CEDAW/C/PHI/5-6 inspected in 1995; 25.5 percent of 37,080 in 1998, and 26.4 percent of 33,914 in 2001 (BLES 2003d). 349. Another piece of legislation (RA 6725, enacted in 1989) sought to strengthen the prohibition on discrimination against women with respect to terms and conditions of employment. The labor department has since issued the Implementing Rules, which defined “work of equal value” and set forth the conditions under which payment of a lower compensation or benefits to a female employee does not constitute discrimination. Because of the ambiguities in the implementing rules, however, the pay equality provision has yet to take effect, and compliance of employers monitored. 350. The Labor Code provides for the payment of overtime pay for work performed on holidays and beyond regular working time. Of the firms inspected by government from 1995, about 3.3 percent were found to have either underpaid or not paid their workers for overtime work rendered. This rose to 3.9 percent in 1998 and 1999, but later settled down to 3.5 percent in 2000 and 2001 (BLES 2003d). Another 10 percent (as compared to 7 percent in 1996) were found to have violated mandated holiday, rest day or service incentive pay. Whether or not workers got paid as a result of the disposition of the cases of violation could not be deduced from the available data. 351. The Labor Code also prohibits night work for women, except in specified circumstances. While this might aim to protect women workers, it discriminates against women, as it does not address the real issue of security for women working at night. Compliance to the night-work prohibition cannot be ascertained, but government has begun to respond to this issue (see section on programs, below). 352. On occupation health and safety, various studies and reports of the Occupational Safety and Health Center (OSHC) highlighted the following issues relevant to women workers: a. Exposure to lead and solvents in the semiconductor industry. Some of the women exposed to lead showed obstetrical and gynecological signs, such as spontaneous abortion (OSHC 1996). Semiconductor and microelectronics companies install local and general exhaust systems to control the ill effects of solvents, but workers, mainly women, frequently complained of narcotic effects and respiratory tract and skin irritations. Although clinical, laboratory and biologic test results were not conclusive on the effects of solvent exposure on workers, continuous monitoring and surveillance of the industry were recommended to prevent the occurrence of possible occupational or work-related diseases, such as the Steven Johnson Syndrome (OSHC 2001a). b. Stress in teaching. Compensation claims filed by public schoolteachers with the Government Service Insurance System (GSIS) and the Employee Compensation Commission (ECC) indicate that teachers usually suffer from heart disease and cardiovascular accidents, pulmonary tuberculosis, allergy and bronchial asthma, peptic ulcer, and pneumonia. Equally common complaints are malignancy, gastro-intestinal tract disorders, kidney and urinary tract diseases, reproductive disorders and neurological problems (OSHC 1997). c. Sleep disorder and other health problems related to night work. Women workers in a yarn factory do not think of the health hazards of working the night shift and admit to being 97