Anna Chan:
Today's May Day saw thousands of workers and activists taking to the streets of Manila. They are calling on the Arroyo government to ensure job security amid food inflation. Let's take a look.

Thousands of workers storm the streets of Manila on Labour Day, marching in the direction of the presidential palace. They want job security amid rising food and gasoline prices and are calling on President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo to step down.

[Josua Mata, Progressive Labor Party]:
"With the great number of Filipinos going hungry, the workers are here, gathered to protest the weakness and the ineptness of this government to push for policies that will truly solve our problems. It's irritating to see that the government is only doing stop-gap solutions that don't really address the food crisis."

The workers are seeking a wage increase of 3 U.S. dollars and regulated prices for rice, oil and electricity. They feel the government proposed non-wage benefits will not help them deal with the food and gas price hikes.

President Arroyo has asked regional wage boards to accelerate an agreement on a wage increase. But public hearings are set to slow down discussions.