The Plight of Garment Women Workers

philippine team study 1

THE PLIGHT OF GARMENT WOMEN WORKERS

The emancipation of women and their equality with men are impossible and must remain so as long as women are excluded from socially productive work and restricted to housework, which is private. The emancipation of women becomes possible only when women are enabled to take part in production on a large, social scale and when domestic duties require their attention only to a minor degree.

PURPOSE OF STUDY

The garment women workers constitute an integral part of the vast urban labor force, and are doubly oppressed and exploited by the present military and anti-labor regime. The militant struggles of garment workers can be fully realized in relation to the struggle of the Filipino masses against the unholy triumvirate - Imperialism, Feudalism and Fascism.

Presently, the garment industry absorbs a substantial bulk of the labor force as it employs either directly or indirectly more than 500,000 workers all over the Philippines. It is sad to note that of the total number of workers in the Philippines today, which is 20% of the country's 43 million, only 10% are organized in labor unions, and only 1% of these unions can be fully said to be genuine trade unions. Some are friendly or liberal trade unions, and the rest are yellow labor unions. Experience has taught the workers that the management is deaf and blind to their interest. The

management remains indifferent to their problem of low wages inspite of the tantamount profit the company has accumulated thru the agency of their human labor. Just like in any capitalist society where workers are not considered as persons but means for the company to accumulate more profit and capital in the production process, the management has not only put an institutional ceiling on workers' earning capacity of a meager minimum wage, but has likewise resorted to delay job appraisal of apprentices, to minimize as much as possible the company's payroll, at the same time maximizing the labor of the apprentices.

Majority of the workers have an average salary of $43.00 a month. This constitutes the only source of livelihood for their families, with an average of six family members. Aside from receiving less than they should, and working under such harsh and dehumanizing working conditions, they are still endangered by labor tenure, and empowered and institutionalized martial law regime with its orders and decrees that do not solve the problems of the Filipno working masses but further aggravate the worker's poor, oppressive, exploitative working conditions. Since the imposition of martial law in September 1972, the workers have noticed, and continue to notice, changes in the dealings of management and the state towards labor unions and the workers in general. A summary of certain orders, decrees and labor codes by the state, that have been proven against labor, and are more favorable to the management's strict and abusive character, follows. –

GENERAL ORDER NO. 1; which became the basis of the President's reorganization of the government and all its agencies resulting in the loss of the jobs of some 60,000 workers in government companies;

GENERAL ORDER NO. 5; which marked the loss of the right to strike and other concerted activities whereby the workers hope to stage their fight for basic rights and demands;

GENERAL ORDER NO. 2 AND 2A; which gave the right to the Secretary of the Department of Labor to arrest (and provide a basis for such arrest) and put under its authority those who participate in or support attempts to take the political and national power of the government;

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 21; the decree that the management can readily apply preventive suspension

to workers who violate in one way or another the management's whims. Further, it (PD 21) has dissolved the Court of Industrial Relation, because the government believed that it was a source of graft and corruption, and replaced it with the National Labor Relation Commission;

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 27; the decree provided for preventive suspension of workers who are fighting for their economic and political rights;

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 148; which reduced maternity benefits of women workers. Under the women and child labor union, a woman worker is entitled to 60% of her pay for 6 weeks before and 8 weeks after the child's delivery. Today, she receives 100% of her pay, but the period has been shortened to 2 weeks before and 4 weeks after delivery. Thus she receives a lesser amount and her rest period is shortened;

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 823; which virtually banned the right to strike, and simply served to reiterate General Order No. 5, preventing all organizations (foreign or religious) from supporting directly or indirectly the struggle of the Filipino working masses;

PRESIDENTIAL DECREE NO. 849; a decree which supposedly repeated the ban on strikes, but in essence is only a confirmation of PD 823, and General Order No. 5. It says that only vital industries are not allowed to stage strikes. The definition of vital industries has been broadened to include practically all industries.

The Open Door Policy, Investment Incentives Law, Export Oriented Policy and other labor codes from the state, encouraged the management to become more and more strict and abusive toward the Filipino working masses.

With all these dehumanizing working conditions suffered by Filipino workers, a research and documentation study was undertaken in cooperation with some religious organizations among industrial women workers in some garment firms in Metro Manila. This research represents an attempt to investigate and document the current working conditions and attitudes of workers in 5 Metro Manila, garment firms.

SCOPE OF STUDY

The companies included in this survey are among the top 10 garment firms of 1975-1976 based on sales and net profit and as listed by Business Day Philippines. Accordingly, the following establishments were selected for the study:

1) Gelmart Philippines

2) Triumph International

3) Novelty Philippines, Inc.

4) Aris Philippines, Inc.

5) G & S Corporations.

the 5th company, although not included in the list of top 10 garment firms was chosen because of its large work force. The number of respondents for each factory was determined in proportion to the total number of production workers in each of the factories chosen. For practical purposes, it was decided that at least 3% of the population of production workers in each company would be covered in the survey, to obtain a more or less equal representation of the workers. The following table shows the distribution of questionnaires and the respective rate of return from each company.

TABLE 1

Firm

Labor Force

No. of Questionnaires

Distributed

Returned

1. Gelmart

2. Aris Phils., Inc.

3. Triumph Int’l, Inc.

4. Novelty Phils.

5. G & S Corp.

Total

7500

5000

8900

4200

1000

28600

225

150

126

558

131

350

58%

64%

100%

56%

82%

Overall, therefore, of the 558 questionnaires distributed, 350 were returned, representing a 63% rate of return.

The workers/respondents were contacted in their residences. Focus was on localities where the workers from each company were clustered in order to faci-

litate distribution and collection of the questionnaires. The majority of the residences consisted of boarding houses/which were located near the workers' places of work.

Prior to the survey, an exploratory study of the garment industry was undertaken and preliminary interviews were conducted among key informants from each company. Key informants were chosen on the basis of their length of stay with the company and knowledge of existing conditions and company policies. Based on information obtained from such interviews, the questionnaire was constructed. Before final release to the workers, the questionnaire was pre-tested and appropriately revised.

RESULTS OF THE STUDY

I. PROFILE OF WORKERS

The majority of the workers were, as expected, women (86%) most of whom were in their twenties (68%). The youngest were in the 15-19 years bracket 1&% and constituted the second biggest group in the age range categories. The oldest were in the 40-44 years category (1%) while the rest were in their thirties (9%). Most of the workers were single (78%) while 15% stated that they were married.

Although fewer than half (48%) of the workers had finished high school, 83% of the respondents were elementary graduates. It is interesting to note with the high degree of skill needed for the job, only one of the workers studies in a vocational school. About 10% received one to two years of college education while a few (2%) graduated from college.

Most of the workers came from Southern provinces (73%) a great majority of whom were from Batangas. Others were from Cavite, Laguna, and Quezon provinces. 16% of the workers were from the northern provinces notably Pampanga, Pangasinan and Bulacan. Among those from the south a number of workers (39%) were from the Visayas, namely Iloilo, Samar, Bohol and Bacolod. Many of them had come to Manila to seek better work opportunities. A few are original residents of Metro Manila (7%) and its outlying suburbs. More than half of these workers (68%) have been in Manila for nine or less than nine years while some (21%) have lived in Manila for over 10 years or since birth.

II. LIVING CONDITIONS

How do workers live? Many of them (73%) either shared rented rooms with other companions or were bedspacers. In cases of shared rent or room rate of regular rental fee ranged from P10.00 - P50.00 a month for 63% of the workers, and P50.00-P100.00 monthly for about 10% of the workers. Some (9%) paid P100.00 - P200.00 a month for their lodging while a few (4%) paid rent ranging from P200.00-P400.00 monthly. For those who shared rented rooms, 44% split the rent among 5 occupants, 36% among 6 to 10 occupants, and 10% among 11 to 15 occupants. The average size of these rooms usually measured about 5 to 7 meters in area and approximately 24 meters in height. The rooms are separated only by a thin layer of either lawanit material or plywood. The rooms are crammed together, very small sometimes windowless and passages are narrow and dark because there are no openings to let in the light. The only furniture that can be accommodated are the beds or bunks which are usually piled on top of each other. In most boarding houses, the workers keep their own cooking facilities in their individual rooms while in some cases a common kitchen area is provided for everyone. There are no private comfort rooms available.*

10% of the workers said they were renting their apartments or rooms (individually or with their families), 8% claimed that they were living in their own homes for which they did not have to pay rent.

III. COPING MECHANISMS

90% relied on their jobs alone for income. Having no other source and finding existing sources inadequate, the borrowing of money was a prevalent practice. 86% stated that they had to borrow money, however, with varying degrees of frequency, 46% said they borrowed occasionally ("paminsan-minsan"), 29% said rarely ("bihira"), and only 11% always ("palagi"). The over riding reason stated for borrowing money (by 73%) was the inadequacy of their existing income to meet their basic expenses even on a limited budget. ("Kulang ang sueldo sa panggastos", "Kulang sa budget")*. Some explained that because of low

* There is usually one common toilet and bathroom (in some cases two) for all the boarders who normally number from 30 to 100 per boarding house.

* 7%, however, stated that they borrowed only times of emergency.

pay they usually found themselves in a very tight situation ("nagigipit") so that their only recourse was to borrow money.

Contrary to popular belief that the common source of loans is the so called 5-6 usurer, the workers said that the major source of their loans was from their friends, fellow workers (67%) or their relatives (18%). Only 8% claimed that they resorted to the 5-6 usurer while 1% said they borrowed from the neigborhood stores. However, 22% failed to indicate any response as to where and from whom they borrowed money.

IV. WORK HISTORY

Most of the respondents have been in their present jobs for at least two years but not more than nine years (6%). A few have been with their respective companies for over 10 years (4%) with two senior workers who have been in the same company for more than 16 years. However, 5% stated that they have been in their current jobs for under 6 months.

Results also showed that more than half of the respondents (53%) were holding on to what is their first job. Only 32% indicated that they had previous work experience.

Those who had been working elsewhere before were predominantly either in the textile/garment industry (47%) or in private home industries (32%). 7% mentioned that they had been employed in government offices, usually as clerks. It is interesting to note that 79% of those who had previous work experience were employed in work related to the garment industry such as sewers, embroiderers, etc. A few (5%) had been engaged in selling or were employed as household help.

Sixty-six percent (66%) of those who had worked elsewhere before reported that the principal reason for leaving their jobs, was low pay ("mababa ang sahod") and poor management ("hindi maganda ang pamamalakad ng management"). Ten percent (10%) of those workers had to move to other jobs because previously they were only temporarily employed. Since there are peak and slack periods in the manufacture of garments or other related products, factories usually take in additional workers over

a few months and lay them off when production demand is low. As a result, many "casual" workers find themselves periodically out of work and become only too eager to get employment elsewhere, even under stiff and unfair working terms. As some workers put it when asked about what they liked about their jobs, "it is better to be earning some money than not to be working at all". ("mas mabuti na yung may kinikita at nakakatulong sa buhay".)

Significantly, 19% indicated that they were arbitrarily removed or laid off from their jobs because management did not like their activities (i.e. participation in unions). In the majority of such cases, garment factories do not provide job security benefits for their workers. Although the distinction between the "permanent" and "casual" worker should be strictly defined, management does not clearly state the terms and conditions of employment. Very often there are no written contracts which specify such terms and conditions. Hence, even a permanent worker can be removed from his job for whatever reason deemed "justified" by the management.

V. MARRIED WORKERS

Of the married workers, which constituted 15% of the sample majority, 45% indicated that their spouses were employed in similar occupations either as garment worker or factory laborer.* Two percent (2%) stated that their husbands were fishermen. Among the married, 85% have children. Fifty nine percent (59%) of these couples bad an average of two to five children while 25% indicated having only one child.

VI. WORK/STATUS/REMUNERATION

The majority of the workers referred to their status as regular (72%).

*15% indicated that their spouses were employees in government and private offices.

TABLE II

STATUS OP EMPLOYMENT

	GELMART	ARIS	TRIUMPH	NOVELTY	G & S
Regular/ Permanent	109	70	25	27	20
Apprentice/ Learner	1	-	-	33*	1
Casual	12	17	-	5	-
No Answer	8	9	1	6	2
Don’t Know	1	-	-	-	2

*biggest number of apprentices

Ten percent (10%) reported themselves as apprentices At least 1% said they were unsure about the status of their employment and 7% did not reply.

It should be pointed out that in the case of Novelty Philippines, the apprentice training period required by the company is 1% years. As apprentices, the worker receives a daily pay of P7.50. In addition to the regular 8 hours work they should put in, the apprentices are required to attend an Instruction course twice a week, each session consisting of 1k hours outside regular work hours, and during which they received no remuneration. Majority of the workers who filled out the questionnaire for this survey were "apprentices" who have been actually working for the company for more than 1 years.

The current mean daily wage range was Pll.00-15.00 for 65% of these workers. However, 12% reported earning less than the Pll.00 minimum wage daily. Among those who receive less than Pll.00, 28 were from Novelty, 12 from Aris and 2 from Gelmart. Some (5%) said they were receiving a daily basic pay between Pll.00-12.00. Nobody indicated earning more than P20.00 a day.

The workers also claimed that they received less than Pll.00 when they started with the company (70%). Since the minimum wage rate two years ago was only P8.00 a day, this finding may be partly attributed to those workers who have been with the company for 2 years or more. However, the findings also showed that at least 20% of workers who have been employed for less than two years began with a wage rate below the required P10.00 minimum wage.

Added to this basic pay was a daily allowance of less than 92.00 received by 8% of the workers this amount constituting the lowest daily allowance range Twenty nine percent (29%) obtained an allowance of P2.00 to P3.00 a day, 33% reported receiving between P3.00 to P4.00 daily and 11% claimed to be in the P4.00 to P6.00 daily allowance bracket. In the case of one company (Novelty) however, eleven (11) workers claimed that they did not receive any allowance at all from their company.

A closer analysis of the daily allowances given to these workers will show that they do not receive in full the emergency living allowance of P110.00 provided by presidential decree. In the majority of cases, the allowance is computed on a daily basis so that the equivalent sum received by the workers per month is ultimately short of P100.00. For instance, if a worker received P4.00 allowance for each day of work, and allowing that he puts in an average of 6 days of- work per week, he would be receiving only a total of P104.00. In the case of Novelty the allowance is computed on a weekly basis Hence, if a worker is given P23.55 per week, the worker would be receiving a total of P94.20, which means P15.80 short of what the worker is entitled to Moreover, since the same allowance is based on the number of working days, a worker who misses out on work for some reason or another gets a corresponding deduction in allowance.

VII. WORKING CONDITIONS/JOB SECURITY/BENEFITS

These workers report for work from Monday to Saturday and put in an average of 8 hours work a day. Most of the workers (72%) reported that they did overtime work with a mean of 1 to 3 hours per day (61%). A few (6%) said that they would occasionally put in more than 4 hours of overtime work in a day when required. When asked about whether they could exercise a choice in doing overtime, it is significant to note that the workers were not agreed, on what was really a question of fact. Forty percent (40%) reported that they were free to decide whether to render overtime or not, while 50% said that management gave them no choice. Some of the workers explained that refusing to do overtime work usually resulted in their disfavor (i.e. being shifted to more difficult operations or subject to rotation) and strained relations between their supervisors and themselves.

On the whole the workers are subject to very

stringent company rules and policies. No eating and no conversation among workers are allowed during work hours. Because of the very stiff quota which they are required to meet, however, the workers claimed that they often found no time to do anything else but their work. In many cases, visits to the comfort rooms are timed and recorded. For those who need to work double time to make their quota, there is no chance to care for themselves and consequently they suffer from illnesses. A few women have been reported to have suffered miscarriages because of this.

Break times for these workers come once in the morning (15 minutes) and at noontime when they are allowed between 30 minutes to an hour to take their lunch. Triumph is the only company which grants a 15 minute break in the afternoon. Novelty and G & S only allow for a half hour lunch break compared to the three other companies where the lunch break runs for an hour.

One of the major problems constantly faced by the workers is the lack of job security. As mentioned earlier, there is usually no formal contract between the worker and employee which specifies terms and conditions of employment. As a consequence, the worker can be laid off at any time managment deems fit. Key informants who were interviewed explained that they were removed from their jobs because they were active leaders of their labor unions. The majority of them are still out of work as they cannot find employment in similar manufacturing companies where their names are blacklisted.

Vacation, sick leave and maternity leave benefits are given by all four companies with the exception of G & S. Workers who have been employed with G & S for more than two years are not given any of these benefits at all.

VIII. ATTITUDES TOWARD WORK & WORKING CONDITIONS

Asked about whether they perceived the workers in general to be satisfied with their present jobs. 50% claimed they were not, 22% claimed they did not know. Only 10% agreed that most of the workers were satisfied.

When questioned as to what they liked about their jobs. 39% did not reply while 19% said ("wala") there was nothing they liked about their jobs. Others were divided over the following responses: Supervisors were okay and administration operations

were carried out properly (mabait ang supervisor, wasto ang pamamalakad) -5%; work is easy ("madali ang trabaho" at sanay na sa ginagawa; madali anq ginagawa") -13%; the pay is good ("mahusay ang suweldo") -7%; and the job adds to one's knowledge (nakadagdag ang kaalaman") -1%.

A few cited factors not specific nor related to company operations. "I earn money, and it enables me to meet my needs ("kumikita ng pera, nakakatulong sa mga pangangailangan)-4%; "I like my workmates," "enjoyable company" ("mga kasamahan sa trabaho, masaya") -7%.

Asked what they disliked about their jobs, 31% did not respond, while 7% said nothing ("wala"). The remaining 62% had varying answers with the biggest group (27%) citing the rigorous demands of the job or the quota system ("mahigpit ang trabaho parang hayop" "mataas masyado ang quota" "hindi kaya ng katawan") as the prevalent dislike. It should be noted that although this was a common complaint among workers of all five companies, Gelmart workers (44) represented the biggest group. Although it is provided by law, the companies barely provide any health services to attend to the workers' needs. Some workers complained that their clinic was only useful as a first aid center and was inadequate in servicing the more important needs of the workers.

Many of the workers (42%) also felt strongly about putting a stop to unjust management practices and to overly strict supervision ("alisin ang mga mapag-abuso o mahigpit na management") Thirty nine percent (39%) cited the need to lower quotas ("babaan ang quota") while 20% felt that workers should be given their due rights and be provided with job security ("bigyan ng sapat na karapatan ang manggagawa at seguridad sa trabaho").

Better management and smoother administrative operations were also proposed by 29% of those who responded. Eight percent (8%) asked that workers be left free to join with and participate in labor unions without fear of being laid off from their jobs or penalized by management. Gelmart and Triumph workers specially proposed the elimination of forced overtime (4%) and removal of foreigners from the company (3%).

IX. ATTITUDES TOWARD UNION

Workers of these five companies have their respective unions and this was confirmed by 85% of those

who answered the questionnaire, indicating awareness of their union's existence. A breakdown per company of those who responded affirmatively to the question of whether they had a union or not is shown by the following table. (See table III)

TABLE III: DO YOU HAVE A UNION?

GELMART

ARIS

TRIUMPH

NOVELTY

G & S

Yes

Don't Know

No Answer

89%

80%*

10%

96%

78%

18%

92%

* Percentage figures do not always total 100% due to rounding off to whole numbers in computations.

The remainder either said there was no union (8%) or did not know if there was one (1%). A few (5%) did not respond to the question.

Sixty-nine percent (69%) of all the workers included in the survey said they were members of the union while 19% said they were non-members. Eleven percent (11%) did not give any response.

TABLE IV: ARE YOU A MEMBER OF THE UNION?

GELMART

ARIS

TRIUMPH

NOVELTY

G & S

Yes

Don't Know

No Answer

74%

14%

12%

80%

20%

93%

28%

38%

27%

96%

Among union members, majority (70%) perceived joining the unions as the best means of protecting their rights as workers. They described the union as a helpful tool and weapon which can bring the workers together as one and help to guarantee them better job security. ("nakakatulong sa manggagawa at sandata upang ipaglaban ang karapatan ng manggagawa" "kasiguruhan sa trabaho" "upang magkaisa ang mga manggagawa"). A few (6%) claimed that their joining the union was not totally a voluntary decision. They explained that they were relatively new in the company and were under the impression that all employees had to be members of the union.

When asked about their opinion of their union, 43% did not give any reply. The following table shows

the percentage of workers in each company who did not answer the question.

TABLE V: WHAT DO YOU THINK OF YOUR UNION?

GELMART

ARIS

TRIUMPH

NOVELTY

G & S

No Response

(% of workers per company)

36%

23%

11%

58%

24%

* An analysis per company can also be done.

X. ATTITUDE TOWARDS STRIKE

More than half (53%) of the workers agreed that the strike is valuable in protecting the welfare of the workers ("mahalaga upang mapangalagaan ang kapakanan ng manggagawa") and about the same number (56%) agreed that the strike was the special weapon ("Tanging sandata") of the workers.

However, the workers were divided in their opinion as to the legality of the strikes. 33% agreed that it was illegal, 30% disagreed that it was illegal and 20% said they did not know.

When asked if they perceived the strike as a dangerous activity which should be avoided, 37% disagreed while 36% agreed. Twenty percent (20%) however, said they did not know.

XI. ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR (DOL)

While the workers can resort to strike as a leverage" of the fulfillment of their demands, another legal recourse is the Department of Labor (DOL). What do the workers think of the DOL?

Asked to agree/disagree with the statement that the DOL is effective in resolving cases, 45% agreed, 21% disagreed, and 14% said they did not know.

Asked to agree/disagree with the statement that the DOL is pro-management, 26% agreed, 30% disagreed and 23% said they did not know.

In short, the workers appear to count on the DOL's effectiveness and do not significantly share the attitude that it is pro-management. However, this does not necessarily mean that the workers believe it is pro-worker. It could be that they believe it is an impartial, unbiased body resolving conflicts.

SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

This study, in effect, documents the living and working conditions of workers from five garment factories: GELMART, ARIS, TRIUMPH, NOVELTY and G & S. It has attempted to present the workers', mostly women, areas of concern and their attitude toward aspects of their work. Over-all the recurring demands of the workers as revealed by the study are:

-increased wages,

-just allowance and benefits

-better and more humane treatment of workers (in the form of reasonable quota requirements and fair management), and

-improved services (medical, canteen) and physical conditions (better ventilation, cleaner comfort rooms).

The study has also shown that these workers hold positive attitudes toward the strike and the DOL as effective avenues for the resolution of their collective problems.

The more significant issue pointed out by this study, however, is the poor quality of working and living conditions of the workers. These conditions have been classified as poor, in view of the studies which describe minimum levels for the least comfortable life. The National Economic Development Administration (NEDA) study, for instance has defined the daily living wage as ?42.00. But then. how much do our garment workers get?

The conditions have also been classified as poor in view of the stature of these companies in the garment industry. They rank among the top ten firms which make the highest profits. And yet how much do they grant their workers?

Although this study cannot claim to represent the views and sentiments of all garment workers, it certainly reflects existing conditions which many workers are subject. The factual data presented here cannot be denied or ignored. They speak of the indescribable hardships suffered by hardworking individuals, mostly women, who are exploited and abused.

It is hoped that this piece of study has served, however minimally, to make others aware of the deplorable situation of our garment workers. Needless to say, the test of whether it has been effective

will depend on how other sectors of society will respond and work towards helping these workers in their just clamor seeking to obtain a better and more decent way of life.