .o describe the impact of precarious work on the followin:

;+1 4omen workers;+' 4orkplace health and safety;+; 3nion as an oranization;+9 Fustainable de%elopment

9+ .o identify strateies or courses of action that can be taken by the followinstakeholders to combat precarious work practices:9+1 3nions9+' $mployers9+; &o%ernment9+9 /nternational 0abour ranization #/0*

Framework

.he framework shows the concept of precarious work, the factors that dri%e the hotelmanaement to resort into this %ulnerable work arranement, and the stakeholders that can dosomethin to combat this enemy of decent work are hihlihted in iure 9+


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Figure . perational framework on precarious work


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A content analysis of o%ernment publications such as the B0$F6D0$ and 2F datawere also utilized to secure a brief profile on the e@tent of precarious employment at the industryle%el+

Findings

$ %rief on the &otel 'ndustr

/n eneral, hotels offer two ma!or types of ser%ices: #a* accommodation and #b* dininser%ices+ Based on the uality and e@tent of ser%ices pro%ided, location, bedroom, frontoffice?reception, food and be%erae, eneral facilities #ser%ice and staff*, and special facilities#i+e+, business center, limousine ser%ices and airport transfers*+ 5otels are further classified asDelu@e, irst Class, Ftandard, and $conomy by the Department of .ourism #D.*+ 5otel uestscan e@pect a room with pri%ate bath, telephone, radio, and tele%ision, in addition to suchcustomer ser%ices such as laundry, %alet, cleanin and pressin+ Aside from the ser%ices

mentioned, hotels ha%e other facilities: function rooms, ballrooms, health spas, coffee shops,dinin rooms, cocktail lounes or niht clubs, ift shops or newsstand6tobacco counters, and business centers for social occasions, health buffs, and business conferences+ Customers of theindustry include the domestic household, forein %isitors and institutional buyers #$dralin andCastillo, '((1*+

5otels are the most popular source of accommodation for about (= of forein %isitors+.otal %isitor arri%al to the Philippines in '(1' reached a total of 9,'',81+ A tourist spent ana%erae of about )( 3F dollars per day+ f this amount, more than ;;= is accounted for byaccommodations, ';= consumed for food and be%erae and '1 = for shoppin #7itra andli%eros, '(1'*+ /nstitutional buyers often patronize the restaurant ser%ices offered by the hotelsub6sector in promotin their products, trainin their employees, and holdin companyatherins+ /n response to the rowin demand for hotel accommodations, the past yearswitnessed the steady e@pansion of e%ery sement of the hotel industry #$dralin and Castillo,'((1*+

/n '(1', there are ,8; hotel establishments in the country+ Amon these, there are ;9D. accredited hotels, with a total of


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on occupancy rates, howe%er, the 7andarin riental, the 7akati Fhanrila and the 7anilaDiamond 5otel topped the D. accredited delu@e hotels cateory for the period anuary to April'((( with occupancy rates of 81+


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+ote: Details may not add up to totals due to roundin of fiures+Source: Bureau of 0abor and $mployment Ftatistics, '(()?'(1( B0$F /nterated Fur%ey #B/.F*+

Ta-le @ +um-er of hotel and restaurants engaged in Su-contracting with $% or


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5ousekeepin Department they employ roomboys and cleaners?!anitors+ /n the $nineerinDepartment they contract out electricians and enineers+ /n a lesser deree the other departmentsthat are also affected are 0aundry, &eneral Fer%ices, Administration, and Accountin+

Ta-le & Factors?causes for hotels to resort to precarious work practices=easons Percentage

0ower e@penses or costs for salaries and benefits 8(Reduce number of reular workers or pre%ent reularization 8

Promote fle@ibility of labor

4eaken union or pre%ent unionization 9

$liminate or reduce cost of dismissal or retirement benefits payment ;

5ih unemployment and?or surplus of labor ;

Allows employer to e%ade responsibility to workers '

7ake dismissal?lay off of workers easier '

0abor laws encourae contract and?or temporary work 1

.here are a number of reasons why hotels resort to precarious work practices accordinto the trade unionists- respondents+ .he top fi%e factors are: #1* lower e@penses or costs for

salaries and benefits #8(=*> #'* reduce number of reular workers or pre%ent reularizationweaken union or pre%ent unionization #8=*> #;* promote fle@ibility of labor #=*> #9* weakenunion or pre%ent unionization #9=*> and #


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Ta-le 7 ,ffects of precarious work on women workers3omen 3orkers Percentage

7inimizes or pre%ents reularization B)

Discouraes union membership and?or denies union representation B

7inimal, or denial, or non6impro%ement, of benefits B9

0ower waes and salaries or compensation B;

osters discrimination B1

.he unionists percei%ed that the re6emerin precarious work arranements are unfair notonly to women workers but to all workers+ irst, they are pre%ented from becomin reular employees and as such they cannot become union member and denies them of unionrepresentation+ Fince they are not reular employees, they recei%e lower waes and they are notentitled to benefits+ /f they are breadwinners, their salaries are not enouh to fend for their familyneeds and e%en for themsel%es+ But it seems that they forced to enae in this non6standard work schemes due to the uncertainty about the future of employment and earnins, limited work opportunities and the stiff competition to find work in the hotel industry+ /t is better for them toha%e meaer income, than ha%in nothin at all+ /n such case, women workers who are e@posedto low and unstable income, also suffer reatly durin economic downturns+ Fince they are notreular employees, they are the first to o, when labor downsizin is implemented by the hotelmanaement+

Ta-le 1% ,ffects of precarious work on the 3orkplace >ealth and Safety3orkplace >ealth and Safety Percentage

.endency to ha%e multiple !obs in multiple sites ;

Assined to irreular or %ery limited hours of work> and?or lon work shifts?work days or work weeks

'

Reuired to do dirty, danerous, dull, and?or lowest payin !obs 1

0ess or no health and safety euipment, benefits, or social security BB

Ftressful psychosocial workin conditions B;

.he unionists obser%ed that precarious work practices create the “tendency to ha%emultiple !obs in multiple sites" in the hotel+ /t means that the !ob description of a hotel worker has e@panded and this has to be done in more than one outlet in the establishment+ .he workersare now pressured to toil faster but efficiently and accurately+ /t means no customer complaintsand hiher re%enues as reflected inconstant hih room occupancy and food consumption in thefood outlets and room ser%ice orders+ .he contractual or temporary workers are “assined toirreular or %ery limited hours of work and?or lon work shifts?work days or work weeks" whichthe reular workers are seldom assined to+ 4hat is more demeanin is the reality that precariousworkers are “reuired to do dirty, danerous, dull, and?or lowest payin !obs+" .hey ha%e nooption but to follow or else they will lose their !ob+

Ta-le 11 ,ffects of precarious work on Sustaina-le Ce#elopment

Sustaina-le Ce#elopment Percentage

Declinin li%in standards and risin po%erty

Reduced or no purchasin power which can help stimulate economy ;

0ower or no income?other ta@ collections, and o%ernment re%enues '

5ih unemployment, underemployment and !ob instability (

/ncreased o%ernment e@penditures for health and social costs and ser%ices B8


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.he unionists belie%e that precarious employment has primarily resulted in the declininli%in standards of the workers and it is contributin to the risin po%erty in the country+ 4henworkers ha%e small and less income, which is e%en below the minimum wae, they are not ableto afford e%en the minimum reuirements of uality li%in which includes decent shelter,clothin, to eat three times a day, access to ood education, pri%ate health care> and simple

recreation+ n a macro le%el, lower or no income means no ta@ collections and re%enue for theo%ernment which is used to finance o%ernment e@penditures for education, health, social protection, and other social ser%ices necessary to keep a stable and afloat economy+ .herefore, precarious work creates insecurity and leads to increases in ineuality and po%erty+

Ta-le 1$ 'ction that can -e taken -y the unions to address?com-at precarious work 0nions Percentage

0obby for new or chanes in laws to promote !ob security

Recruit or oranize precarious workers into unions B

/nclude contract workers in collecti%e barainin arranements <

2eotiate for the same waes, workin conditions,, benefits and !ob stability for precarious workers

9

Demand that employers- reduce or eliminate the use of contract labor and other forms of precarious work

9

.he trade unionists stronly belie%e that what they can do as a labor roup as a priority isto “lobby for new or chanes in laws to promote !ob security" #=*+ .hey should also “recruitor oranize precarious workers into unions" #=* and “include contract workers in collecti%e barainin arranements" #


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implementation role is to “enforce labor laws and reulations, as well as “promote security of tenure of workers+"

Ta-le 1@ 'ction that can -e taken -y the !2 to address?com-at precarious work !nternational 2a-or rganization )!2*

&lobal campains to end precarious work and promote decent !obs 8

De%elop suitable /0 con%entions to limit, restrict and reduce resort to precariousforms of employment

8

.here are only two strateies that the unionists can think of as far as the /0 isconcerned+ irst, is strenthen their “lobal campains to end precarious work and promotedecent !obs" and de%elop “suitable /0 con%entions to limit restrict and reduce resort to precarious forms of employment+" /t entails that the Decent 4ork Aenda which was introduced by uan Femo%ia in 1))) to refocus the /0 and make it rele%ant for the '1

stcentury+ /ts role in

the workplace should be pushed and supported by the tripartite bodies+

/onclusion

“irst, the business must not be sinle6mindedly focused on its own profits, but mustha%e a bier purpose that includes takin on some of the problems of the wider society+Ad%ancin the common ood implies tappin into the shared concerns and purpose espoused bymost, such thins as impro%in health, preser%in the en%ironment, enhancin education and, ineneral, impro%in the uality of life+ A careful e@amination re%eals that some companies ne%er realize these %alues in practice+ /t is not enouh to ha%e a lofty philosophy of the oranization, but rather, a company must also ha%e business plans with timeframes and oals that interatethese %alues into daily practice+ 5irin and de%elopment must reflect the philosophy of the firmand moti%ate employees to carry forward the espoused %alues+ .he ideal firm en%isioned by PopeBenedict, howe%er, would attend to the dinity of all sinificant stakeholders in%ol%ed+ Payin ali%in wae respects the dinity of the workers and enables them to e@ercise their riht of

participation in the society" #4illiams, '(1;*+

indins re%ealed that precarious employment is underminin worker rihts, the scopeand co%erae of collecti%e barainin, as well as waes and workin conditions in the hotelindustry+ /n the case of %ulnerable workers who are e@posed to low and unstable income, theysuffer reatly whether the economy is up or down+ .he data also re%eal that precarious work iscaused by employment practices and one of the most sinificant characteristics this danerouswork is the physical framentations of the cycle of production and employment arranements, inorder to obtain reater efficiency, ma@imize employer profits and fle@ibility, and to shift risksonto workers+

.herefore, there is an urent need to combat the risin incidence of precarious work inthe hotel industry+ .he o%erall oal is to ensure that precarious which is the enemy of decentwork, does not become the dominant feature of the workin relationship between workers andemployers+

.he hotel industry trade unionists reconize that theirs and the other pri%ate initiati%eswill not be adeuate+ /t is imperati%e that a stron o%ernment action be taken+ /t must take up


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the challene by re%ersin its policies of labor dereulation and contractualization that ha%efacilitated the rowth of precarious work but instead ha%e at their core, creatin ood !obs andimpro%in the uality of work which is in accordance with the Decent 4ork Platform of the/nternational 0abour ranization+


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=eferences

Bureau of 0abor and $mployment Ftatistics+ #'(1'*+ Beyond the unemployment fiures+ LABSTAT pdates! "# #;1*, 16+ Retrie%ed from h tt p : ?? www +b l e s+d o l e+ o % +ph ? P 3B 0 / C A . / 2 F?0 AB F. A .= '( 3 P DA . $ F ? % o l 1 N;1+pdf

$dralin, D+ and Castillo, P+ #'((1*+ An $n%depth Study on the &otel and 'estaurant $ndustry in the (hilippines #Research Report*+ Retrie%ed from Phile@port website:h tt p : ?? p h i le@p o rt +p h ?li b r a ry ? us ai d N f u n ded+ h t m l

$%ans, + and &ibb, $+ #'(()*+ Moving from precarious work employment to decent work. &lobal 3nionResearch 2etwork #Discussion Paper 2o+;*+ &ene%a, Fwitzerland: /nternational 0abour ffice+

&ottfried, 5+ #'((8*+ Pathways to economic security: &ender and nonstandard employment incontemporary apan+ Social $ndicators 'esearch, 88, 1)61)+

5offer, + #'(1'*+ Decent work '+(+ /n 2+ Pons6Minon E P+ 2cube, )onfronting *inance #pp+ ;6*+&ene%a, Fwitzerland: /nternational 0abour ffice+

/nternational /nstitute for 0abor Ftudies #'(1'*+ 4orld of work report '(1': Better !obs for a better economy, 1, i611(+ doi: 1(+1(('?wow;+

/nternational 0abour ranization #'((*+ ABC of women workers- rihts and ender euality #'nd

ed+*+&ene%a, Fwitzerland: /nternational 0abour ffice+

/nternational 0abor Rihts orum #n+d+*+ Precarious work: 5ow temporary !obs and subcontractinundermine women, mirants and all workers- rihts to decent work worldwide+ Retrie%ed fromh tt p : ?? ww w+ la b o r ri h t s +o r ?s i te s ? de f au lt ? f il e s ? p ub li c a t io n s 6 an d 6 r e s ou r c e s? P r e c a r i o u s 4ork 4orldwide women, mirants, etc++pdf

/nternational 3nion of ood, Aricultural, 5otel, Restaurant, Caterin, .obacco and Allied 4orkers-Associations #'(11*+ (recarious work+ ndermining human rights, 8: 169+ Retrie%ed anuary 11,'(1;, from h tt p : ??www + u r n+ i n f o ?en ?to p ic s ? pr e c a r i o u s 6 w o r k ?tr ad e 6 un i on s 6 an d 6 p r e c a ri o u s 6work?iuf6precarious6work6underminin6human6rihts

7etal 4orld #'((*+ Fpotliht: &lobal action aainst precarious work+ Retrie%ed anuary 1


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1

'-out the 'uthor

Dr+ Di%ina 7+ $dralin is a full professor at the 7anaement and ranization Department of De 0a Falle3ni%ersity, and is currently the Mice Dean for Research and &raduate Ftudies of the Ramon M+ delRosario Collee of Business #RMR6CB*+ Fhe earned her 7aster in /ndustrial Relations from the

3ni%ersity of the Philippines and her Doctor of 7anaement from De 0a Falle 3ni%ersity+

5er areas of e@pertise and research interests include human resource manaement, entrepreneurship,collecti%e barainin, and labor issues+ Fhe is the author of the followin books: “Business Research:

Concepts and Applications, ;rd

edition" under D0F3 Press, /nc+ and “5uman Resource 7anaementPractices: Concepts and Applications" under Abi%a Publishin+ ne of her recent works is “4ork and0ife 5armony: An $@ploratory Case Ftudy on $ntrepinays", which was published in the ,LS Businessand -conomics 'eview+ 5er other works ha%e been published in the ournal of /omen Studies, Asia (acific Business 'eview, Asian ournal of Technology $nnovation, and L))M 'esearch ournal +

Prof+ $dralin is currently a manaement consultant for .haiairways, Fcentimentals /ncorporate, and 0abor $ducation Research 2etwork+ Fhe is also currently a research consultant for 0a Consolacion Collee

7anila+ Fhe was named as the utstandin $ducator in 7anaement by the Philippine Council of Deansand $ducators in Business #PCD$B* in '((;+

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