SARA DESERVES ENDO, WORKERS DESERVE REGULARIZATION! — PM

Joining the People’s Assembly rally at the Senate this morning, Partido Manggagawa (PM) called for the conviction and removal from office of Vice President Sara Duterte, saying that public office must never become a license for personal enrichment, abuse of power, and political entitlement.

 

“Sa aming pananaw, malinaw na naipakita ng prosecution, sa kanilang pagtatapos ng presentasyon, ang mga batayan ng culpable violation of the Constitution at iba pang mga batas kaugnay ng undeclared at unexplained wealth. Hindi pwedeng gawing personal na negosyo ang isang pampublikong posisyon. Public office is a public trust, not a family enterprise,” said Judy Miranda, Secretary General of Partido Manggagawa.

 

PM drew a sharp parallel between the temporary tenure of the Vice President and the contractual employment endured by millions of Filipino workers.

 

“Sara Duterte deserves endo, while workers deserve regularization! Ang OVP ay isang opisina na may takdang termino. Parang endo rin—may expiration ang kontrata. Pero napakalaki ng pagkakaiba. Ang ordinaryong contractual worker ay mababa ang sahod, walang security of tenure, at madaling tanggalin. Samantalang ang Bise Presidente ay may napakalaking pribilehiyo, kapangyarihan at public resources. Sa kaso ni Sara Duterte, naniniwala kaming inabuso ang mga pribilehiyong ito to the max para sa pagpapayaman ng sarili at pamilya,” Miranda said.

 

“Ang mga manggagawa, kahit matagal nang nagtatrabaho at lumilikha ng yaman, ay pinagkakaitan ng regular na trabaho at living wage. Samantalang ang mga opisyal na pinagkatiwalaan ng kapangyarihan at pondo ng bayan ay kailangang managot kapag inabuso ang tiwalang ito. Workers deserve job security, while public officials who betray the people’s trust deserve removal and accountability,” she added.

 

PM warned that Duterte’s continued hold on political power poses a threat to national security and democracy. Allowing her to escape accountability and potentially secure a ticket to the presidency is the last thing the country needs.

 

“Hindi kailangan ng bansa ang isa pang Duterte presidency. Pero hindi rin solusyon ang pagpapalit lamang ng Duterte dynasty ng isa pang political dynasty. Pareho silang bahagi ng sistemang ginagawang family business ang gobyerno habang nananatiling contractual, underpaid at walang proteksyon ang mga manggagawa,” Miranda stressed.

 

For PM, accountability must go beyond individual politicians and confront the political and economic system that perpetuates dynastic rule, corruption, inequality, and exploitation.

 

“Sara deserves endo. Workers deserve regularization. Political dynasties deserve abolition. Hindi lang pagpapalit ng mukha sa Malacañang ang kailangan ng bansa. Ang tunay na pagbabago ay bagong sistema, walang political dynasties, at may mga lider na tunay na makamanggagawa,” Miranda concluded.

 Partido Manggagawa

12 October 2026

PM: P45 CALABARZON WAGE HIKE WELCOME BUT FAR FROM LIVING WAGE

WORKERS RACE AGAINST RISING PRICES WHILE MARCOS WATCHES F1

 

Partido Manggagawa (PM) welcomed the new wage order granting workers in CALABARZON an increase of up to P45 a day but warned that the adjustment remains far below what working families need to live decently.

 

“Every peso matters to workers struggling to make ends meet. But P45 is hardly enough when food, electricity, transportation and other basic necessities continue to eat up a family’s income. Workers deserve more than wages that barely keep them above water,” said PM Chairperson Renato Magtubo.

 

Under Wage Order IVA-23, minimum wages in CALABARZON will rise to P550–P645 starting October 26, covering approximately 1.56 million workers.

 

Magtubo pointed out that the highest minimum wage of P645 is still just half the P1,207 daily living wage of the Asia Floor Wage Alliance for a Filipino family of five[1]. This leaves a staggering P562 daily gap between what workers earn and what their families actually need.

 

Even against the government’s modest poverty threshold of P14,634 a month, minimum wages remain inadequate. At 22 working days, P645 translates to only P14,190 monthly, while P550 amounts to just P12,100, before mandatory deductions.

 

“The absurdity is that workers in Cavite, Laguna and Rizal face practically the same high cost of living as those in Metro Manila, yet the highest minimum wage in CALABARZON remains P110 lower than NCR’s P755. Geography has become an excuse for paying workers less,” Magtubo said.

 

PM also warned that the recently approved Meralco distribution rate increase threatens to further squeeze household budgets, potentially wiping out part of the already meager wage adjustment.

 

“What workers gain from a small wage increase can easily disappear into higher electricity bills and food prices. The government cannot keep celebrating wage adjustments while allowing the cost of living to outrun workers’ incomes,” Magtubo added.

 

The labor leader also criticized the sharp contrast between the daily struggles of workers and President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s attendance at the Formula 1 race in Singapore, which administration officials defended as an opportunity to attract investments.

 

“While the President watches Formula 1 in Singapore, Filipino workers are running a very different race—the daily race against hunger, unpaid bills and rising prices. The government talks about investment opportunities, but where are the opportunities for workers to earn a decent living?” Magtubo asked.

 

PM noted that wage increases across the country’s 17 regions this year have ranged from P20 to P60, averaging just P39, according to NWPC figures. These adjustments are quickly eroded by inflation and the rising cost of essential services.

 

“For more than three decades, the regional wage-setting system has kept minimum wages at poverty levels in many parts of the country. Instead of closing the gap between wages and living costs, it has institutionalized regional wage inequality. This system has failed workers,” Magtubo stressed.

 

PM reiterated its demand to abolish the regional wage boards established under Republic Act 6727 and replace the fragmented wage-setting system with a national minimum wage anchored on the actual cost of living.

 

“Workers do not need another round of explanations about why wage increases must remain small. They need wages that can feed their families, pay their bills and provide a decent life. A living wage is not a privilege. It is a right,” Magtubo concluded.

 

MEDIA RELEASE

11 October 2026

 

---

[1] PM participated in the AFWA survey to calculate the living wage in Asia based on a 3,000 calories daily diet: https://asia.floorwage.org/living-wage/calculating-a-living-wage/

END THE U.S. BLOCKADE OF CUBA! DEFEND THE SOVEREIGNTY AND SELF-DETERMINATION OF ALL NATIONS!

Groups held a solidarity rally yesterday in Quezon City: https://www.facebook.com/partidomanggagawa/posts/pfbid0j1nNctstoG9ihXSs8AvnLX5cqKQHyzKuL1zcogWscaxpqnMQNuJait4RoyAvTdFvl

Partido Manggagawa (PM) stands in solidarity with the Cuban people in their continuing struggle against more than six decades of economic blockade imposed by the United States. Cuba is a sovereign and independent nation, having liberated itself from the U.S.-backed Batista dictatorship through the triumph of the Cuban Revolution in 1959.

 

The Cuban Revolution was the sovereign will of the Cuban people. The independent state they established in its aftermath is recognized by the international community. Their right to determine their own political, economic, and social future belongs to them alone. No foreign power has the right to dictate their destiny or undermine their independence.

Yet for more than six decades, the United States has done precisely that.

 

The U.S. economic blockade against Cuba is a blatant assault on national sovereignty and the Cuban people's fundamental right to live freely, develop their economy, and engage in peaceful relations and trade with the rest of the world.

 

No words can adequately capture the enormous economic hardship, political pressure, and human suffering inflicted upon the Cuban people by this prolonged blockade. It is nothing less than economic coercion, political intimidation, and imperialist oppression directed against a nation that has refused to surrender its independence.

 

Cuba has not bowed to these impositions. Despite decades of relentless pressure, the Cuban people have stood firm in defending their sovereignty and right to self-determination. But their resistance does not diminish the enormous costs of the blockade, which has brought nothing beneficial to the Cuban people or humanity. Its continued enforcement runs counter to the principles of sovereign equality, non-intervention, and human rights enshrined in the United Nations Charter and international law.

 

This is why international solidarity is not merely a political expression but an urgent responsibility. Workers and peoples across the world must unite in defending Cuba's independence, demanding an end to the blockade, and upholding the right of every nation to determine its own future free from foreign domination.

 

The struggle of Cuba is inseparable from the broader struggle against imperialist intervention, aggression, and the denial of national self-determination. It is time for the international community to intensify its condemnation of the United States' coercive and aggressive policies, including its actions against Venezuela and Iran, and its continued support for Israel's genocidal assault on the Palestinian people and military aggression against Lebanon.

 

For Partido Manggagawa, solidarity with Cuba is part of the international working-class struggle against imperialism, oppression, and the domination of powerful nations over weaker states. No people should be punished for choosing their own path of development. No nation should be forced into submission through economic strangulation.

 Partido Manggagawa

11 October 2026

MANGGAGAWA LABAN SA DIKTADURA, KORAPSYON AT DINASTIYA!

 

Sa bisperas ng paggunita sa ika-54 na anibersaryo ng deklarasyon ng Martial Law, lalahok ang Partido Manggagawa (PM) sa Lakbay Pananagutan ng People’s Assembly sa ibat-ibang institusyon tulad ng Batasan, Korte Suprema, at Edsa Shrine ngayong Setyembre 20 upang igiit na ang laban kontra diktadura ay hindi lamang pag-alala sa nakaraan—ito ay laban din sa mga anyo ng pang-aabuso sa kapangyarihan na nararanasan ng manggagawa sa kasalukuyan.

 

“Manggagawa laban sa diktadura, korapsyon at dinastiya!” ang paninindigan at panawagan ng PM.

 

“Ang Martial Law ay hindi dapat maging simpleng history lesson na inaalala tuwing Setyembre. Para sa manggagawa, may malinaw itong aral: kapag concentrated ang political at economic power sa iilan at mahina ang democratic institutions at organized labor, madaling maabuso ang kapangyarihan,” pahayag ni PM Chairperson Renato Magtubo.

 

Kasabay nito, bibigyang-diin ng PM sa Lakbay Pananagutan ang dalawang partikular na panawagan: “Trabahong endo at mababang sweldo ay diktadura sa manggagawa!” at “Paghadlang sa unyonismo, diktadura sa manggagawa!”

 

Ayon sa grupo, ginagamit nito ang salitang “diktadura” sa mga panawagang ito upang idiin ang kawalan ng tunay na bargaining power ng maraming manggagawa kapag insecure ang trabaho, kulang ang sahod, at nahahadlangan ang kanilang karapatang mag-organisa.

 

“Demokrasya cannot stop at the ballot box. Dapat may demokrasya rin sa workplace. Kung takot kang mawalan ng trabaho dahil contractual ka, kung kulang ang sweldo para mabuhay nang disente, o kung ang pag-uunyon ay sinasagkaan, napakaliit ng kapangyarihan ng manggagawa sa mga desisyong direktang nakakaapekto sa kanyang buhay,” ani Magtubo.

 

Para sa PM, magkaugnay ang laban kontra political dynasties at korapsyon at ang pagsusulong ng workers’ rights. Kapwa nakasentro ang mga usaping ito sa tanong kung sino ang may kapangyarihan, sino ang may boses, at sino ang nananagot.

 

“Never Again should therefore mean more than never again to Martial Law. It should also mean never again to the concentration and abuse of power, never again to attacks on democratic rights, and never again to a system where workers remain powerless despite creating the country’s wealth,” dagdag ni Magtubo.

 

Sa paggunita ng Setyembre 21, nananawagan ang PM na gawing buhay na bahagi ng pagtatanggol sa demokrasya ang regular at disenteng trabaho, living wage, malayang pag-uunyon at collective bargaining, pananagutan sa korapsyon, at mas malawak na partisipasyon ng mamamayan sa pamamahala.

 

“54 years after Martial Law, malinaw ang hamon: huwag hayaang bumalik ang awtoritaryanismo sa pulitika—at huwag hayaang manatili ang kawalan ng boses at kapangyarihan ng manggagawa sa lugar-paggawa. Manggagawa laban sa diktadura, korapsyon at dinastiya!”

PRESS RELEASE

20 September 2026

 

PM on DOLE’s secret and historic rollback of P85 wage hike

Wage Order No. 28, issued and published by the National Wages and Productivity Commission’s NCR Regional Wage Board today, created more wage confusion rather than hope, the Partido Manggagawa (PM) stated in response. 

 

“Ngayon ay mas maraming dapat ipaliwanag ang nagtatagong Labor Secretary. Ang Wage Order 28 ay historic rollback mula P85 – P60, Sec. Tolentino. Bukod pa sa ito ay sikretong desisyon ng regional wage board na hindi kasali ang manggagawa,” said PM Chairperson Renato Magtubo.

 

Magtubo said the new wage order shames Tolentino to the max as there was no judicious explanation for his retreat other than his kaduwagan (cowardice) against Judge Manongsong.

 

“Nakakahiya dahil nabahag ang buntot ni Tolentino sa harap ni Manongsong kahit napakatibay ng ligal na basehan na dapat ipatupad ng DOLE ang Wage Order 27 sa ilalim ng Labor Code at RA 6727, bukod pa sa nabigo din ang RII Builders at Readycon na mag-post ng P10-B bond para para maging effective ang injunction,” explained the PM leader. 

 

The group likewise insinuated that WO 28 is Malacañang’s compromise position with employers as the Labor Secretary acts only in accordance with the position of his boss, President Marcos, Jr. 

 

The result of this cowardice and compromised executive position: “Nadagdagan ang order, pero nabawasan ang wage.” 

 

It is also historic for NCR to get two wage orders, said Magtubo. “Dalawang wage orders na sa NCR, habang ang mga manggagawa sa ibang regions ay nganga at naghihintay sa wala.”

 

For PM, this is not simply a question of whether P60 or P85 is enough. The bigger problem is the system itself.

 

“Ang presyo ng mga produkto ay deregulated, diretso sa merkado sa lahat ng panig ng bansa. Pero ang sweldo, hindi aplikable sa lahat ng rehiyon at pwede pang pakialaman ng Judge,” said Magtubo. 

 

PM called for a comprehensive reform of the wage-setting system toward a mechanism that guarantees regular, timely and substantial wage increases; progressively eliminates unjustifiable regional wage gaps; and moves toward a national minimum wage based on genuine living wage standards.

 

PRESS RELEASE

Partido Manggagawa

11 September 2026