Workers reaction to SONA 2025

 PRESS STATEMENT

Partido Manggagawa

SONA 2025

Ref: Renato Magtubo

Chairperson

 

The President’s candid admission of underperformance in the past three years set a promising tone for a better second half of his term. However, that hope was soon buried under a lengthy checklist of departmental functions—routine matters expected of any administration.

 

What was glaringly absent were bold policy declarations addressing the nation’s most urgent concerns: a substantial wage hike, an end to contractualization, the creation of decent and secure jobs, and decisive action to rein in inflation.

 

Workers keep on pressing for  a legislated wage hike of P200 as well as the passage of the security of tenure bill, but to no avail. Katulad sa baha at bagyo, kailangan ang Presidente sa pagharap sa krisis na ito.

 

The President also acknowledged energy and water supply issues but failed to confront the root causes—particularly the long-standing failures of privatization.

 

The SONA could have been more meaningful if it had tackled core policy failures and laid out concrete reforms for the remaining three years. The country doesn’t need a report card of government activities—it needs a clear roadmap for change. ###

 

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Labor coalition denounces Senate’s U-turn on workers’ security of tenure in CENECO case

Photo from Official Gazette

 

The Nagkaisa Labor Coalition issued a strongly worded statement, Tuesday, against the Senate majority for voting against the proposed amendment introduced by Deputy Minority Leader Sen. Risa Hontiveros, to include a security of tenure (SOT) provision to the franchise bill being sought by the Negros Electric Power Corporation (NEPC), a successor company created by the highly controversial joint venture agreement (JVA) between the Central Negros Electric Cooperative (CENECO) and MORE Power.

 

CENECO is a unionized electric cooperative and cannot be considered as ‘ailing’ to merit private takeover.

 

“We are glad there remains a great minority in the Senate in the person of Sen. Risa Hontiveros and Sen. Koko Pimentel, who remain committed to the fundamental rights of workers to security of tenure as mandated by the Constitution. But shame on the majority who did a Duterte move on the issue of SOT,” said Nagkaisa in indignation.

 

Duterte, who promised to kill endo lords to end contractualization during his term, reversed himself and vetoed the SOT bill he certified and consequently was passed by both the Senate and the House of Representatives in 2019.

 

“Noong 2019 ay si Duterte ang bumaliktad sa kanyang pangako. Ngayong 2024 ay ang Senado naman, kahit sa maliit lamang na kaso ng 400 na manggagawa ng CENECO na dati nang nagtatamasa ng security of tenure bilang regular workers pero pinatay ng NEPC sa kanyang anti-labor na JVA at application for franchise. Ito ay kahiya-hiyang mga pagkakataon sa ating kasaysayan. Na-Duterte din ang manggagawa sa Senado,” said Nagkaisa.

 

Sen. Hontiveros pointed out this sentiment when she reminded her colleagues that the Senate passed the SOT bill during the time of Duterte, and that laws and jurisprudence on company mergers and consolidation also do not warrant the dismissal of employees of the absorbed company, especially when the company did not cease operations.

 

But all in the majority present in the plenary last night voted against Hontiveros’ SOT amendment to the NEPC franchise. Their votes will enable NEPC to terminate and provide separation pay to CENECO employees, while the latter wait on to be prioritized in the hiring. NEPC also plans to rationalize its operation, thus, the threat of lower wages ‘based on industry standards’ absent the union and CBA for new hires.

 

Nagkaisa also made mention of Sen. Joel Villanueva who voted against the Hontiveros amendment but is the principal author of the SOT bill he refiled in the 19th Congress. Other senators who voted against the amendment also have bills filed recognizing the right of gig workers to be regularized. There are also SOT bills filed in the Senate for government employees who have already rendered long years as job orders or contract of service in the bureaucracy.

 

“Inconsistency and betrayal are truly constants in our political system where loyalty is to the kings and the kingmakers, not to the majority of the people and the working class,” concluded Nagkaisa.

Nagkaisa Labor Coalition

14 May 2024

 

Black Monday protest by workers vs Duterte veto of SOT bill

Workers are launching protests today in Manila and Cebu in response to President Rodrigo Duterte’s veto of the Security of Tenure bill last Friday, on the eve of its lapse into law. The noise barrage today is also the start of labor’s renewed campaign for a strong law to strictly regulate the rampant practice of contractualization.

“The Security of Tenure bill is the latest victim of killing under the Duterte regime. Workers vow to continue the fight to end endo,” declared Wilson Fortaleza, spokesperson of Partido Manggagawa (PM).

PM and other labor groups such as Sentro ng Progresibo at Nagkakaisang Manggagawa (SENTRO) and Alliance of General Unions, Institutions and Labor Associations (AGUILA) will launch this afternoon a noise barrage dubbed “Black Monday Protest.” In Metro Manila, the protest is at 5:00 pm at the Boy Scout Circle. While in Metro Cebu, the noise barrage is also at 5:00 pm at Gate 1 of the Mactan Economic Zone in Lapu-Lapu City. Protesters will wear black to symbolize the death of the SOT bill.

The groups also preparing to lobby the new Congress for a new and stronger version of the Security of Tenure bill. “Workers want a law that will ensure regular jobs is the norm in employment relations. We do not accept Duterte’s excuse that employers can outsource jobs even if it is directly related and necessary to its business. That simply opens the floodgates to the abusive system of contractualization that is happening today,” Fortaleza argued.

“Workers will not forget this betrayal by Duterte of his promise to end endo. Three months into his administration, Duterte forcefully warned employers that he will kill them for continuing with the practice of endo. But now three years into his term, he is parroting the lame capitalist alibi that businesses will die if workers are made regular. Duterte’s promise to end endo is dead,” Fortaleza asserted.

He added that “In the class war between the workers and capitalists on contractualization, Duterte has revealed that he is an enemy of the working class and the CEO of the capitalist class.”

July 29, 2019

Workers to hold protests & lobby for a stronger law vs endo

Photo from Rappler

In the face of President Rodrigo Duterte’s veto of the Security of Tenure bill, workers will hold initial protests on Monday in Manila and Cebu. “The Security of Tenure bill is the latest victim of killing under the Duterte regime. Workers vow to continue the fight to end endo,” declared Wilson Fortaleza, spokesperson of Partido Manggagawa (PM).

PM and other labor groups such as Sentro will launch a noise barrage dubbed “Black Monday Protest” on July 29. In Metro Manila, the protest is at 5:00 pm at the Boy Scout Circle. While in Metro Cebu, the noise barrage is also at 5:00 pm at Gate 1 of the Mactan Economic Zone in Lapu-Lapu City.

The groups also preparing to lobby the new Congress for a new and stronger version of the Security of Tenure bill. “Workers want a law that will ensure regular jobs is the norm in employment relations. We do not accept the excuse that employers can outsource jobs even if it is directly related and necessary to its business. That simply opens the floodgates to the abusive system of contractualization that is happening today,” Fortaleza argued.

“Workers will not forget this betrayal by Duterte of his promise to end endo. Three months into his administration, Duterte forcefully warned employers that he will kill them for continuing with the practice of endo. But now three years into his term, he is parroting the lame capitalist alibi that businesses will die if workers are made regular. Duterte’s promise to end endo is dead,” Fortaleza asserted.

He added that “In the class war between the workers and capitalists on contractualization, Duterte has revealed that he is an enemy of the working class and the CEO of the capitalist class.” 

July 27, 2019

Workers slam killing of SOT bill

Photo from ABS-CBN

The ‘ifs and buts’ on the anti-endo bill are over. After an overnight flip-flop on whether a presidential veto is coming out or not, the Security of Tenure (SOT) bill has finally found its death today inside the Palace.

“We didn’t expect that even a weak version of an SOT bill will suffer judicial killing from the President,” stated Rene Magtubo, PM national chair.

Magtubo said that between labor’s demand to end endo and the employers’ call to veto it, President Duterte has clearly surrendered to the capitalist blackmail.

He reminded the President that, three months into his administration, he forcefully warned employers that he will kill them for continuing with the practice of endo.

“Now that he is three years into his term, he has completely made a U-turn by singing the capitalist chorus that businesses will die if workers are made regular. Duterte’s promise to end endo is dead,” said Magtubo.

The veto’s message, the labor leader said, was very clear on its intent: “That the President wanted to maintain the country’s exploitative yet competitive status quo - our being a republic of endo.”

The labour group argued that: “Without a stronger anti-endo law, all type of work in the country is now candidate for all type of contractual employment arrangements. Businesses may grow out of this exploitative model, which NEDA, DoF, DTI and DOLE truly believe, but not the living standard of workers which is what social justice wanted to achieve.”

The death of anti-endo bill, however, won’t stop the struggle of workers against the epidemic of contractualization until the last three years of the Duterte administration.

“Hangga’t buhay ang endo, tuloy ang laban!,” concluded Magtubo.

26 July 2019

Duterte plans to cripple if not kill SOT bill

Inquirer photo

In the face of the flip-flop over the Security of Tenure (SOT) bill, the labor group Partido Manggagawa (PM) slammed the plan to either “tweak” or “veto” the proposal that will lapse into law tomorrow.

“Not satisfied with an already watered-down SOT bill, Malacanang wants to cripple if not kill it. Between labor’s demand to end endo and the employers’ call to veto it, President Duterte seems bent on surrendering to the capitalist blackmail,” stated Rene Magtubo, PM national chair.

He added that “We wish to remind the President that three months into his administration he forcefully warned employers that he will kill them for continuing with the practice of endo. Now that he is three years into his term, he has changed his tune by repeating the capitalist chorus that businesses will die if workers are made regular. Duterte’s promise to end endo is dead.”

The group also challenged Presidential Spokesperson Sal Panelo to resign from his post and stop confusing the public. “If Panelo was a contractual worker, he would have been terminated for all his bloopers. But such is the double standard of life. Public officials can laugh off their mistakes while endo workers suffer from job insecurity,” asserted Magtubo.

PM is asking Malacanang to explain the truth behind the copy of the veto. “What is the status of the veto of the SOT bill that is already signed by the President and validated by a barcode of Malacanang? Is this a Damocles sword for the workers to accept a mangled SOT bill in return for not it being vetoed?,” Magtubo asked.

26 July 2019

Workers vow to fight chacha at counter-SONA rally

At the top of issues to be raised by workers at the counter-SONA rally today is the opposition to charter change. “Chicha hindi chacha. The government must attend to the problem of hunger and poverty instead of term extension and foreign ownership which are the agenda of charter change,” declared Rene Magtubo, chair of the group Partido Manggagawa (PM).

PM is participating in the coalition United Workers SONA which will mobilize this afternoon. The United Workers SONA coalition will then join up with other broad networks for the United People’s SONA.

The group is also joining the rally by human rights group at the Quezon City Hall by 10:30 am to cry justice for the victims of extra-judicial killings and also demand action on the death of Cavite labor organizer Dennis Sequena.

In Cebu, PM is joining a broad coalition of groups Sentro, Kalipunan and Bayan for a rally that will echo the demands of the United People’s SONA at Commonwealth. The counter-SONA in Cebu City will be at Colon St. by 9:00 am.

Magtubo averred that that “Duterte may repeat in the SONA the unsubstantiated claim by the Labor Department that 500,000 workers have been regularized. Where is the evidence and particulars? The truth is that companies such as PLDT and Philippine Airlines have appealed in the courts the orders to regularize thousands of agency workers. The Philippines is still a Republic of Endo, a Province of China and a puppet of the US.”

He added that “Up to now, President Duterte has not signed the SOT bill due to the powerful lobby of employers for a veto. Should President Duterte surrender to the demand to veto the bill, then he reveals where he stands on the class war between the workers and capitalists on contractualization. A presidential veto will just be another betrayal of his promise to workers. But even if the Security of Tenure bill is signed or lapses into law, endo will persist since the legislation is a watered-down version.” Thus the group averred that among workers demands for the SONA mobilization is a stronger law to stamp out contractualization.

In the counter-SONA rally, aside from pushing for an end to endo, workers are also clamoring for a reform of the wage-setting mechanism.

“We welcome the announcement by the Department of Labor and Employment that it will undertake a study on the current wage system in response to the calls to abolish the regional wage boards. Although we fear that powerful lobby by employers will once more scuttle any real reform,” asserted Magtubo.

PM is batting for the abolition of the regional wage boards and its replacement by a National Wage Commission which will fix a national minimum wage based on the cost of living. The group is also calling for the provision of a minimum basic income for workers in the SME sector which is unregulated and exempted from the minimum wage setting.

July 22, 2019

Senate asked to heed workers’ cry and pass Security of Tenure bill

With tens of thousands of workers from different labor groups marching across the country on Labor Day to call for regular jobs and an end to endo, the partylist group Partido Manggagawa (PM) called on the Senate to pass the Security of Tenure bill. The bill has languished in the Senate even as the House of Representatives had already passed its version last year. The proposed bill would make regular employment the norm and contractual jobs as the exception in well defined cases.

“The senators should heed the demand of Filipino workers whose cry rang loud and clear on Labor Day. Even President Duterte called them out that Congress should pass laws that guarantee security of tenure and the right to self-organization. With nine more session days of Congress left, we vow to fight endo till the endgame,” argued Rene Magtubo, chair of PM and spokesperson of the Nagkaisa labor coalition.

Yesterday in Manila, some 10,000 workers rallied under the Nagkaisa banner with the demand to pass the Security of Tenure bill as the main slogan. Similar mobilizations were held by Nagkaisa and its affiliated organizations in Bataan ecozone, Cebu, Iloilo, Bacolod, Iligan and General Santos City.

Magtubo however averred that “The President should do more than just read a speech about workers’ rights. He should issue instructions to his allies in the Senate, such as Senator Cynthia Villar, to pass the Security of Tenure bill which has stalled over the objections of key senators. Actions should match words. Promises must be fulfilled.”

Meanwhile the demand for wage and voice that were among the highlights of the Labor Day marches yesterday are reflected in the grievances of an alliance of workers in three Mitsubishi car dealerships. The alliance of labor unions is holding simultaneous lunch break protests tomorrow to flex it muscles.

The main picket is at that Otis, Paco, Manila office of Union Motors where a company board meeting is happening tomorrow. Some 50 workers are expected to participate in the Paco protest.

The Peak Motors workers union is on the verge of a strike over a deadlock in CBA negotiations for a wage hike. Meanwhile the Union Motors labor union is preparing to file a refusal to bargain complaint. Finally three officers of the DCT union are facing termination.

The alliance of the three unions are complaining that the separate issues are a concerted attack by the three car dealers which have interlocking directorates and owners. The alliance is alleging that the deadlock over wages and harassment of union officers are part of a design to weaken or bust the unions.

The alliance is called United Unions of Union Motors, Peak Motors and DCT Motors. It is made up of the Union Motors Corp. & Sales Employees Association, Peak Motors Phils. Employees Association and DCT Workers Union.

May 2, 2019

Labor group dares PNoy to certify bill criminalizing OSH violations

Press Release

May 29, 2015

The labor group Partido Manggagawa (PM) today challenged President Benigno Aquino III to certify as priority legislation of his administration the bill providing for criminalization of violation of occupational safety and health (OSH) standards. “PNoy’s declaration that there needs to be an ‘integrated multi-disciplinary approach’ in response to the Kentex factory fire are highfalutin words good for bureaucrats but abstract to workers who want to see concrete action and political will from the government,” averred Rene Magtubo, PM national chair.

It was reported that last Wednesday that President Aquino met officials from the Labor Department and other agencies regarding the government’s response to the Kentex fire. Even earlier Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz pushed for the enactment of pending bills that mandate stiffer fines and jail terms for employer breach of workplace safety standards.

“We welcome Secretary Baldoz’s support for bills criminalizing OSH violations but until her boss PNoy certifies as urgent such pending legislation, they remain so much noise signifying nothing,” Magtubo insisted.

PM had been vocal in calling not just for justice for workers killed and injured in the Kentex fire but for labor inspection and enforcement reforms. As an immediate reform, Magtubo called for deputizing labor leaders as additional labor inspectors. PM is also pushing for criminalization of  OSH violations as a potent deterrent.

Magtubo said that “Workers can forget PNoy’s slight of not even visiting the Kentex factory after the fire or the wake of workers killed, but we cannot forgive if in the coming State of the Nation address he will not certify as urgent the bills providing for criminalization of OSH breach and for protection of security of tenure.”

Labor groups have been campaigning for passage of security of tenure bill that will regulate the rampant practice of replacing regular workers with contractual laborers. In the wake of the Kentex fire, it was found out that Kentex not only violated OSH standards but also labor laws, including using an illegal contractor to hire agency workers in the factory.