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| Lambert Parong |
New York, New York — More than 100 Filipino workers, advocates, and community members joined the 126th Philippine Independence Day parade on Sunday June 2 to amplify the victories and struggles of Filipino migrant workers, whose conditions continue to worsen both in the U.S. and in the Philippines. BAYAN USA-Northeast, Malaya Movement Northeast, and Damayan Migrant Workers Association, together with affiliate and allied organizations marched as a contingent under the main banner: “Filipino workers unite for livelihood and rights! Honor our history of struggle!” The contingent rallied together with the calls and demands for higher wages, condemnation of anti-worker policies in the Philippines such as Marcos Jr.’s Charter Change and the Jeepney Phaseout, protections for the right to organize and unionize, justice for Jollibee workers, and increased assistance and support for Overseas Filipino Workers (OFWs).
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| Lambert Parong |
There are more than two million OFWs in the U.S. carrying the backbone of the Philippine economy through their remittances and labor. This is a result of decades-long economic policies and programs, such as the Labor Export Policy, that Marcos Sr. first enacted in the 70’s in an attempt to sustain the country’s economy. Advocates continue the demand for the Marcos-Duterte regime to end this policy which has continuously failed to address the lack of local jobs and creation of industries in the Philippines itself, and to bolster the local economy in the Philippines instead. In 2022, OFWs contributed $36.14 billion in remittances according to Harvard Business Review. The Philippines remains linked to the U.S. as an integral source of income as a result of our greatest export: overseas Filipino labor.
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| Lambert Parong |
Carolina de Leon, Co-Coordinator of Malaya Movement New York, expressed in her speech, “Sa kabila ng lahat ng sakripisyo natin para sa pamilya, ang ating gobyerno ay walang suporta sa mga problemang kinakaharap natin, kung saan man tayo sa iba’t ibang panig ng mundo. Sila ay nakatuon lamang sa kung paano ibebenta ang cheap labor nating mga Pilipino. Para tayong mga raw materials na binebenta sa labas! Malinaw na ang gobyerno ni Marcos ay kahit kailan hinding-hindi magsisilbi sa mamamayan. Kaya kailangan wakasan na ang Labor Export Policy! (In addition to [forcing us] to sacrifice everything for our families, our government provides no support for the problems we face, wherever we are in different parts of the world. They are only focused on how to sell our cheap labor as Filipinos. We are like raw materials that are being sold outside [of the country]! It is clear that the Marcos government will never serve the people. The Labor Export Policy must cease to exist!).”
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| Lambert Parong |
Workers endure harsh working conditions at the risk of their health and sometimes, even their lives. One in every four healthcare workers in the greater New York City area is Filipino, many of whom died at the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic and lost loved ones to the disease, which ravaged concentrated Filipino communities in cities such as Jersey City and Queens. Today, home attendants—who care for the elderly, disabled, and severely ill who need 24-hour attention—are exploited as they work 24-hour shifts for multiple days in a row. The call for No More 24 was raised in the march, seeking to unite workers across all industries to unite and demand an end to these inhumane conditions.
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| Lambert Parong |
Other examples include Filipino workers in Jersey City who were illegally terminated from the Filipino fast food chain Jollibee for organizing for fairer wages and better working conditions. The Jersey City Jollibee workers experienced labor issues that appear to be common practice in other locations across the globe such as wage theft, chronic understaffing and scheduling issues, misclassification of workers, and worker mistreatment despite the company making record profits. Now, other locations along the Northeast are advocating for better rights, too.
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| Lambert Parong |
Ethan from the Justice 4 Jollibee Workers campaign and the New York Committee for Human Rights in the Philippines emphasized the community’s relentless support for Filipino workers organizing for their rights and livelihood: "We are here to say that we will never stop fighting for the rights of workers and the rights of all Jollibee workers in the U.S. and Philippines. The Justice 4 Jollibee Workers campaign is not just about what happened to the workers in Journal Square, but is about workers organizing together. We urge fellow Jollibee workers to speak up for better working conditions and higher wages."
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| Lambert Parong |
After the march, participants walked to Madison Square Park and held a community event “Piyesta in the Park,” a program filled with music, singing, dancing, tabling, and Filipino martial arts. The steady attendance and positive reception at the parade and park shows the support and aspiration from the community for a better Philippines. The mobilization season this summer continues as Filipinos fight for better working conditions and rights.
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| Lambert Parong |
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