During the presidency of Ferdinand Marcos, Filipino workers in the labor industry experienced the effects of government corruption, crony capitalism, and cheap labor for foreign transnational industries, One of the objectives of Martial Law was to cheapen labor costs, in order to attract transnational corporations to export labor to the Philippines. Marcos signed many presidential decrees beneficial only to his associates, while allowing for the forced relocation of indigenous peoples, decreasing workers' wages, and murders of labor activists. Minimum wage was a fixed PHP8.00 per day. Many workers were unemployed or underemployed. It was also during the Marcos presidency when the practice of contractualization began, enabling managements to avoid giving regular, permanent status to employees after six months of work. Strikes were banned and the government controlled trade unions, leaving workers without effective protection against employers who had unfair labor practices and regulations.

Furthermore, with each year under Martial Law, economic conditions deteriorated due to a large trade deficit. Between 1974 and 1981, the trade deficit increased from $418 million to $2.2 billion, while the foreign debt increased from $5.1 million to $14.8 billion in 1976 and 1981. A study by the World Bank found that Philippine poverty increased between 1972 and 1978. Real wages for skilled for workers in urban areas fell by 23.8%, and for unskilled laborers the decline was 31.6%. Authors of the study concluded that "purchasing power has dropped in both urban and rural areas, in all regions, and practically all occupations," and the gap between rich and poor is "worse in the Philippines than elsewhere in the [Southeast Asian] region. In this context, the material conditions of the working class was greatly in contrast to the lavish opulence of crony capitalism under of the Marcos regime. These are some of the factors that propelled workers to resist the Marcos dictatorship.

These workers protested against the Marcos regime in forms of silent strikes, sit-down strikes, work slowdowns, mass leaves and the stretching of the break period.

The first major strike against the dictatorship was in La Tondeña, then the largest distillery in Asia. The workers protested and continued to do so despite the ban. In the following months, around 200 strikes broke out nationwide, with 80,000 participating. In Manila alone, there were 25 strikes, with 40,000 participating. In 1981, after Marcos nominally lifted Martial Law, 260 strikes took place, with over 76,000 workers involved. Labor unions against the dictatorship increased in number and strength under martial law.

The La Tondeña strike

In the La Tondeña strike, over 500 workers went on strike, led by student activist Edgar Jopson and veteran labor activists, church people, labor unions, and the surrounding community. On the second day of the protest, the police cracked down on the area and arrested the workers. Word of the protest spread, becoming one of the symbols of resistance. Marcos responded by proclaiming a decree that outlawed all strikes across all industries. Nevertheless, the strike was a political turning point. The La Tondeña workers' slogan, "Tama Na, Sobra, Welga Na," was later adapted by protestors in the final years of the Marcos dictatorship.

Martyrs and heroes honored at the Bantayog ng mga Bayani Danilo M. Aguirre (September 17, 1955 – June 21, 1982) – During Martial Law, Aguirre joined a parish-based group focused on making people aware of their rights. He joined protest actions and political campaigns. He also helped in organizing farmers in Central Luzon. As their group held a meeting in Bulacan, government troops surrounded them. Aguirre's body, along with four other comrades (Borlongan, Llorente, Manimbo and Medina) were later found dead. Collectively, they are known as the Bulacan Martyrs. Jose E. Alcantara (June 27, 1941 – June 14, 1981) – He was a farmer in Daet, Camarines Norte, where he and his family were constantly threatened by the presence of soldiers. He joined a protest in June 1981, which was met by military force. Soldiers fired bullets in the crowd, killing Alcantara and at least three others. The event came to be known as the Daet Massacre. Chuck Anastacio (May 11, 1955-December 18, 1982; born Marciano P. Anastacio Jr.) - Chuck Anastacio was an urban poor community and labor organizer who played key roles in the 1975 La Tondeña Distillery strike and in the unionization of workers of Gelmart Industries Philippines. When a military agent shot him in the face and left him for dead in 1980, he was compelled to join the underground resistance against the Marcos regime in light of the likelihood of further attacks on him and his loved ones. Nonetheless, he died in an ambush by military forces in December 1982. Elsa Balando (January 1, 1949 - May 1, 1971) - Balando was a factory worker and union organizer at Rossini’s Knitwear Factory in Caloocan City. She was part of the 4000 crowd which formed in front of the Congress building in Manila (which has since been repurposed as the National Museum of the Philippines) in commemoration of International Labor Day on May 1, 1971. Armed troops from the 55th Philippine Constabulary Company and the Philippine Constabulary Metropolitan Command (Metrocom) were assigned to the event. The crowd heard explosions and gunshots, and eventually three rallyists were killed - Balando, and two others named Richard Escarta and Ferdinand Oaing; fifteen other rallyists were wounded. The event came to be known as the May Day Massacre of 1971. Crispin B. Beltran (January 7, 1933 – May 20, 2008) – 'Ka Bel' had been a major labor leader since the 1950s and was a founding member of the Kilusang Mayo Uno, an "independent and democratic labor center promoting genuine, militant and anti-imperialist trade unionism." He was elected to the Philippine Congress in 1981 to represent the poor and marginalized sectors in society. Edwin G. Borlongan (May 14, 1959 – June 21, 1982) – Borlongan worked in Tondo, Manila as a driver/mechanic when he participated in the grassroots movement against the Marcos dictatorship. In 1981, he returned to his home in Bulacan and volunteered in helping organize farmers. He was meeting with other four activists (Aguirre, Llorente, Manimbo and Medina) when they were arrested by the military. He and his fellow organizers, now known as the Bulacan Martyrs, were later found dead. Amado Guinto Bugay (February 6, 1954 – April 9, 1977) – Bugay experienced extreme poverty without enough land and resources. He joined the activist organization, Samahang Demokratikong Kabataan, to motivate other young people to stand up for their rights against landlords, corrupt politicians and exploitative factory owners. He later joined a guerrilla unit in Bataan and was killed during an encounter with government troops. Claro Gringco Cabrera (December 14, 1956 – May 31, 1984) – Cabrera was a construction worker turned political activist who organized urban poor communities in Angeles City, Pampanga. He was active in the protests after the assassination of Sen. Ninoy Aquino, becoming part of the Concerned Citizens of Pampanga and joining nationwide Lakbayan and Sakbayan marches. He was picked up and taken to a Philippine Constabulary camp along with Deheran and Castro, where they were beaten and forced into admitting they were part of the New People's Army to no avail. He was later found dead bearing stab wounds.CABRERA, Claro G. Bantayog ng mga Bayani. October 14, 2015. Retrieved February 24, 2021 Rolando Castro (April 1, 1954 – May 31, 1984) – Castro was a tricycle driver and community organizer of the Concerned Citizens of Pampanga. He was active in many protest movements, including the boycott of the 1984 Batasang Pambansa elections. Shortly after, he was picked up by the Philippine Constabulary with Claro Cabrera and Pepito Deheran. Authorities beat him and tried to force an admission that he was part of the NPA. He was later found dead near the Apalit river in Pampanga.CASTRO, Rolando M. Bantayog ng mga Bayani. October 15, 2015. Retrieved February 24, 2021. Ronellio "Noel" Clarete (September 26, 1963 – March 1984) – Clarete was a senior commerce student in Batangas and a leading member of the Justice for Aquino Justice for All (JAJA) movement. With three other men (Evangelio, Magpantay and Umali, collectively known as the Lakbayan martyrs or Lakbayanis), he disappeared during a Lakbayan (Lakad para sa Kalayaan ng Bayan) march in March 1984. His mutilated body was later found in Silang, Cavite.CLARETE, Ronillo Noel M. Bantayog ng mga Bayani. October 15, 2015. Retrieved February 23, 2021. Adrian Cortez (June 22, 1954 - ca. August 4, 1983; born Hernando Mondoy Cortez) – A student leader and activist at the Gregorio Araneta University Foundation (GAUF) where he had majored in agriculture, Hernando Mondoy Cortez decided to quit his studies and move back home to Mindanao, where he changed his name to Adrian and worked for the Institute for Workers’ Education and Leadership Training, of the United Methodist Student Center in Davao City. He went around Davao City, Davao del Norte and del Sur, North Cotabato, and South Cotabato doing lectures on trade union work for banana plantation workers, stevedores, and commercial establishment workers. He eventually became known for being one of the pillars of the labor movement in Mindanao, helping organize the Center of Trade Unions in Mindanao (CENTRUM) and the Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Mindanao (United Workers in Mindanao/ NAMAMIN, which was the Mindanao chapter of the Kilusang Mayo Uno. He disappeared in General Santos City in early August 1983, and his family members finally found his body, bearing the signs of torture, in a funeral parlor later that month. Realizing that the military authorities were giving conflicting dates for Adrian's death, his father had the death certificate marked August 4, 1983, believing that Adrian had been caught by Marcos' soldiers and then tortured and killed on that date. Pepito Lumanta Deheran (January 6, 1957 – June 2, 1984) – Deheran was a member of the Concerned Citizens of Pampanga who campaigned for the boycott of the 1984 Batasang Pambansa elections. Along with Cabrera and Castro, he was tortured and interrogated by government troops. While the two died immediately afterwards, Deheran survived and was able to give a sworn statement to identify his attackers. While he was in the hospital, however, he was stabbed to death.DEHERAN, Pepito L. Bantayog ng mga Bayani. October 15, 2015. Retrieved February 23, 2021. Silme Garciano Domingo – Domingo was born in America from Filipino migrant parents. He helped organize a union among cannery workers in Alaska, promoting the rights of people of color. He established the Katipunan ng Demokratikong Pilipinas, and was active in a US-based coalition against the Marcos regime. He was killed by a gunman paid by a friend of the dictator. After his death, a United States court ordered the Marcoses to pay $15 million in damages to his family. Ruth Dueñas (December 2, 1959 - January 23, 1983) - Ruth Dueñas was a Davao City based labor organizer with the Concerned Citizens for Justice and Peace (CCJP), a human rights organization which Catholic nuns had helped organize. She helped labor unions in organizing strikes and protests, and brought food and basic necessities to workers on strike. And she joined in campaigns calling for the end of the authoritarian regime of Ferdinand Marcos. Ruth was in a meeting with Davao labor leaders in Barangay San Isidro Bunawan in Davao City when their meeting venue was surrounded the Philippine Constabulary. Two members of their group were summarily executed on the spot, while Ruth and several others were taken away, only for their bodies to turn up later bearing gunshot wounds and signs of abuse the day after.