We seem to be taking a lot of things out of context, but overworking should not be one of them. In a world where we see doctors, nurses, teachers, lawyers, and the likes working long and tedious hours in their respective jobs, the last thing they need is discredit from their hard work. This was exactly what occurred when a local director of a viral Facebook page, VinCentiments, posted a satirical video in which Senator Imee Marcos, sister of Ferdinand “Bongbong” Marcos Jr., was featured.
In the video, we see Imee and a couple of her kumares pertaining to a certain “Len-len” who fainted while working after 18 hours. After a few snotty jokes and remarks, the video concludes with a message saying, “Anyone who claims to work 18 hours a day is either lying or stupid.” This happens to be Yap quoting an article title of Geoffrey James, an American journalist, which actually showed Yap completely misinterpreting the whole idea of the article. In fact, James’ article was actually about how to make use of one’s time effectively and increase work quality. Yap, instead, used the article as an attempt to attack VP Leni Robredo’s claim that she works 18 hours a day.
Needless to say, it sparked an uproar of rage and disgust from the netizens who had families themselves that worked even way more than the accussed 18 hours of “Len-len”, and they were quite frank in emphasizing the fact that people who work at 18 hours a day are neither lying nor stupid. Stories of doctors and nurses working for 24-36 hour shifts, teachers coming home from school and checking countless test papers, and lawyers staying up all night to build a solid argument for their case started surfacing in the comments section of Yap’s viral video. Take note that Yap is infamously known for his controversial segments of contents in which he constantly posts in his Facebook page, so this is definitely not his first notorious act, yet, this has definitely crossed a certain line for some Filipinos.
It was truly a statement that pierced the hearts of thousands or even millions of Filipinos that pour their blood, sweat, and tears to provide a decent meal for their family and for themselves. May they be working abroad, or just within the borders of the Philippines, the anger and pain that the message induced reaches no limit. Overworking should not be glorified, but it should also not be belittled. People having to work the whole day or perhaps even more than the hours of one complete day is the result of a system that failed to compensate our fellow laborers and employees that work under their respective sectors. And surely enough, people who fail to see the problem in this certain dilemma and choose to be neutral swim comfortably in their pool of privileges, which is also a different issue for another day.
However, overworking for Filipinos can be seen as a badge for their honest work and the contribution that the society benefits from their perseverance and courage to endure all the hours of their load on a day-to-day basis, and this is without glorifying nor romanticizing the concept of overworking. It is simply a call to appreciate and give credit where credit is due for our diligent Filipinos. It is basic human decency to realize that workers should be respected, and not be discredited for the long hours they put in. Discouraging Filipinos to overwork and stressing themselves out is one thing, and invalidating their hard work is another.
