KAMI ng aking anak na si Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Ejercito Estrada ay kaisa sa pag-obserba ng International Women’s Day nitong Marso 8, at ng National Women’s Month ngayong Marso.
Ang karapatan at pag-unlad ng kababaihan partikular ang mga kabilang sa workforce ng bansa ay isa sa mga adbokasiya ni Jinggoy, chairman ng Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development at ng Joint Congressional Oversight Committee on Labor and Employment (COCLE).
Kamakailan ay ipinasa ng Senado sa second reading ang kanyang iniakdang Senate Bill 429 (Expanding the Prohibited Acts of Discrimination Against Women on Account of Sex, Gender, Age, Race, Ethnic Origin, Religion or Beliefs, Disability or other status.) Idinideklara nito na diskriminasyon at iligal ang mga sumusunod na gawain kung ito ay ipatutupad dahil sa nabanggit na mga sirkumstansiya ng isang babae:
“Giving preference to a male employee over a female employee or applicant in the hiring process, whether through notices, announcements, or advertisements for employment and apprenticeship or in the actual recruitment, hiring or employment where the particular job can be equally handled by a woman; favoring a male employee with respect to promotion, assignment, training opportunities, study and scholarship grants; payment of a lesser remuneration, including wage, salary or other form of remuneration or fringe benefits to a female employee as against a male employee; dismissing a woman employee in favor of a male employee or having a retrenchment policy that retains men over women; demoting, making a condition of employment or subjecting a woman employee to any other form of discrimination in policy or in actual practice.”
Una nang naging batas (Republic Act 10151) ang isinulong din niyang pag-aalis ng “nightwork prohibition” o pagbabawal sa mga kababaihan na mag-trabaho sa gabi.
* * *
Happy birthday Bishop Salvador Modesto (March 10) at Archbishop Orlando Beltran Quevedo (March 11).