Producing computer hardware - an investigative report on labour conditions in the supply chain of the ICT sector in the Philippines

Labour conditions in Philippine's ICT sector

This study focuses on labour conditions in the supply chain of information and communication technology (ICT) sector in the Philippines.

The ICT sector dominates the Philippine electronics industry contributing 49.5 percent to the country’s total exports. The sector includes the production of computer units, peripherals and semi-conductors. The low (or competitive) labour costs and the incentives offered by the Philippine Government pave the way for the massive influx of multinational companies in the ICT hardware sector

The study covers 12 companies producing computer hardware, and investigates, among other things:

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) policies of the companies and their clients
the status of union organisations
employment practices
differences in wage levels
implementation of health and safety standards
regulations inside the factory and its effects on the workers

Main findings include:

labour issues are either not part of a company’s CSR clause or not observed
workers are regarded as mere production machinery necessary to churn out profit for the company
there is a growing trend of contractualization of labour with most of the labourers being employed for a specific period or a project
there is a widespread violation of general labour standards
companies strictly prohibit the workers from joining labour union

On the positive side

there is no forced labour
there is no discrimination on the basis of sex, ethnicity, religion, social origin and political opinion
workers get free annual medical examination and free medical consultation by company doctors and company-accredited hospitals

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Producing computer hardware - an investigative report on labour conditions in the supply chain of the ICT sector in the Philippines