A. Why does this situation exist?

The following problems occurred because the principles of unionism had been
neglected and taken for granted by people especially by employers. Hence, we have
identified the economic issues brought about by the stunted unionism in the
Philippines:

1. Historically, according to Dejillas (1994), the Philippines, just like many of the
countries in the world, was entirely devastated during the World War II. Consequently,
after the war, the Philippine government during that time tried to restore the economy
to at least prewar levels by using the strategy called as import-substitution
industrialization (a theory of economics typically adhered to by developing countries
or emerging-market nations that seek to decrease their dependence on developed
countries and increase their self-sufficiency). From years 1950 to 1960, the Philippine
economy registered the highest per capita Gross Domestic Product growth rate
among SEA nations (Oshima, 1983). However, the import-substitution
industrialization strategy failed primarily due to three reasons (Sicat, 1972; Amjad,
1981):

a) Inability to eliminate the country’s labor surplus since the policy was
biased toward capital-intensive undertakings;
 b) Failure to expand industrial growth because the strategy relied on
domestic market whose income base was very low; and

c) Failure to reduce the country’s dependence on imports since some

industries were highly dependent on imported raw materials.

Thus, through all those years, trade unionism has always been the voice of the
voiceless particularly fighting for political, economic and social issues like foreign debt,
imperialism, capitalism, federalism, etc.

3. Moreover, according to Bingay (2007), he admonished union leaders to listen to

two sides - on the workers and on the changing economic environment. Serrano
(2009) highlighted that the changing environment, which is globalization, has
reformed the landscape where unions have previously the dominion in protecting the
rights of the workers.

3. Similarly, Dejillas (1994) expounded on the significance of trade unions’ impact

on economic growth and political stability of a nation. He related that many
developing countries have trade unions that are defenders of power and are used by
government leaders for political victory. It is therefore discouraging to know and
recognize that unions are turning weak.
B. What are the root causes?

Problem 1: Economic and Political Factors

Problem 2: Management Practices

Problem 3: Trade Union Practices

ECONOMIC FACTORS

Who controls the implementation of the The Government

unionism?
Who funds for the implementation of the The Government & the Labor
unions? Organizations
Who benefits? Both employers and employees

-For the employers: one

union-discussions clear; better working
relationship; easier to agree for changes;
disputes solved quickly
 -For the employees: one
union-discussion clear; employees
together-greater power; no disagreement
union; better working relationship;
disputes solved quickly

POLITICAL FACTORS

Who decides for the implementation of The Government

the unions?
For whom do they decide? For the workers and employers of the
Philippines

SOCIAL FACTORS
Who is left out? Those employees who are not given
proper and just wages, benefits, etc. and
those who do not know well their rights
and supposed privileges.
Who is included? The Working Families/Individuals

HISOTRICAL FACTOR
What past events influence the situation?
There have been issues on poverty for
many years and one reason/factor cited
for this is the people’s complaints of
having low and deficient wages and
benefits received from their working
organizations.

CULTURAL FACTORS
What values are evident in the unionism
in the Philippines?
What do people believe in?
Who influences what people believe?
Protection of rights; encouraging
collective action; promoting the general
welfare of the workers, businesses and
the economy.
People believe in the preservation and
respect to one’s worth and dignity.
They believe in the strong protection of
justice, democracy and equality.
What the government constitution says
and what the principles of every human
individuals dictate
This second step of the Pastoral Cycle seeks to answer the following
questions:

Why is this happening?

Who gains from this situation? Who loses out?

Why does this situation continue?

Trade union movements in many parts of the world have been in decline in terms
of membership, bargaining power and influence, and institutional vitality
(Aganon,Serrano & Certeza, 2009). Principally, there are certain factors which
contribute to union decline. This may include the increasing global economic
competition and capital mobility; rapid pace of technological innovations in production;
restructuring of national economies from manufacturing to services; privatization of
public services, rise of contingent and mounting resistance of employers to
unionization.

Similarly, as stated above,union membership has been in serious decline and we

have seen wages stagnate. Accordingly, one of the root causes of declining wages is
that workers’ ability to join together and bargain for higher wages and better working
conditions has been severely undermined.

Accordingly, what the recent studies on the general state of unions in the
Philippines tell us is that, as revealed by a recent U.P. SOLAIR study (Aganon,
Serrano, Mercado et al., 2008), more unions are still confined to issues and concerns
within their workplace. Their responsibility sphere is limited to addressing the welfare
needs of their immediate membership without taking into account the broader sense
of extending representation for the betterment of the whole working class. Lastly, the
trade unions’ potential to expand its membership beyond workplace level has not
been seriously looked upon where employment arrangements are constantly
changing and becoming more informal.

Below is the official statistics of how a low rate of unionization in the Philippines.
 The data of the trade union in the Philippines tell us that, in term of unionization
rate, from 3.57 million in 1995, union membership for both private and public sectors
went down to 63% (1.918 million) in 2007. Thus, this means that union membership in
year 2007 was only 8.89% of the 21,583,111 employed individuals who worked for 40
hours and more during that particular year.
 REFERENCES:

https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/100056/Ndiritu_Grace.pdf?seque
nce=1

GUIDE QUESTIONS:

1. Why is this happening?

2. Who gains from this situation? Who loses out?

3. Why does this situation continue?