Press Release
June 29, 2009
Hundreds of workers from around a dozen unions and associations in Metro Cebu held a “Day of Solidarity” for the embattled workers of Keppel shipyard and Paul Yu, a lamp shade factory inside the Mactan Export Processing Zone. Some 300 workers trooped to the picketline of the striking Keppel union and held a program from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. today.
“The day of solidarity is an opportunity for Cebuano workers to express their support and sympathy to fellow laborers who are in the midst of disputes and struggles against capitalists who are using the crisis as an alibi to demolish workers rights and undercut labor standards. We consider the fight of Keppel and Paul Yu workers as our own fight. An injury to one is an injury to all,” declared Greg Janginon, president of the Prince Warehouse union and Partido ng Manggagawa chairperson for Cebu.
The Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL) has been on strike since June 19 after charging management of union busting. Meanwhile Paul Yu management has suspended more than 300 after one week of protests in support of seven leaders who had earlier been suspended. Roger Igot, president of the Keppel union, and Willy Dondoyano, head of the Paul Yu Workers Association, thanked the workers who attended the day of solidarity. “We can only succeed in our struggle on the strength of the militancy of the workers and the solidarity of the labor movement,” Igot averred.
The online campaign of the Paul Yu union has generated massive sympathy worldwide with more than a thousand supporters from more than 20 countries sending letters of protest through email to the management with copies furnished to the DOLE and PEZA. Paul Yu exports its lamp shades mainly to the US and Europe market. Those are the same areas where the Paul Yu workers have inspired support with hundreds of unionists and allies sending emails from the US, Canada, United Kingdom and Australia.
Dondoyano stated that “We appreciate the support from fellow Cebuano workers and unionists from abroad. This outpouring of solidarity encourages us to continue with the fight.” A hearing was held this morning at the NCMB with management offering to terminate the protesting workers and pay them P3,000 per year of service. The offer is below the standards set by the Labor Code which in cases of companies that are not suffering serious losses must grant their workers a month’s pay per year of service. The Paul Yu workers refused management’s offer.
Workers from Altamode, SAWO, Giardini, Prince Warehouse, Neostone, General Milling Corp., Lami Foods and members of PM participated in the day of solidarity. A series of speakers spoke of the workers demands against layoffs, reduction of work days, contractualization and violations of labor standards as common grievances of workers inside and outside the export zone. The workers vowed to continue with more solidarity activities and mass actions until the Keppel and Paul Yu disputes are resolved.
Showing posts with label Keppel. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Keppel. Show all posts
Monday, June 29, 2009
Friday, June 19, 2009
Hundreds of workers hold noise barrage vs. con-ass, say “show indignation to stop the titillation”
Press Release
June 19, 2009
Different labor groups under the umbrella of the newly formed Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha held a labor forum this afternoon and then organized a noise barrage in the early evening. Renato Magtubo, chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa and a convenor of the Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha said that “The people must show indignation to stop GMA’s titillation of the nation. FVR should join the protests against con-ass if she wants GMA to reveal her plans. Yet the indignation versus cha-cha should aim not just to oblige GMA to express her political intentions but force a retreat from her term extension plan.”
The Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha met at the UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations (SOLAIR) from 1 to 5 p.m. to consolidate organized labor’s position on con-ass. The labor groups explained that they oppose con-ass not simply because they resist GMA’s term extension but also because they fight the neoliberal agenda behind cha-cha.
Magtubo explained that “There are those in the broad movement against con-ass who approve of cha-cha for the purpose of abolishing the protectionist provisions and oppose merely GMA’s term extension. The workers however resist both perpetuating GMA in power forever and removing the protectionist provisions of the Constitution. The working class oppose cha-cha not to defend the elite democracy enshrined in the 1987 Constitution but to protect the progressive provisions on national patrimony and labor rights.”
At the end of the forum, the 200 participants marched from SOLAIR to Philcoa for the noise barrage. Members of PM made noise using tools of production used by workers such as hammers, pliers and metal sheets to symbolize labor’s resistance to charter change. The noise barrage is part of labor-led protests calling for government action on the economic recession instead of charter revision.
“Government must act on the demand for social protection for the workers instead of term extension for GMA. Today union members in the giant Keppel shipyard in Cebu went on strike while workers in the big Mactan Export Processing Zone have been holding daily protests. The challenge that government must solve is the recession not the Constitution,” insisted Magtubo.
In their manifesto, it is stated that “The workers march side by side with the multisectoral movement against con-ass but build a parallel movement with independent demands for labor protection and economic protectionism. The workers add their voice to the people’s indignation over con-ass even as we air our own slogans for system change instead of charter change.”
June 19, 2009
Different labor groups under the umbrella of the newly formed Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha held a labor forum this afternoon and then organized a noise barrage in the early evening. Renato Magtubo, chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa and a convenor of the Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha said that “The people must show indignation to stop GMA’s titillation of the nation. FVR should join the protests against con-ass if she wants GMA to reveal her plans. Yet the indignation versus cha-cha should aim not just to oblige GMA to express her political intentions but force a retreat from her term extension plan.”
The Manggagawa Kontra Cha-Cha met at the UP School of Labor and Industrial Relations (SOLAIR) from 1 to 5 p.m. to consolidate organized labor’s position on con-ass. The labor groups explained that they oppose con-ass not simply because they resist GMA’s term extension but also because they fight the neoliberal agenda behind cha-cha.
Magtubo explained that “There are those in the broad movement against con-ass who approve of cha-cha for the purpose of abolishing the protectionist provisions and oppose merely GMA’s term extension. The workers however resist both perpetuating GMA in power forever and removing the protectionist provisions of the Constitution. The working class oppose cha-cha not to defend the elite democracy enshrined in the 1987 Constitution but to protect the progressive provisions on national patrimony and labor rights.”
At the end of the forum, the 200 participants marched from SOLAIR to Philcoa for the noise barrage. Members of PM made noise using tools of production used by workers such as hammers, pliers and metal sheets to symbolize labor’s resistance to charter change. The noise barrage is part of labor-led protests calling for government action on the economic recession instead of charter revision.
“Government must act on the demand for social protection for the workers instead of term extension for GMA. Today union members in the giant Keppel shipyard in Cebu went on strike while workers in the big Mactan Export Processing Zone have been holding daily protests. The challenge that government must solve is the recession not the Constitution,” insisted Magtubo.
In their manifesto, it is stated that “The workers march side by side with the multisectoral movement against con-ass but build a parallel movement with independent demands for labor protection and economic protectionism. The workers add their voice to the people’s indignation over con-ass even as we air our own slogans for system change instead of charter change.”
Keppel shipyard union goes on strike and export zone workers hold sitdown protest
Press Release
June 19, 2009
The labor unrest in Cebu continues to escalate as the Keppel shipyard union went on strike at 5 a.m. today and the workers of Paul Yu, a lamp shade factory inside the Mactan Export Processing Zone, held both a sitdown protest inside the plant and a picket outside the gates.
“The State must act today with dispatch on the workers just demands or else it will have to face a full-blown workers rebellion tomorrow. We want the government to get busy with social protection for the workers instead of term extension for GMA,” stated Dennis Derige, spokesperson of the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) in Cebu.
The shipyard workers went on strike today alleging union busting by management with picketlines setup outside the shipyard facilities. Yesterday 80 Keppel workers barged into their shipyard after one month of forced leave. The guards tried to prevent them from entering the shipyard on the pretext that the forced leave has been extended for another month but the workers were able to force their way past the gates. In a dialogue with management yesterday the Keppel union opposed the extension of their previous one month forced leave by another 30 days.
“One month is too long for our families to go hungry and sacrifice for management’s mistaken if not malicious decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. If Keppel will not open the shipyard for work then we ask the government to takeover the facilities and we will continue with the profitable ship repair work,” declared Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor.
Willy Dondoyano, head of the Paul Yu workers association, appealed for solidarity from export zone workers. “We ask for the support of our fellow workers inside the export zone. We all suffer the same violations of labor standards and repression of labor rights. Let us join hands in a common struggle for workers rights and welfare,” he stated.
In the hearing yesterday on the complaint filed by the Paul Yu workers, the Labor Department ordered the regularization of direct-hired contractual workers and the grant of benefits like paternity leave and service incentive leave for agency workers. The other major issues like the reduction of working days, job outsourcing, regularization of agency workers and money claims for three years of non-implementation of paternity leave and service incentive leave were remanded to the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. The Labor Department asked the workers to file a case at the National Labor Relations Commission regarding the suspension of the seven leaders.
June 19, 2009
The labor unrest in Cebu continues to escalate as the Keppel shipyard union went on strike at 5 a.m. today and the workers of Paul Yu, a lamp shade factory inside the Mactan Export Processing Zone, held both a sitdown protest inside the plant and a picket outside the gates.
“The State must act today with dispatch on the workers just demands or else it will have to face a full-blown workers rebellion tomorrow. We want the government to get busy with social protection for the workers instead of term extension for GMA,” stated Dennis Derige, spokesperson of the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) in Cebu.
The shipyard workers went on strike today alleging union busting by management with picketlines setup outside the shipyard facilities. Yesterday 80 Keppel workers barged into their shipyard after one month of forced leave. The guards tried to prevent them from entering the shipyard on the pretext that the forced leave has been extended for another month but the workers were able to force their way past the gates. In a dialogue with management yesterday the Keppel union opposed the extension of their previous one month forced leave by another 30 days.
“One month is too long for our families to go hungry and sacrifice for management’s mistaken if not malicious decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. If Keppel will not open the shipyard for work then we ask the government to takeover the facilities and we will continue with the profitable ship repair work,” declared Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor.
Willy Dondoyano, head of the Paul Yu workers association, appealed for solidarity from export zone workers. “We ask for the support of our fellow workers inside the export zone. We all suffer the same violations of labor standards and repression of labor rights. Let us join hands in a common struggle for workers rights and welfare,” he stated.
In the hearing yesterday on the complaint filed by the Paul Yu workers, the Labor Department ordered the regularization of direct-hired contractual workers and the grant of benefits like paternity leave and service incentive leave for agency workers. The other major issues like the reduction of working days, job outsourcing, regularization of agency workers and money claims for three years of non-implementation of paternity leave and service incentive leave were remanded to the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. The Labor Department asked the workers to file a case at the National Labor Relations Commission regarding the suspension of the seven leaders.
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Labor unrest escalates as protests rock Keppel shipyard and Paul Yu factory
Press Release
June 18, 2009
The simmering discontent among Cebu workers escalated into open protests with Keppel workers barging into their shipyard after one month of forced leave, and Paul Yu workers picketing the Philippine Export Zone Authority (PEZA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
“The Paul Yu workers are now on their fourth day of a work stoppage in support of seven suspended leaders while the Keppel labor dispute has been simmering for almost four months already. The government must act today with dispatch on the workers just demands or else it will have to face a full-blown workers rebellion tomorrow,” stated Dennis Derige, spokesperson of the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) in Cebu.
Some 80 Keppel workers returned to work early morning today with the lapse of their one month forced leave yesterday. The guards tried to prevent them from entering the shipyard on the pretext that the forced leave has been extended for another month but the workers were able to force their way past the gates. The Keppel workers are holding a sitdown protest at the moment while awaiting a response from management on their demand that they be able to work again.
“One month is too long for our families to go hungry and sacrifice for management’s mistaken if not malicious decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. If Keppel will not open the shipyard for work then we ask the government to takeover the facilities and we will continue with the profitable ship repair work,” declared Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
Meanwhile the Paul Yu workers picketed the PEZA offices while the seven suspended leaders and representatives of contractual workers held a dialogue at 9 a.m. with export zone officials and representatives of management. At 2 p.m. will troop to the DOLE office in Cebu City for a hearing on the complaint the workers filed against management.
Willy Dondoyano, head of the Paul Yu workers association, said that “The three-day workweek implemented since December lacks proper documentation and due notice. Also workdays were reduced for regular workers while 40% of production is outsourced to contractors.” The workers also found out that the AVI Amor Vil Inc., the biggest among three agencies that Paul Yu has contracted to supply workers for the factory, is not registered and thus illegal. They are also complaining of non-payment of holiday pay, non-remittance of SSS deductions for agency workers, non-implementation of paternity leave and non-payment of break time.
June 18, 2009
The simmering discontent among Cebu workers escalated into open protests with Keppel workers barging into their shipyard after one month of forced leave, and Paul Yu workers picketing the Philippine Export Zone Authority (PEZA) and the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
“The Paul Yu workers are now on their fourth day of a work stoppage in support of seven suspended leaders while the Keppel labor dispute has been simmering for almost four months already. The government must act today with dispatch on the workers just demands or else it will have to face a full-blown workers rebellion tomorrow,” stated Dennis Derige, spokesperson of the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) in Cebu.
Some 80 Keppel workers returned to work early morning today with the lapse of their one month forced leave yesterday. The guards tried to prevent them from entering the shipyard on the pretext that the forced leave has been extended for another month but the workers were able to force their way past the gates. The Keppel workers are holding a sitdown protest at the moment while awaiting a response from management on their demand that they be able to work again.
“One month is too long for our families to go hungry and sacrifice for management’s mistaken if not malicious decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. If Keppel will not open the shipyard for work then we ask the government to takeover the facilities and we will continue with the profitable ship repair work,” declared Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
Meanwhile the Paul Yu workers picketed the PEZA offices while the seven suspended leaders and representatives of contractual workers held a dialogue at 9 a.m. with export zone officials and representatives of management. At 2 p.m. will troop to the DOLE office in Cebu City for a hearing on the complaint the workers filed against management.
Willy Dondoyano, head of the Paul Yu workers association, said that “The three-day workweek implemented since December lacks proper documentation and due notice. Also workdays were reduced for regular workers while 40% of production is outsourced to contractors.” The workers also found out that the AVI Amor Vil Inc., the biggest among three agencies that Paul Yu has contracted to supply workers for the factory, is not registered and thus illegal. They are also complaining of non-payment of holiday pay, non-remittance of SSS deductions for agency workers, non-implementation of paternity leave and non-payment of break time.
Monday, May 11, 2009
Militant workers slam shipyard management for “blackmail and sabotage”
Press Release
May 8, 2009
The labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) today lambasted the management of Keppel Phils. for implementing a two-day workweek in order to force its workers to agree to its redundancy offer. A labor dispute has been festering in the Keppel shipyard since March with workers alleging management is out to bust the union Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
“In the one month since an agreement was forged last April 8 between management and the union, Keppel has consistently tried to sabotage the settlement by blackmailing the workers into submitting to the redundancy plan by shortening the workweek. At the height of the dispute in March, Keppel workers were working just three days in a week. Now it is just two days in a week thus workers’ take home pay has been reduced to a third,” explained Dennis Derige, spokesperson of PM in Cebu.
PM is arguing that Keppel’s reduction in workdays is tantamount to a violation of the April 8 agreement. Section 3 of the agreement stipulates that neither side will engage in actions that will exacerbate the situation.
Derige answered management’s alibi that theirs is no work to be done. “The ship repair business was strong but they shifted to ship building thus forcing former clients to smaller shipyards in Cebu. Why then did they go into ship building when there is no marker for it? It only makes business sense because management wants to bust the union and replace regular workers with cheap and docile contractual labor,” he insisted.
Derige added that “Keppel is trying to starve the workers so they will agree to surrender their rights. We warn management that their blackmail will not work. Keppel workers are not alone. The labor movement will support Keppel workers in their fight.”
PM also criticized the DOLE for lying about the real status of the labor situation. “For several weeks the DOLE has kept on repeating the marketing line that companies are rehiring and layoffs are ebbing. But the unresolved dispute at Keppel and other struggles at MEPZ belie the DOLE’s propaganda,” Derige stated.
The Keppel union still has a pending notice of strike that it has not withdrawn. Since a majority of the work force has voted for the strike, the union can go on strike at any moment.
May 8, 2009
The labor group Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) today lambasted the management of Keppel Phils. for implementing a two-day workweek in order to force its workers to agree to its redundancy offer. A labor dispute has been festering in the Keppel shipyard since March with workers alleging management is out to bust the union Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
“In the one month since an agreement was forged last April 8 between management and the union, Keppel has consistently tried to sabotage the settlement by blackmailing the workers into submitting to the redundancy plan by shortening the workweek. At the height of the dispute in March, Keppel workers were working just three days in a week. Now it is just two days in a week thus workers’ take home pay has been reduced to a third,” explained Dennis Derige, spokesperson of PM in Cebu.
PM is arguing that Keppel’s reduction in workdays is tantamount to a violation of the April 8 agreement. Section 3 of the agreement stipulates that neither side will engage in actions that will exacerbate the situation.
Derige answered management’s alibi that theirs is no work to be done. “The ship repair business was strong but they shifted to ship building thus forcing former clients to smaller shipyards in Cebu. Why then did they go into ship building when there is no marker for it? It only makes business sense because management wants to bust the union and replace regular workers with cheap and docile contractual labor,” he insisted.
Derige added that “Keppel is trying to starve the workers so they will agree to surrender their rights. We warn management that their blackmail will not work. Keppel workers are not alone. The labor movement will support Keppel workers in their fight.”
PM also criticized the DOLE for lying about the real status of the labor situation. “For several weeks the DOLE has kept on repeating the marketing line that companies are rehiring and layoffs are ebbing. But the unresolved dispute at Keppel and other struggles at MEPZ belie the DOLE’s propaganda,” Derige stated.
The Keppel union still has a pending notice of strike that it has not withdrawn. Since a majority of the work force has voted for the strike, the union can go on strike at any moment.
Wednesday, April 8, 2009
Keppel management settles dispute, union declares partial victory
Press Release
April 8, 2009
The management and union of the large Keppel Cebu shipyard this afternoon signed a memorandum of agreement spelling out the terms of a settlement over the month-long labor dispute over mass layoffs. The Keppel union considered the agreement as a “partial victory in the tactical fight against retrenchment.”
Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL), said that “We were able to preserve the union and more than half of the regular workforce. Thus we will have a new collective bargaining negotiations come December whether under the present management or the new company that will undertake shipbuilding operations.”
The memorandum of agreement stipulates that management will not declare another redundancy and may use only persuasion in making workers accept the company’s offer for alternative employment in their other shipyards both locally and abroad. The agreement also allows any worker among the 70 that were retrenched through redundancy to contest their termination in a proper forum with the help of the union.
Renato Magtubo, chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa, asserted that “The agreement is merely a ceasefire in the class struggle. At the moment the balance of forces tilted in favor of the workers through their militant struggle and labor solidarity among Cebu unions. The Giardini del Sole workers formula of militant struggle against mass layoffs has proved successful once more.”
In the course of more than a month, the Keppel union has engaged in sitdown protests and rallies at the shipyard gates with the support of the Solidarity of Cebu Workers (SCW). The Keppel union has a pending notice of strike and assails management for using the mass layoffs as a means to bust the union and replace the regular workforce with contractual workers. The memorandum of agreement enjoins both parties from engaging in any acts that will exacerbate the dispute. In concrete this means that the management will not push through with another redundancy while the union will follow through on the strike.
“The labor dispute at Keppel, the layoffs at Lear and other factories at the Mactan Export Processing Zone belie government claims. It is wishful thinking on the part of government to say that layoffs are over. The good news over more hiring than firings are just fairy tales. Still we call on all workers to challenge government’s promises of assistance for the displaced including the temporary unemployment insurance of P10,000 per month for six months. Workers should claim these benefits and protection through protest and struggle,” argued Magtubo.
April 8, 2009
The management and union of the large Keppel Cebu shipyard this afternoon signed a memorandum of agreement spelling out the terms of a settlement over the month-long labor dispute over mass layoffs. The Keppel union considered the agreement as a “partial victory in the tactical fight against retrenchment.”
Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL), said that “We were able to preserve the union and more than half of the regular workforce. Thus we will have a new collective bargaining negotiations come December whether under the present management or the new company that will undertake shipbuilding operations.”
The memorandum of agreement stipulates that management will not declare another redundancy and may use only persuasion in making workers accept the company’s offer for alternative employment in their other shipyards both locally and abroad. The agreement also allows any worker among the 70 that were retrenched through redundancy to contest their termination in a proper forum with the help of the union.
Renato Magtubo, chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa, asserted that “The agreement is merely a ceasefire in the class struggle. At the moment the balance of forces tilted in favor of the workers through their militant struggle and labor solidarity among Cebu unions. The Giardini del Sole workers formula of militant struggle against mass layoffs has proved successful once more.”
In the course of more than a month, the Keppel union has engaged in sitdown protests and rallies at the shipyard gates with the support of the Solidarity of Cebu Workers (SCW). The Keppel union has a pending notice of strike and assails management for using the mass layoffs as a means to bust the union and replace the regular workforce with contractual workers. The memorandum of agreement enjoins both parties from engaging in any acts that will exacerbate the dispute. In concrete this means that the management will not push through with another redundancy while the union will follow through on the strike.
“The labor dispute at Keppel, the layoffs at Lear and other factories at the Mactan Export Processing Zone belie government claims. It is wishful thinking on the part of government to say that layoffs are over. The good news over more hiring than firings are just fairy tales. Still we call on all workers to challenge government’s promises of assistance for the displaced including the temporary unemployment insurance of P10,000 per month for six months. Workers should claim these benefits and protection through protest and struggle,” argued Magtubo.
Saturday, April 4, 2009
Workers protest layoffs at Keppel
Press Release
April 4, 2009
The Keppel Cebu union with supporters from the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) held a rally outside the shipyard’s gates in protest at the redundancy program of management. The 10 a.m. mass action was in reaction to the list of 70 workers to be terminated for redundancy that was released by management yesterday. Together with 47 workers who had earlier availed of management’s retirement program, this meant that the total 280 regular workforce will be reduced by almost half.
Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL), said that “The redundancy announced by management is tainted with bad faith since negotiations with the union on the issue are still ongoing. This is an early Black Friday for the 70 workers who are to be jobless due to redundancy.”
Around 100 protesters picketed the Keppel Cebu shipyard with the delegation from PM coming from workers of General Milling Corp., Lami Foods, Neostone, Prince Warehouse, Giardini del Sole and residents of nearby communities of Looc and Poblacion. “The fight of Keppel workers for jobs is the fight of all Cebuano workers,” declared Dennis Derige, spokesperson for PM-Cebu.
Last March 15, the union filed a notice of strike alleging union busting and the next day an overwhelming majority of the members voted for a work stoppage. Igot also disclosed that Keppel Sing-marine Philippines, Inc. has filed with the Board of Investments for pioneer status. Keppel Sing-marine Philippines will supposedly employ 620 workers through the P590-million facility for making tugboats and support vessels.
“That means once Keppel Cebu terminates many of the 280 regular workers and union members then the remaining employees will be a minority among more than 500 contractuals of Keppel Sing-marine. The contractual workers will only be paid the minimum wage and moreover will be without the protection of a union and benefit of a collective bargaining agreement,” insisted Igot.
Derige added that “How ironic that while Keppel may receive generous perks such as tax-and duty-free importation of capital equipment, income tax holiday of up to six years and exemption from wharf dues, export tax and import fees, it demolishes regular jobs and destroy workers lives. Foreign capitalists get corporate welfare while Filipino workers are denied social protection. Any company that will get assistance from the government must be prohibited from mass layoffs.”
April 4, 2009
The Keppel Cebu union with supporters from the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) held a rally outside the shipyard’s gates in protest at the redundancy program of management. The 10 a.m. mass action was in reaction to the list of 70 workers to be terminated for redundancy that was released by management yesterday. Together with 47 workers who had earlier availed of management’s retirement program, this meant that the total 280 regular workforce will be reduced by almost half.
Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL), said that “The redundancy announced by management is tainted with bad faith since negotiations with the union on the issue are still ongoing. This is an early Black Friday for the 70 workers who are to be jobless due to redundancy.”
Around 100 protesters picketed the Keppel Cebu shipyard with the delegation from PM coming from workers of General Milling Corp., Lami Foods, Neostone, Prince Warehouse, Giardini del Sole and residents of nearby communities of Looc and Poblacion. “The fight of Keppel workers for jobs is the fight of all Cebuano workers,” declared Dennis Derige, spokesperson for PM-Cebu.
Last March 15, the union filed a notice of strike alleging union busting and the next day an overwhelming majority of the members voted for a work stoppage. Igot also disclosed that Keppel Sing-marine Philippines, Inc. has filed with the Board of Investments for pioneer status. Keppel Sing-marine Philippines will supposedly employ 620 workers through the P590-million facility for making tugboats and support vessels.
“That means once Keppel Cebu terminates many of the 280 regular workers and union members then the remaining employees will be a minority among more than 500 contractuals of Keppel Sing-marine. The contractual workers will only be paid the minimum wage and moreover will be without the protection of a union and benefit of a collective bargaining agreement,” insisted Igot.
Derige added that “How ironic that while Keppel may receive generous perks such as tax-and duty-free importation of capital equipment, income tax holiday of up to six years and exemption from wharf dues, export tax and import fees, it demolishes regular jobs and destroy workers lives. Foreign capitalists get corporate welfare while Filipino workers are denied social protection. Any company that will get assistance from the government must be prohibited from mass layoffs.”
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Workers protest Keppel layoffs, slam corporate welfare granted
Press Release
March 16, 2009
At 4 p.m. today around a hundred supporters from the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) and other labor unions picketed the gates of the Keppel shipyard. Workers from the Giardini del Sole, who were the first to go on strike against mass layoffs lent their support. “The fight of Keppel workers for jobs is the fight of all Cebuano workers,” declared Dennis Derige, spokesperson for PM-Cebu.
“Not just workers but even capitalists like the Cebu ship owners are opposing Keppel’s plan to shift from ship repair to ship building and retrench a big majority of regular workers. Yet Keppel maintains its hardline position,” explained Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
Igot also revealed that documents from the Board of Investments which recently granted pioneer status to Keppel Sing-marine Philippines, Inc. show that the shipbuilder will employ 620 workers. Keppel Sing-marine Philippines is building a P590-million facility that will make tugboats and support vessels.
“That means once Keppel Cebu lays off 70% of the 280 regular workers and union members then the remaining 80 workers or so will be a tiny minority among more than 500 contractuals of Keppel Sing-marine. The contractual workers will only be paid the minimum wage and moreover will be without the protection of a union and benefit of a collective bargaining agreement,” insisted Igot.
Derige added that “How ironic that even as Keppel receives generous perks such as tax-and duty-free importation of capital equipment, income tax holiday of up to six years and exemption from wharf dues, export tax and import fees, it demolishes regular jobs and destroy workers lives. Foreign capitalists like Keppel get corporate welfare while Filipino workers are denied social protection. Any company that gets assistance from the government must be prohibited from mass layoffs on pain of losing these privileges.” ###
March 16, 2009
At 4 p.m. today around a hundred supporters from the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) and other labor unions picketed the gates of the Keppel shipyard. Workers from the Giardini del Sole, who were the first to go on strike against mass layoffs lent their support. “The fight of Keppel workers for jobs is the fight of all Cebuano workers,” declared Dennis Derige, spokesperson for PM-Cebu.
“Not just workers but even capitalists like the Cebu ship owners are opposing Keppel’s plan to shift from ship repair to ship building and retrench a big majority of regular workers. Yet Keppel maintains its hardline position,” explained Roger Igot, president of Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL).
Igot also revealed that documents from the Board of Investments which recently granted pioneer status to Keppel Sing-marine Philippines, Inc. show that the shipbuilder will employ 620 workers. Keppel Sing-marine Philippines is building a P590-million facility that will make tugboats and support vessels.
“That means once Keppel Cebu lays off 70% of the 280 regular workers and union members then the remaining 80 workers or so will be a tiny minority among more than 500 contractuals of Keppel Sing-marine. The contractual workers will only be paid the minimum wage and moreover will be without the protection of a union and benefit of a collective bargaining agreement,” insisted Igot.
Derige added that “How ironic that even as Keppel receives generous perks such as tax-and duty-free importation of capital equipment, income tax holiday of up to six years and exemption from wharf dues, export tax and import fees, it demolishes regular jobs and destroy workers lives. Foreign capitalists like Keppel get corporate welfare while Filipino workers are denied social protection. Any company that gets assistance from the government must be prohibited from mass layoffs on pain of losing these privileges.” ###
Keppel Cebu union files notice of strike as management pushes with layoffs
Press Release
March 16, 2009
The labor union of Keppel Cebu filed a notice of strike this afternoon as management announced this morning that it will push through with a redundancy program. The redundancy will mean the loss of 70% of 280 regular jobs. The Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL) charged management with union busting.
Roger Igot, president of NMB-NFL, “Workers will again not leave the shipyard premises and sacrifice time with our families in order to protest the illegal termination. Keppel management is using the crisis as an excuse to replace regular jobs with cheap and docile contractual labor.” Last week union members started protest actions by remaining within the shipyard compound despite the end of their shift.
Management assembled its work force this morning and despite opposition from the workers, announced the implementation of the redundancy program. Keppel management earlier tried to downsize its work force by offering a voluntary resignation package which the union also rejected. The redundancy is in line with Keppel Cebu’s decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. The union however argues that ship building entails even more workers in spite of the introduction of machinery.
Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) and its allied unions anounced that they will support the strike of Keppel workers. “If the Keppel labor dispute matures into a strike, it will be the third strike in just two months following on the heels of the Giardini del Sole workers. A strike wave is taking shape and the labor unrest is being fanned by the capitalists’ penchant for shifting the burden of the crisis on the workers,” argued Dennis Derige, spokesperson of PM.
He added that “Management pays a regular Keppel worker much higher wages and benefits compared to a contractual laborer who makes do with below minimum wages and no benefits.”
“Contractualization on the shipyards will mean work accidents like what is happening in Hanjin at Subic. Contractualization is not just a plague on the workers but a hazard to marine safety and the riding public. We ask the Marina to explore this angle in the hearing on Keppel’s turn to shipbuilding,” Igot explained. ###
March 16, 2009
The labor union of Keppel Cebu filed a notice of strike this afternoon as management announced this morning that it will push through with a redundancy program. The redundancy will mean the loss of 70% of 280 regular jobs. The Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (NMB) Keppel Shipyard-National Federation of Labor (NFL) charged management with union busting.
Roger Igot, president of NMB-NFL, “Workers will again not leave the shipyard premises and sacrifice time with our families in order to protest the illegal termination. Keppel management is using the crisis as an excuse to replace regular jobs with cheap and docile contractual labor.” Last week union members started protest actions by remaining within the shipyard compound despite the end of their shift.
Management assembled its work force this morning and despite opposition from the workers, announced the implementation of the redundancy program. Keppel management earlier tried to downsize its work force by offering a voluntary resignation package which the union also rejected. The redundancy is in line with Keppel Cebu’s decision to shift from ship repair to ship building. The union however argues that ship building entails even more workers in spite of the introduction of machinery.
Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) and its allied unions anounced that they will support the strike of Keppel workers. “If the Keppel labor dispute matures into a strike, it will be the third strike in just two months following on the heels of the Giardini del Sole workers. A strike wave is taking shape and the labor unrest is being fanned by the capitalists’ penchant for shifting the burden of the crisis on the workers,” argued Dennis Derige, spokesperson of PM.
He added that “Management pays a regular Keppel worker much higher wages and benefits compared to a contractual laborer who makes do with below minimum wages and no benefits.”
“Contractualization on the shipyards will mean work accidents like what is happening in Hanjin at Subic. Contractualization is not just a plague on the workers but a hazard to marine safety and the riding public. We ask the Marina to explore this angle in the hearing on Keppel’s turn to shipbuilding,” Igot explained. ###
Wednesday, March 11, 2009
Labor dispute erupts at Cebu shipyard
Press Release
March 11, 2009
A labor dispute is festering at the Keppel ship repair facilities in Cebu that may soon erupt into a strike. The management of Keppel shipyard wants to shift from ship repair to ship building and in the process downsize its workforce. The Keppel labor union is however resisting management attempt to layoff workers.
“Keppel is using the global crisis as an alibi to destroy the union and replace regular jobs with contractual workers,” Roger Igot, president of the Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (Keppel Shipyard)-National Federation of Labor alleged. As an initial protest, members of the Keppel union stayed overnight inside the shipyard facilities yesterday and will continue the mass action today when their shift ends. “We sacrificed quality time with our families in order to protect the security of our jobs,” Igot explained.
Last February 20, management proposed a plan for forced leave but the union disagreed citing the heavy presence of contractual workers. The proposal did not push through. Then on February 27, management offered a voluntary resignation package which the union also rejected because it shortchanged the workers. The same day, in a preventive mediation hearing at the National Mediation and Conciliation Board, the workers questioned management’s move to hire new contractuals without informing the union as stipulated in their collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Last Monday, management threatened the workers that it will file redundancy if they do not avail of the resignation package.
“There is no basis for redundancy since ship building will require more not less workers compared to ship repair even if they introduce new machines since it is intrinsically labor intensive. The real issue is that management wants to squeeze more profit by cheapening labor costs. Management pays a regular Keppel worker much higher wages and benefits compared to a contractual laborer who makes do with below minimum wages and no benefits,” Igot insisted.
Tomorrow a rally in support of the Keppel union will be held by affiliates of the Solidarity of Cebu Workers, displaced Cebu workers and members of the Partido ng Manggagawa. They will picket outside the gates of the Keppel shipyard in solidarity with the workers staying inside the compound.
The union also says that there are no signs that Keppel is bleeding. It will pay profit sharing later this week. There is an ongoing shipyard development project worth P300 million. While an incentive bonus was released last February.
The union also assails management for bad faith in negotiations since its statements are contradictory. Igot added that “Management intends to deceive the workers if they can get away with it. In our CBA negotiations in June of last year, they were saying that we need not worry since more workers will be hired when Keppel turns to ship building.”
The union believes that despite the global crisis, Keppel’s business remains strong and any supposed business losses due to the global crisis are just an alibi to get rid of the regular workforce and bust the union.
March 11, 2009
A labor dispute is festering at the Keppel ship repair facilities in Cebu that may soon erupt into a strike. The management of Keppel shipyard wants to shift from ship repair to ship building and in the process downsize its workforce. The Keppel labor union is however resisting management attempt to layoff workers.
“Keppel is using the global crisis as an alibi to destroy the union and replace regular jobs with contractual workers,” Roger Igot, president of the Nagkahiusang Mamumuo sa Baradero (Keppel Shipyard)-National Federation of Labor alleged. As an initial protest, members of the Keppel union stayed overnight inside the shipyard facilities yesterday and will continue the mass action today when their shift ends. “We sacrificed quality time with our families in order to protect the security of our jobs,” Igot explained.
Last February 20, management proposed a plan for forced leave but the union disagreed citing the heavy presence of contractual workers. The proposal did not push through. Then on February 27, management offered a voluntary resignation package which the union also rejected because it shortchanged the workers. The same day, in a preventive mediation hearing at the National Mediation and Conciliation Board, the workers questioned management’s move to hire new contractuals without informing the union as stipulated in their collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Last Monday, management threatened the workers that it will file redundancy if they do not avail of the resignation package.
“There is no basis for redundancy since ship building will require more not less workers compared to ship repair even if they introduce new machines since it is intrinsically labor intensive. The real issue is that management wants to squeeze more profit by cheapening labor costs. Management pays a regular Keppel worker much higher wages and benefits compared to a contractual laborer who makes do with below minimum wages and no benefits,” Igot insisted.
Tomorrow a rally in support of the Keppel union will be held by affiliates of the Solidarity of Cebu Workers, displaced Cebu workers and members of the Partido ng Manggagawa. They will picket outside the gates of the Keppel shipyard in solidarity with the workers staying inside the compound.
The union also says that there are no signs that Keppel is bleeding. It will pay profit sharing later this week. There is an ongoing shipyard development project worth P300 million. While an incentive bonus was released last February.
The union also assails management for bad faith in negotiations since its statements are contradictory. Igot added that “Management intends to deceive the workers if they can get away with it. In our CBA negotiations in June of last year, they were saying that we need not worry since more workers will be hired when Keppel turns to ship building.”
The union believes that despite the global crisis, Keppel’s business remains strong and any supposed business losses due to the global crisis are just an alibi to get rid of the regular workforce and bust the union.
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