The Institute for Labor Studies (ILS) Executive Director Ahmma Charisma Lobrin-Satumba has approved the drafted 2020 Gender and Development (GAD) Plan and Budget of the ILS-GAD committee submitted by its current chair Ms. Malorie Joy O. Mones this June.

The said plan, which takes into consideration the changes brought about by COVID-19 pandemic situation, was created in line with the National Budget Circular No. 580, s. 2020 and Philippine Commission on Women (PCW) Memorandum Circular 2020-03 and for submission to PCW through its Gender Mainstreaming Monitoring System (GMMS).

Among the proposed activities was the conduct of online policy forums on gender issues/inequities in the world of work on the following indicative topics: Domestic Workers Act, Violence and Harassment in the Workplace, and/or Child Labor. The ILS-GAD committee also targets to conduct online knowledge-sharing /capacity-building activities on gender and development concepts, principles, and issues in the world of work for ILS employees in any or all of the following indicative topics: 1. Concubinage and adultery; 2. Teenage Pregnancy; 3. Sex Work; 4. Mental Health in the Workplace; 5. Decorum and Investigation for Sexual Harassment cases; and 6. Grievance handling.