The labor group Partido Manggagawa
(PM) expressed support for the riders of Angkas who are facing displacement due
to a cap set by the Land Transportation and Regulatory Board (LTFRB). The LTFRB
Technical working Group has reduced the number of riders from Angkas to 10,000
from 27,000 by the start of the 2020. Angkas riders launched a massive protest from
White Plains to Quezon Circle today.
“We call on the LTFRB to withdraw its
decision. Almost 20,000 Angkas riders are facing a sad Christmas and a bleak
new year. Fostering competition in the motorcycle taxi sector is good but it
should not lead to massive dislocation of riders. These Angkas riders have
already went through months of training and practical experience in plying
motorcycle taxis. Only for them to end up jobless due to a LTFRB decision,” asserted
Wilson Fortaleza, PM spokesperson.
Fortaleza spoke this afternoon as an
assembly of riders in Malolos, Bulacan. Many of the riders in the Malolos
assembly joined the Angkas riders protest in Metro Manila.
PM has a history of solidarity with
riders’ issues and struggles as it considers them as workers. Aside from the legalization
of the motorcycle taxi, PM has supported the fight of riders against the plaka
vest and the doble plaka.
“We also call on the Department of
Labor and Employment to study the employment relations in the TNVS sector,
including motorcycle taxis, and issue appropriate regulations. While companies
like Angkas and Grab treat their drivers as independent contractors, we believe
this is a misclassification as they should be categorized as employees with concomitant
rights. The government must support the transition of riders and drivers from
the informal to the formal sector. Thus this is not just a question of
livelihood but also of labor standards and workers’ rights,” insisted Fortaleza.
He explained that “Workers comprise 99%
of motorcycle riders in the country. The transportation sector is the second
biggest employer in the service industry with a total workforce of 3.2 million
o o 7.8 per cent of the total employed persons in 2018. Motorcycles are popular
with the working masses, both in the formal and informal economy. It is cheap
and convenient for going to and from work and as a vehicle for livelihood.”
According to data from the Philippine
Statistics Authority, there are already 6.2 million registered motorcycles and
tricycles as of 2013. The number is growing fast. More than 2 million
motorcycles were registered just in the first 10 months of 2018. ###
Photos of the riders assembly can be
accessed at https://www.facebook.com/partidomanggagawa/posts/10157702508339323?__xts__[0]=68.ARBC1Xhza9QYuECJEZvavVo_8e3wkBlM18oE9mFtb_egiy0C9JADtQsz-e4vPMvcCJ53_2omy1YRXs3ZTvtnvlYL75Mhxy2yc00752BmizKG9L1tTCBuGBA77jHqbdAxsUC6oZBm_rMevPNoRZU-CF-c5sVwYAlZ8XCOvG_5xxIapzd858Q_sRKgnqACdIeuzEzhKZbmGG7iGldO1ml4Xp553le0L-fAPXzzLR7NWer_bBHHJqpHM-8Yz8xp1V-m1mvcOOmSebvOOpaHyYzGcfQAkEyyR5fvf9dhFilF6MDTkPqet6JkAwxuKnjzl_4JsHEQBH77QxmynPjkzhQU&__tn__=-R
22 December 2019
No comments:
Post a Comment