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INTEGRATING FILIPINO VALUES IN MANAGING INDUSTRIAL

RELATIONS F. Landa Jocano Professor, Asian Center

University of the Philippines

INTRODUCTION

Much has already been written about Filipino values. Many are based on

impressions; some on systematic surveys. Few writers have inquired into the positive

functions of these values in society; many look at them in negative ways, mainly in

association with the undesirable traits or behavior of Filipinos.

Of course what scholars write about are those which they have observed or

researched. But as an old saying puts it: “How you look is what you see.” Many of us,

including the writers, look at ourselves in negative ways because we are told in schools

and in the media that our values cause all the undesirable traits we have and all the

troubles that surrounds us.

Why did we have these negative views about our values? To answer this question

is to go back to history. We have been colonized by Spain for four hundred years and by

the United States for forty-eight years. During those times, the colonizers imposed on us

their own cultural standards for thinking, believing, and doing things. The Spaniards used

the Church to achieve the change in us and the Americans used the school to do the

same. The influence of these two major colonizers has become embedded in our

consciousness that we believe and reason like them. We learn to dislike our values

because they were (and today still are) branded as backward, traditional, and

superstitious while those of the colonizers are rational, desirable and modern.

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But these outside influences are superficial. They form the layer of our mental and

emotional modes of thinking, believing, and doing things. They also exist only in the

formal structures of our institutions. Beneath the veneers of changes remained intact the

native or indigenous value system which continue to emphasize the “oughts’ and the

oughts’ not” in our system of values. But since our institutions do not provide the proper

venue for their positive functions, these values are generally judged as inappropriate for

institutional behavior.

To justify our biases, we set up institutional rules making these values

dysfunctional as in the civil service where our kinship loyalties become nepotism, our gift-

giving become a form of graft and corruption, where our friendship become cronyism, and

our politeness become timidity and shyness.

Because of these institutional impediments, our values become repressed in our

subconscious as negative traits. We deny them overtly but we keep them covertly. We

argue like the Westerners but we feel and want to behave as Orientals. The ambivalence

produces coping mechanisms which we describe as undesirable or negative traits and

which we complain a great deal.

Perhaps if we start looking at the positive side of the values, we may understand

ourselves, as Filipinos better, and ultimately change our ways of looking at ourselves. In

the process we may be able to redirect our perspectives toward better appreciation of our

cultural traits and values and to use them to achieve better ends.

This is particularly important in industry. The industry is a formal organization

made up of individuals with diverse backgrounds and values. Management has to level

these and mold into a corporate collectivity of shared sentiments. The worker has to

understand these values in order to respond satisfactorily to corporate demands.

Management and labor relations can be made more dynamic in this way: reciprocal

understanding of each other’s values and value orientation.

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This reciprocity is needed in order to survive. The corporation needs labor in order

to survive and make profits. Labor needs the corporation needs labor in order to earn a

livelihood and survive the realities of urban life. Both of them need each other for survival.

If they are continuously at odds, nobody survives. Understanding of cultural values is the

link between labor and management.

MEANING OF VALUES

Values are commonly shared standards on the basis of which people judge things

around them as right or wrong, good or bad, just or unjust, appropriate or inappropriate.

Associated with values are norms. Norms are rules of conduct specific to situations or

conditions where behavior takes place.

Values are internalized in the process of growing up. Norms are established as a

result of interactions people have with one another in various situations and conditions.

As these values and norms become part of their experiences, these also become

embodied in their personalities, retrieved as principles with which they guide their future

behavior.

Filipinos behave the way they do because they are observing certain standards

and conforming to certain rules or norms. Many people who have been exposed to

western standards and norms often find it difficult to understand Filipino behavior.

THE NOTION OF VALUE IN FILIPINO CULTURE

The closest Filipino term to value is kahalagahan. It is derived from the word

halaga, meaning precious, essential, vital, important, desirable, and significant. Halaga

is also used as an economic term, meaning price or worth. On the whole, kahalagahan

transcends all this and can be viewed as a set of principles that Filipinos hold so dearly,

that they are willing to sacrifice even their lives for it.

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In Filipino psychology, halaga and all its enduring attributes are embodied in the

concept of asal. The term refers to the inner representation of external behavioral

realities. It is standard for what is at once good, desirable, moral, ethical, beautiful and

true in life. That is why Filipinos judge each other in terms of magandang asal (good

character) or masamang asal (bad character). Persons with good asal are liked; those

with bad ones are set aside as deviants.

Asal also embodies the Filipino code of ethics. It defines the “ought’s” and “ought’s

not” in individual and group life. It is the source (pinagmulan) of the constitutive rules

governing order, coherence, continuity, and change in Filipino cultural practices and

institutions. It synthesizes within it the metaphor of group consciousness about “what

counts as what” in the organization of everyday life; a moral judgment of a kind that

provides meaningful interpretation of ideas, objects, and events in the surrounding world.

FILIPINO CORE VALUES

The asal is made up of three core elements. These are the kapwa (relational

imperatives), damdamin (emotional imperatives), and dangal (moral imperatives).

These elements are instigators of behavior within the individual and sources of

regularities of actions in group transactions. They give rise to specific orientations to the

environment, as well as to perceptions and expectations individuals should have when

interacting.

Kapwa. As a concept, kapwa refers to equality in status or of being a part of an

entity. That is why we speak of kapwa-tao when we talk about a fellow human being.

Similarly, we use kapwa manggagawa to refer to fellow worker. The statuses occupied in

the organization may be different but membership to the organization is perceived to be

the same. Before the “eye of God,” everybody is equal; they may have different statuses

in specific areas of life.

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Kapwa is used to emphasize the high premium we give to relationships. We are,

by cultural orientation relationalists, not individualists. We give much significance to

interpersonal relations. In fact, such emphasis has moral undertones. We expect to be

treated well. Older people generally advise the young: “kailangan marunong

makipagkapwa sa kasamahan” (you need to get along with your companions). Or “dapat

marunong kang tumingin sa kapwa-tao” (it is necessary that you know how to treat others

as fellow human beings).

To uphold the quality of treatment in kapwa relation, several norms or rules of

conduct have to be observed. The more dominant norms associated with interpersonal

relations are: pakikisama, pakikitungo, and pakikiramay.

In popular usage, pakikisama is used to refer to the desire or demand “to come along

with.” Ethically, it means to be concerned about, to be supportive and/or to be helpful at

all times. Pakikisama has social referents. It is used to define relationship in social

situations mainly.

Pakikitungo means to act humbly, to deal with others properly, and to conduct oneself

towards another in the most appropriate way. As a norm, pakikitungo has personal

referents. It governs how an individual should behave towards others in specific

situations. Those who relate to others humbly and properly are looked up to as “madaling

pakitunguhan” (easy to get along with). Some troubles in formal organization arise

because of transgression of this norm. In one company the workers struck because of

“masamang pakikitungo ng may-ari ng kumpanya” (because the owner dealt with the

workers badly).

The strong moral undertone of kapwa is expressed in the norm of pakikiramay.

The term is derived from the concept of damay, meaning to condole, to express sympathy,

to share somebody’s sorrows, and to show compassion; pities, Filipinos, culturally, are

compassionate people. They are easily moved by crises others unfortunately find

themselves in. Pakikiramay is a norm governing behavior in time of crisis. It is expected

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that during crisis, one has to go out of his way to condole, sympathize, or share the

sorrows. Pakikiramay is voluntary. Anyone who shows unconcern in time of crises is

generally ostracized. People talk about his/her uncaring behavior.

Damdamin. The second element in Filipino value system is damdamin or

emotional standard. This standard accounts for much of the sensitivity Filipinos have in

almost everything he does. As a concept, it refers to the emphasis Filipinos place on

feelings or emotions. It focuses attention on the mode and specificity of relations.

Damdamin can also mean refined or tender feeling, a state of mind, a disposition, or a

spirit. Because of this concern, damdamin underlies much of Filipinos way of relating to

all conditions, situations, and realities of things around him. It is in fact fairly accurate to

say that Filipino rationality is ninety-five percent (95%) subjectivity.

To prevent conflicts arising from transgression of damdamin, there are specific

rules of conduct to observe in all occasions. The most dominant norms supportive of the

damdamin value are; hiya, “amor propio / delicadeza” and awa.

Hiya is the most popular norms which is often mistaken as a value itself. As a rule,

hiya has social referents. It is used to define how one should behave in public and in

relation to others. Hiya has often been defined as shame, embarrassment, timidity, and

shyness. These rather negative attributes are found in hiya and also include politeness,

bashfulness, and self-esteem. The most important thing to remember is that hiya is a

norm defining public behavior. That is why it gives so much emphasis on the mukha or

face which has to be saved in public.

Hiya has several subcategories, defining level of feelings in different situations, the

most important ones are: nangingimi (from the word ngimay, meaning to feel numbed)

or unable to proceed with original plan, atubili or uncertainly, and alinlangan or

hesitation.

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Next to hiya are amor propio and delicadeza. These are Spanish terms which

Filipinos use to define damdamin in highly personalized feelings of self-esteem. Some

analysts translate these terms as “self-love” or “self-control.” These do not express only

sentiments but also moral judgments. Amor propio and delicadeza are ego-oriented.

They are associated with personal eccentricity and extreme sensitivity. Both are

embodied in the Filipino concept of “balat sibuyas” or onion-skinned. The onion-skinned

concept expresses well the notion of mukha or face in Filipino culture. By all means the

face must be protected; in critical situations, it must be saved.

The third norm in damdamin value is awa. It is crisis-oriented. It means pity, compassion,

mercy, charity, kind-heartedness, and sincerity. It is expected that in time of crisis, one

need not be called upon to help. To have no awa is not to be like a Filipino. Going out of

one’s way to condole or offer assistance is viewed as appropriate and moral behavior. It

shows loyalty, sincerity and kindheartedness.

Dangal. The third value in Filipino culture is dangal. It embodies the moral

imperatives of the system. In popular usage, dangal refers to personal honor and dignity.

As a moral norm it is used to characterize identity, pride and commitment to ideas,

principles, practices and people. As a value, it summarizes the kapwa and the damdamin

into one integrated whole: moral and ethical mode of perception, expectations and action.

Supportive of dangal as a moral value are several norms. Among the dominant

ones are: bahala or pagbabahala, galang, utang na loob.

Bahala or its action-correlate, pagbabahala means responsibility. Filipinos expect

that relationships must not be defined as purely social transactions but also as moral

obligations actors have to one another. Many conflicts occur when the pagbabahala is

lost in interpersonal and intergroup relations. Sometimes pagbabahala is embedded in

“very patronizing” behavior. It is made manifest in hordes of people sending off (hatid) or

welcoming (sundo) relatives from a trip.

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Galang means respect. It is one of the important moral norms in the Filipino value

system. It is imperative that a Filipino respect his word of honor, status, and feelings of

others. Galang is used to prevent people from losing face or being mapahiya and

therefore avoid conflicts. The norms is often used as a moral injunction for undesirable

behavior involving kapwa damdamin.

Utang na loob refers “debt of gratitude.” It is established when interactions are

carried out in the name of friendship, is sought after, or offered voluntarily as in time of

crisis. Utang na loob involves reciprocity. In rural areas it includes specific jobs like

plowing the filed or building a house. If one asks another to help him plow his field, it is

expected that when the one who gave the favor is in need, the former comes to his aid.

Or else he would be accused of “walang utang na loob” (no debt of gratitude). In the

urban setting, utang na loob is established when one helps another land a job. The one

who received the favor has utang na loob to the one who did him the favor.

Functionally, utang na loob serves as the moral force underlying the interpersonal

or intergroup transactions which involve responsibility of the actors to each other,

especially in time of need or crisis.

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CORE VALUES AND BEHAVIOR

At the outset of this paper we said that unless the core values of Filipinos are

understood, we will never understand or appreciate Filipino behavior. We took time to

describe and characterize these core values because they are central to the way Filipinos

think, believe, feel and act. It is relationships that are important. Minding one’s business

is not the rule in Philippine society; to be concerned with what others are doing seems to

be the dominant theme in community life. Whether this is good or bad is not the issue

here. The issue is that Filipinos behave the way they do because there are certain

assumptions or postulates internal to their personalities telling them that what they are

doing are right or wrong. Educated Filipinos and foreign observers have other coeds

governing their cognitive, expressive, and evaluative systems. That is why they tend to

look at Filipinos in negative rather than positive ways.

It is because of this internal value system that in all aspects of interactions, Filipinos

give emphasis on kapwa, damdamin, and dangal. These three elements in the value

system underlie and give to Filipino modes of communication as well as decision making.

These modes include pagsangguni, paghihikayat and pagkakasundo.

Pagsangguni means “to consult.” Filipinos always expect to be consulted. This

is one way of avoiding conflicts from transgressions of relational, emotional, and moral

imperatives governing behavior. To consult is the norm for proper behavior. It means

enabling others to participate in the decision or decision making process, i t is to be

democratic.

Paghihikayat involves expectation. It means to persuade or to convince. This

explains why Filipinos do not go directly to the point. They are almost always ambiguous

in their communication. Filipinos desire not only to be consulted but also to be convinced

that he is an important part of the event being considered. It gives the individual a sense

of belonging to whatever is being transacted.

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The third mode of communication resulting from the core values is

pagkakasundo. It means consensus. Filipino culture is not confrontational in orientation;

it is consensual. Consensus is desired as a mode of communication because in this way

transgressing the principles of kapwa, damdamin, and dangal is avoided. Avoidance of

conflict, if possible, is sought after because internally what is being emphasized in the

value system is respect, honor, and dignity of those one is interacting with.

Figure 1: Interaction of community and Corporate Subcultures

Cultural norms Cultural norms

Area

of

1. Personal conflicts 1.impersonal

2. Subjective 2.objective

3. Familial area of integrations 3.organizational

Worker manager

Community subculture corporate subculture

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VALUES AND INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

Industrial relations is used in this paper in a special way. It is defined as the

working relations between people who work in the industry for living. These include

workers and managers. The working relationships may be formally laid out, as in written

contracts, or informally, as in office practice. Nevertheless, the resultant affects

management and supervision styles, attitudes, motivations and outputs among others.

The stress in this definition of industrial relations is on behavior. In context,

industrial relations is a special kind of social encounter, either in boardrooms, office or

shop floors. The individuals or set of individuals interact in a corporate setting, for the

purpose of attaining certain production or service ends. How they carry on these

interactions determine the momentum of productivity.

And since attitudes, habits and motivations affect work performance, it is important

that these be understood in the context of the cultural and value systems existing in the

environment where the workers come from and where the corporations operates. It

follows from this observation that the initial step to improve industrial relations is to

incorporate, as part of the major industrial relations strategy, Filipino values. After all,

the workers are Filipinos and the industry is operating in the Philippine cultural

environment. The second step is to sustain training programs - in-house or otherwise

- in order to allow these values to seep down into the consciousness of the workers and

the managers. And the third step is to complement these training programs with

projects that can be operationalized as empirical evidences for everyone not only to see

but also to experience.

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EPILOGUE

We are not concluding this paper. The descriptions above are preliminary and

highly tentative. We are continuing in our study of Filipino values, hoping that once

examined in their proper context, we would be able to understand ourselves better. Better

understanding forms the basis of positive thinking and a highly appreciation of one’s own

traditional system. Let us begin with our values. Let us start in this industry. Let us

retrieve these values from the dustbin of our colonial neglect and modern prejudices and

use them positively to enrich and strengthen our industrial relations.

PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION BY THE YEAR 2000:

LOOKING BACK INTO THE FUTURE

Tapales, Prosperina Et. Al. National College of Public Administration and Governance (NCPAG)

University of the Philippines – Diliman Quezon City

pp.178 - 185