Page 10 - LM Confidential Issue November 2014

Little Manila
FILIPINO NEWS WORLDWIDE
PH, US deal protecting Fil-Am workers’ rights
MANILA, Philippines–The Philippines and the United States have signed an agreement strengthening bilateral efforts to protect the rights of Filipino workers in the United States by raising their and their employers’ awareness of their labor rights and responsibilities.
A partnership between the Department of Foreign Affairs and the US National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) has been formalized through the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on Oct. 22, a statement from the Philippine Embassy in Washington, D.C., said.
“We welcome the opportunity to enter into worker-related bilateral agreements such as this MOU as a step forward in the fulfillment of our mandate to protect worker rights,” Philippine Ambassador to the US Jose Cuisia Jr. said at the signing ceremony in Washington.
The deal, he said, was aimed at reaching out and educating members of the Filipino-American community about their rights and responsibilities as employees and employers.
Cuisia and NLRB General Counsel Richard Griffin led the signing of the agreement, which states that Filipino workers, their employers and Filipino business owners in the United States will be provided with “information guidance and access to education regarding their rights and responsibilities under the National Labor Relations Act.”
At the ceremony, Cuisia expressed gratitude to the US government for strengthening its collaborations with the Philippines and other countries that have large worker populations in the United States.
CHINESE DREAM
Filipino Entertainers in-demand in China
Many of the young actresses today say they want to follow the footsteps of Judy Ann Santos in terms of her career and her longevity in the industry.
If there’s one career advice Juday can tell them, it would be this: avoid being a diva because it gets you nowhere.
She’s happy that they look up to her, so she thinks she might have done something right in her career. She can only advise them to enjoy the ride and not to step on anyone’s toes.
“Iyon naman ang importante dun kasi, ‘di bale nang may masabi ka sa kanila, huwag lang sila ang may masabi sa iyo.”
It’s nice to work in the industry if you don’t have enemies. She wants people who worked with her to want to work with her again because it has been easy to be with her. She doesn’t want them to look back and regret the moments they spent together on the set. Being a diva doesn’t help any celebrity, Juday said. It doesn’t add to one’s status in the industry. In terms of her career and personal life, Juday said she’s fulfilled and happy.
Meanwhile, Juday explained why she decided to take on the role in the horror film “T’yanak” even if she’s already hosting two shows--”Bet On Your Baby” and “I Do.”
Acting is her first love. She’s really pas- sionate about it. Hosting just entered her life in the last three or four years.
She’s a very competent host, though, although this was something that Juday never thought she’ll do well. She’s naturally talkative but never to a point that she can entertain people with her wit.
Her husband, Ryan Agoncillo, has been a host since he entered showbiz. Juday said she always takes advices from him such as preventing to say words like “okay” and alright.”
Ryan advised her to be casual with her hosting stint, and to just enjoy the show.
SANYA, China—Despite the difficulties brought about by the tensions between the Philippines and China, Filipino singers are making their mark in this seaside city, regaling guests of hotels and resorts with their style of entertaining they call harana.
Cherry Navajas, 33, and Percival Golla, 39, have been working as entertainers in China for more than a decade.
“We entered China on a tourist visa, which was later converted to a working visa. It was easier back then,” said Navajas, who first arrived in Beijing in 2003. “Today, it’s a bit more difficult to get a working visa,” she said.
According to Golla, the killing of Hong Kong tourists during the Quirino Grandstand hostage-taking incident in August 2010 and the disputes over territories in the South China Sea may have somewhat contributed to this difficulty. “Sometimes, we also encounter guests who associate us with these issues because we’re Filipinos,” he said, recounting an experience she had with one of the guards at a resort. “He told me, ‘You Filipinos better stop claiming our islands!’” she recalled, laughing. “I stood my ground and said I had nothing to do with the issue,” she said.
“Some Chinese employees also defended me and asked him to stop harassing me,” she said.
Navajas originally wanted to be a flight attendant. After applying at an airline, she was told it would take time before she could be hired. “Some friends asked me if I wanted to tag along with them to sing in Beijing. I have been in China ever since.”
“My uncles invited me to work here because the pay and benefits are good,” said Golla, a father of two from Baras town, Rizal province.
Performers like Navajas and Golla can earn anywhere from P50,000 to P90,000 in a month. With other hotel employees, they are housed in a dormitory 30 minutes away
from the hotel. “Everything is provided for. We spend only if we want to cook something other than what is served in the canteen,” Navajas said.
Though they have been friends for years, Golla and Navajas are a fairly new musical team. Navajas’ original guitarist was her longtime partner Alan, who died of a brain tumor earlier this year.
“He was a good man.Today is actually his birthday, that’s why we are wearing green, his favorite color,” Navajas said. Alan’s brain tumor was diagnosed just last year. “He just stopped playing in the middle of our set,” Navajas said. “I asked him what was wrong, but he couldn’t answer me. He just blanked out. He couldn’t move his hands.”
She took him back to the Philippines, where he underwent an operation to remove the tumor. By December 2013, he was back playing in Sanya. “It was a busy season. It must have tired him out,” Navajas said. A few months later, Alan had a seizure. By March, he was dead. “It was a difficult time,” said Navajas. “I thought I was going crazy with sadness.” She took three months off work. Golla filled in for the couple, performing for the hotel guests.
By last June, Navajas was back at work, with Golla by her side. “The Chinese guests really like Filipino singers because we are good at singing foreign language songs,” he explained. “We’re really good at studying accents.”
They call their style of entertaining and singing harana, after the traditional Filipino lyrical song often used in courtship rituals.
Today, there may be an estimated 100 Filipinos working on Hainan Island, of which Sanya is one of the major cities. “Almost all the hotels here have Filipinos on their staff,” Navajas said.
To those who want to work as entertainers in China, she has only one tip: “Just have patience. Lots and lots of patience.”
Stop being Diva -
Judy Ann Santos
Pinay heads a US Naval Command
GUAM – One of the few females hold- ing a high-ranking position in the United States Navy is a Filipino.
Born in Hawaii to Filipino parents, US Navy Rear Admiral Bette Bolivar was raised in a traditional Filipino family.
“Ang tatay ko ay taga Bicol at ang nanay ko ay taga Pangasinan (My father is from
Bicol and my mother hails from Pangas- inan),” Bolivar said.
The first woman to assume the position of Commander Joint Region Marianas, Bolivar also holds the distinction of be- ing the first female commander of Navy Region Northwest.
For Sale Panasonic GH2 (NO BOX)
+ 14-45 lens (WITH BOX) $650
Camera, charger, extra battery
Call 416-945-2336
10
L. M. Confidential
NOVEMBER 2014
LMC