Express and Shout

MANILA, Philippines—It will be a long weekend this week after Malacanang on Wednesday announced that May 3 will be a non-working holiday in the country so as to give Filipinos a chance to observe Labor Day.

Labor Day or May 1 falls on a Saturday this year but in keeping with its holiday economics policy, Malacanang has decided to move the observation of the holiday on the nearest work day, which is May 3 or this Monday, Executive Secretary Leandro Mendoza said.

Labor officials the other day said President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo will not make any wage increase announcements on Labor Day because wage boards in seven regions that have filed wage hike petitions were still holding deliberations that may conclude only in two or three weeks' time.

But they said the Palace will hold a “mega, mega” job fair on May 1 that will see the government offering 60,000 to 80,000 local and foreign jobs, the biggest ever in the nine-year-old Arroyo administration.

Source: 
by: Christine Avendaño
Philippine Daily Inquirer