PALEA welcomes Chinese new year with Ayala motorcade and impeachment rally

MEDIA ADVISORY

PALEA

WHAT: PALEA to hold protest motorcade and rally at impeachment trial

WHEN:  Tomorrow, January 24

WHERE: Motorcade starts at PALEA protest camp (10am) proceeds to PAL Nichols offices (11am) then Allied Bank, Ayala Ave (12 noon) onto Senate (1pm) and ends at PNB Building at Macapagal Ave.

DETAILS: PALEA welcomes the Chines new year with the demand on new PAL investors for the reinstatement of retrenched workers. PALEA hopes that “year of the water dragon” is the year that its members return to their regular jobs. The union is “watching intently” and not necessarily “welcoming enthusiastically” reports of PAL’s sale to interested investors such as Ramon Ang of SMC and Manny Pangilinan of Metro Pacific.

Meanwhile PALEA president Gerry Rivera is set to testify on Wednesday (Jan. 24 noon EST) at Washington DC on the repression of labor rights by the government. PALEA has been invited to the hearing by the US Trade Representative on the petition by the government for trade benefits under the GSP (general system of preferences). Countries which the US deems as respectful of internationally core labor rights and standards receives preferential treatment.

PM: Subject outsourcing to bargaining talks to prevent strike

PALEA and Church-Labor Conference ends motorcade with program at Ninoy Aquino monumnet in Ayala Ave.

Press Release

August 23, 2011

Amidst the Aquino administration’s apprehensions about a strike at Philippine Airlines (PAL), the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) proposed that the controversial outsourcing plan be subject to collective bargaining negotiations. Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson, said that “Outsourcing should be part of bilateral talks between the company and the union instead of unilaterally imposed on its employees. This is the solution to the two-year long labor row between PAL and the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA).”

Yesterday Department of Transportation and Communications Secretary Mar Roxas called on PAL to setup contingency plans for a work stoppage at the flag carrier. Last week Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda asked PALEA not to paralyze the operations of the flag carrier.

Magtubo argued that “Instead of preparing to break any picket line and calling on PALEA not to strike—a right is guaranteed by law and an instrument of last resort by workers— government must exert moral suasion on PAL to subject the outsourcing plan to collective bargaining negotiations.”

He added that “For 13 long years, PAL employees have sacrificed their right to bargain collectively and now that the flag carrier is financially healthy, it will reward its workers by mass termination. Since 1998, the collective bargaining agreement has been suspended and as a consequence, just to cite an example, the last wage hike for PAL’s ground crew was in 2008.”

Meanwhile Gerry Rivera, PALEA president, announced that they are preparing for more protests this week even as their lawyers are finalizing the petition to be filed at the Court of Appeals. Yesterday PALEA led a protest motorcade of some 20 cars and 50 motorcycles from the Philippine Export Zone Authority office in

Roxas Boulevard

to the Ninoy Aquino monument in

Ayala Ave.

in Makati. PALEA insists that the Office of the President ruling allowing the outsourcing plan is not yet executory pending a final judicial resolution of the case and vows to resist should management prematurely implement the mass layoff of 2,600 workers.

“If PNoy wants to prevent a strike at PAL, government should have heeded workers demands for regular jobs instead of agreeing to Lucio Tan’s contractualization scheme,” Magtubo added. Describing PALEA as “the last line of defense against contractualization,” PM and other big labor groups have vowed to support the embattled union in its fight.

Labor groups reiterate support for PALEA, PM calls for collective bargaining as win-win solution

International Transport Workers Federation Asia Pacific affiliates in the aviation industry express solidarity for PALEA

Press Release

August 21, 2011

A rainbow coalition of labor groups reiterated their support for the embattled Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) in its fight against mass layoffs at Philippine Airlines (PAL). “PALEA is the last line of defense against contractualization and thus labor groups are mobilizing in this battle for regular jobs. Ang laban ng PALEA ay laban ng lahat. Ang laban ng lahat ay kontra kontraktwalisasyon,” stated Renato Magtubo, Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) chairperson.

In response to Malacanang’s call for PALEA to refrain from a strike, Magtubo asserted that the Palace should instead exert moral suasion on PAL to begin negotiations for a collective bargaining agreement (CBA). The PAL-PALEA CBA has been suspended for 13 years since 1998. “If he wants to prevent a paralyzing strike, PNoy should mediate between PAL and PALEA for an agreement that any outsourcing plan should be subject to collective bargaining negotiations rather than unilaterally imposed on employees. This is the win-win solution to this protracted labor row,” Magtubo argued.

Meanwhile Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and PM vice chair, dismissed PAL’s spokesperson Cielo Villaluna’s threat of administrative sanctions for employees joining protest actions. “PALEA members have been protesting since last Thursday by wearing black ribbons while at work. We are fighting not just for the regular jobs of PAL employees but for a decent future for all Filipino workers. There is no dignity and future in a contractual job that pays starvation wages, lacks sufficient benefits, is without security of tenure and is unprotected by a union,” he explained.

An initial contingent of labor and church organizations are joining tomorrow’s motorcade against contractualization. Aside from PALEA and PM, the National Union of Building and Construction Workers, Manggagawa para sa Kalayaan ng Bayan, Federation of Free Workers, Church-Labor Conference, Urban Missionaries, Archdiocesan Ministry for Labor Concerns and the National Secretariat for Social Action of the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines are participating.

Earlier this week, Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo scored the Office of the President for its adverse ruling on PALEA while airline unions in the Asia Pacific and the global union International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) declared solidarity with PALEA. The aviation workers announced they will not act as cabs in case of a strike at PAL. The flag carrier has said that other airlines have committed to service PAL’s routes should it be hit by a work stoppage.

The protest motorcade will start by 4:00 p.m. at the office of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority in

Roxas Boulevard

cor. Buendia and then proceed to

Ayala Ave.

in Makati. The groups plan to hold a program at the Ninoy Aquino monument at the corner of

Ayala Ave.

and Paseo de Roxas. Rivera revealed that more mass actions are slated in the coming week.

PALEA to act vs. premature implementation of layoffs at PAL



A PAL employee's child write her mother about the planned layoffs and the motorcade on Monday, August 22



Press Release

August 20, 2011

PALEA

The Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) warned management against prematurely implementing the planned retrenchment of more than 2,600 workers. The union asserts that Office of the President (OP) is yet executory pending final judicial resolution of the case. “PALEA will act accordingly to defend the jobs and the future of PAL employees should management make the mistake of hastily laying off workers,” declared Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and vice chair of Partido ng Manggagawa (PM).

PALEA also dismissed the appeal of Malacanang that the union refrains from paralyzing the operations of the national flag carrier. “Why is PNoy so worried that PAL’s profitable operations go unhampered but is so unconcerned about thousands of workers losing their regular jobs? If the Palace is concerned about a strike at PAL then they should have heeded the demands of its workers instead of acceding to management’s plans,” Rivera argued.

In response to the OP decision and the planned layoffs at PAL’s, PALEA is embarking on both a legal course and mass actions. A petition is to be filed with the Court of Appeals while protests by PAL employees and their allies are being held. PAL employees in Manila have been wearing black ribbons, shirts and blouses since last Thursday while those in the provincial airports started yesterday. On Monday afternoon a motorcade will be launched that will start from the office of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority in

Roxas Boulevard

cor. Buendia and then proceed to

Ayala Ave.

in Makati.

Rivera added that “We are ready to defend our jobs and the union if PAL does not back down on forcing employees to accept the retrenchment plan. We call on PALEA members to be ready to act on a moment’s notice. PALEA members will rather die standing than be killed on our knees.”

PALEA lambasted as a “misinformation drive” the “town hall meetings” that management plan to hold with PAL employees. “If management tries to convince employees to accept the layoff plan then it is tantamount to individual bargaining that is an unfair labor practice and a strikable offence,” Rivera insisted.

The union criticized management for its “double standards on implementing government rulings.” Rivera explained that “PAL has no moral authority to convince the ground crew to accept the OP decision when it does not even implement the Labor Department decisions on the retirement age of flight attendants.”

Rivera described the roots of the militance of PAL employees by saying that “After making its workers sacrifice their collective bargaining rights for more than a decade, PAL now rewards them with termination and refusal to bargain.” The collective bargaining negotiations have been suspended since 1998 and till now PAL refuses to open talks with PALEA. As a consequence, the last wage hike enjoyed by PAL employees was in 2008.

PALEA rejects dialogue on layoff plan, gets support of Asia Pacific aviation unions

Press Release

August 19, 2011

PALEA

The Philippine Airline Employees’ Association (PALEA) rejected the invitation of Philippine Airlines (PAL) management for a dialogue today on implementing the plan to retrench 2,600 workers. In a letter sent yesterday to PAL President Jaime Bautista, PALEA stated that “We maintain our position that despite the decision of the Secretary of Labor, and the Office of the President, PAL cannot prematurely implement its planned mass termination of employees and union members… PALEA will exhaust all remedies available to it, including seeking a judicial resolution of the case.”

Gerry Rivera, PALEA President and Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) vice chair, nonetheless clarified that they are willing anytime to discuss with PAL measures to make the company viable except outsourcing jobs. PALEA is already preparing with its lawyers, Attys. Marlon Manuel and Joven Dellosa, a petition at the Court of Appeals on the legality of the retrenchment and outsourcing plan.

Meanwhile the embattled PALEA garnered the support of the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF) and its affiliates in the Asia Pacific region. In a press conference this morning, ITF general secretary for Asia Pacific, Mahendra Sharma, declared the global union’s solidarity with PALEA. ITF Asia Pacific officers and member unions in Garuda of Indonesia, Air India and Malaysian Airlines are in Manila for a workers seminar but took a short break for the solidarity activity with PALEA.

Protests against the decision of the Office of the President allowing PAL to lay off more than half of its workforce already started yesterday with PALEA members wearing black ribbons on their uniforms while at work. On Monday PALEA together with PM, Hanjin workers and the Church-Labor Conference will hold a motorcade. The motorcade will assemble on 4:00 pm at the office of the Philippine Economic Zone Authority in Buendia cor.

Roxas Blvd.

and then proceed to

Ayala Ave.

in Makati by 5:00 pm.

PALEA insists that PAL’s robust financial health belies its contention that outsourcing is necessary to make the flag carrier profitable. “PAL actually earned more than USD 72.5 million in its last fiscal year from April 2010 to March 2011 since it paid USD 46.5 million in outstanding debt last June 7, 2010. Even granting PAL’s reasoning that its profitability is cyclical, such falls short of jurisprudence that sustained losses are a necessary ground for retrenchment,” Rivera asserted.

Rivera argued that “PAL claims that outsourcing is a global trend that it must follow. Instead we see an international pattern of resistance against contractualization in the aviation industry as shown by the present labor disputes erupting in PALEA, Garuda, Japan Airlines, Qantas and Jetstar.”

PNoy denies PALEA appeal, allows PAL to retrench despite huge profit; PALEA slams PNoy fire-all-you-can policy

Press Release

August 18, 2011

PALEA

In a decision dated August 11, the Office of the President (OP) denied the motion for reconsideration of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) and affirmed its earlier ruling allowing Philippine Airlines to lay off 2,600 employees and make them contractual workers in third-party service providers. Gerry Rivera, PALEA President and Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) vice chairperson, slammed the decision by saying “With the OP decision permitting PAL to retrench thousands of workers despite billions in profit, PNoy has unveiled his fire-all-you-can policy. This overturns the provisions of the Labor Code and jurisprudence of the Courts that serious financial losses are a necessary ground for retrenchment.”

PALEA is already preparing together with its lawyers, who received the OP decision yesterday, an appeal to be filed at the Court of Appeals. The union has announced a protest action on Monday against the OP decision. Also Rivera is going to ask for support from fellow airline unions in the Asia-Pacific region as he is attending today a seminar on the aviation industry sponsored by the International Transport Workers Federation.

PALEA, PM and the Church-Labor Conference will hold a motorcade on the afternoon of August 22 to protest the OP decision and highlight the campaign against contractualization. The motorcade will start at the PEZA office in Buendia corner Roxas Boulevard and then proceed to Ayala Avenue in Makati.

“PNoy’s employment policy is a second-rate trying-hard copycat of American industrial relations where giant money-making corporations can fire at will. But he should beware since the result of flexible employment relations in the US was not economic progress but financial crisis. The unequal distribution of wealth is at the root of the global financial crash of 2008 and even the present threat of a double-dip recession in the US,” Rivera stated.

The decision came one week after PALEA filed manifestations to the OP and the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) last August 3. The manifestations asked the OP and NLRC to take consideration of PAL’s net yearly income of USD 72.5 million. “The OP has turned a blind eye to the fact that PAL’s robust financial health belies the latter’s argument that outsourcing is necessary for the flag carrier to survive. Since PAL is awash in profits even without outsourcing then there is no reason for it to retrench employees,” Rivera asserted.

Last July 21, PAL filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission its consolidated financial report for the fiscal year ending in March 31, 20011. “The latest yearly income wiped out the previous year’s USD 14.4 million loss. In fact PAL’s actual profit was more than USD 72.5 million since it paid USD 46.5 million in outstanding debt last June 7, 2010. PAL earned more than a hundred million dollars in just one year,” argued Rivera.

He added that “But even with just the declared yearly income, PAL can easily cover the costs of PALEA’s CBA proposal for 2008-2013. Again there is no cause for PAL to refuse to bargain in good faith with PALEA.”

PALEA holds motorcade vs. temporary outsourcing plan

Press Release

June 13, 2011

PALEA

Dark clouds are gathering over the airport as another dispute over a temporary outsourcing arrangement threatens the tense calm between the management of Philippine Airlines (PAL) and the union Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA). In a sign of renewed stormy labor relations, PALEA held a motorcade this afternoon to protest PAL’s plan to hire on June 16 contractual workers from Lucio Tan-owned service provider MacroAsia.

“We are ready to defend our jobs and the union if PAL does not back down from deploying contractual workers on Thursday. We call on PALEA members to remain vigilant until there is a firm commitment from PAL for direct hiring instead of temporary outsourcing,” stated Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and Partido ng Manggagawa vice chair. As of today no agreement has been reached by management and the union on the issue.

PALEA members assembled by 2:30 p.m. at their headquarters in Paranaque for the protest action. The motorcade then proceeded to PAL’s In-Flight Center near the Centennial Terminal and then on to the Nichols gate where other company offices are located.

The national flag carrier is facing an acute manpower shortage for passenger handling due to the exodus of customer service agents who have sought greener pastures abroad. PAL asked PALEA for cooperation in allowing MacroAsia to work the departure gates for a period of six months.

The union immediately rejected the plan but offered to help in rehiring former PAL employees and recalling trainees who were not hired due to a freeze hiring program. Last June 9 PALEA submitted a partial list of people interested in the position of customer service agents.

The embattled union considers the temporary outsourcing plan a “backdoor implementation” of the controversial contractualization plan at PAL. The legality of the contractualization scheme is pending on appeal at the Office of the President while a related but separate case regarding PAL’s refusal to bargain with PALEA is due for decision at the National Labor Relations Commission. PALEA is also coordinating with the global union International Transport Workers Federation for a complaint to be filed at the International Labor Organization against the Philippine government and PAL management for violation of conventions on freedom of association and collective bargaining.

PALEA is arguing that the temporary outsourcing of regular jobs to MacroAsia is a violation of the April 1 order of Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz enjoining management and the union from engaging in any act that will exacerbate the labor dispute at PAL. Baldoz had imposed an assumption of jurisdiction order on the labor row at PAL which stopped PALEA from a planned strike last April.

Labor dispute erupts anew at PAL

Press Release

June 12, 2011

PALEA

Labor relations at Philippine Airlines (PAL) promises to become stormy again like the weather as the union Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) is opposing the national flag carrier’s plan to employ contractual workers of a service provider on June 16. PALEA returns to the streets tomorrow with a motorcade around the airport area to drum up resistance to the planned outsourcing.

“PALEA considers the temporary outsourcing of regular jobs to MacroAsia as a backdoor implementation of the controversial contractualization plan and a violation of the April 1 order of the Labor Secretary enjoining management and the union from engaging in any act that will exacerbate the labor dispute at PAL. If PAL pushes through with the plan on June 16, we will act accordingly to defend our jobs and the union,” stated Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and Partido ng Manggagawa vice chair.

Last April 1, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz imposed an assumption of jurisdiction order on the labor dispute at PAL which stopped PALEA from a planned strike and also enjoined the two parties from any acts that will worsen the labor dispute.

At 2:30 pm tomorrow, PALEA members will assemble at their headquarters in Paranaque for the motorcade that will proceed to PAL’s In-Flight Center near the Centennial Terminal and then on to the Nichols gate where other company offices are located.

“Tomorrow’s motorcade is just a preview of protests that will culminate on Thursday should PAL carry on with its de facto outsourcing plan despite our opposition and the Labor Secretary’s order,” insisted Rivera.

Last May 30, PAL informed PALEA of an acute manpower shortage for passenger handling due to the exodus of customer service agents who have sought greener pastures abroad and asked for the union’s cooperation in allowing MacroAsia to work the departure gates for a period of six months. PALEA rejected outright the proposal and suggested instead that the vacant positions be filled up by direct hiring instead of outsourcing to a service provider. PALEA even offered to help in rehiring former PAL employees and recalling trainees who were not hired due to a freeze hiring program.

Discussions between PAL and PALEA on these stop gap measures proceeded and last June 9 the union submitted a partial list of people interested in the position of customer service agents. “PALEA has extended the hand of assistance in solving the company’s manpower shortage. We expect that PAL will shake our hands in return instead of stabbing us in the back by outsourcing regular positions to contractual workers,” Rivera averred.

PAL workers to join SONA march to ask P-Noy to defend regular jobs

PRESS RELEASE

25 July 2010

Rank and file workers of Philippine Airlines are joining labor groups’ SONA march tomorrow to ask President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III to save their jobs and put an end to the labor contractualization policy. 

Some 500 members of Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) will join the Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) contingent along the Tandang Sora and Commonwealth Avenues around 10:00 am tomorrow before marching with the multisectoral groups Freedom from Debt Coalition (FDC) and the Kampanya para sa Makataong Pamunuhay (KAMP) towards the Batasan Complex.  

PALEA members have prepared a replica of a PAL plane where they wrote a message for P-Noy asking the President to stop the planned layoff of some 2,600 PAL employees.  The PALEANs have been demanding in particular that a ‘midnignt decision’ issued by DOLE on June 15, 2010 be reversed.   

PALEA President Gerry Rivera, said the Order is in gross violation of the Labor Code and their existing collective bargaining agreement against labor contracting.

“The DOLE decision, if sustained by the present administration, will make labor contracting in the form of spin-off legal and therefore the contractualization of regular jobs.  Hindi po ito matuwid na landas, Pangulong Noy,” stated Rivera.

Rivera, who is also Partido ng Manggagawa vice chair, warned further that once sustained labor contractualization will be abused to the max, job security will be dead, and all benefits due to regular workers will disappear.

The June 15 decision held that, “the intended closure of the Philippine Airlines In-Flight Catering operations, Airport Services Operations and Call Center Reservation Operations and the consequent severance from employment of all affected employees as reported to the DOLE Regional Offices, as well as the contracting out of these operations to the named service providers, are based on lawful ground and all in a valid exercise of managerial prerogative and as such valid and lawful in all respects.”

The Partido ng Manggagawa meanwhile challenged the new administration to formulate a “labor-first policy” if it wants to depart from age-old cheap labor policy and the foreign investment-led job creation strategy.

“Walang boss na busabos (there is no such thing as a “deprived boss”),” concludes Magtubo, taking from P-Noy’s “kayo ang boss ko” declaration in his June 30 inaugural speech.

PAL workers hold pre-SONA protest

Press Release
July 21, 2010

Some 300 members of the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) held a pre-SONA rally this morning at the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). The PAL workers called on the new Secretary of Labor and Employment, Rosalinda Baldoz, to overturn the “midnight decision” by then Acting Labor Secretary Romeo Lagman that found the illegal contracting out of jobs planned by Philippine Airlines to be “a valid exercise of management prerogative.”

“Lagman’s midnight decision was erroneous on both substantive and procedural grounds. Now that the ball is in her court, we call on Sec. Baldoz to exercise due process and right judgment in reversing the former Acting Secretary’s midnight decision,” stated Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) vice-chairperson.

The rally today was the first of several activities planned by PALEA and PM as buildup to the SONA on Monday. Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson, explained that “We are asking President Aquino to make concrete his promise that democracy should work for all by certifying a set of pro-labor reform bills as urgent in his SONA. Among these should be reforms to enhance job security and stop the proliferation of contractualization schemes.”

The PAL employees started the pre-SONA protest with a motorcade from the PALEA office in Tambo, Paranaque City. A delegation of supporters from PM joined the rally at DOLE.

PALEA filed a motion for reconsideration of the Lagman order and also petitioned President Noynoy Aquino for the new government to review the midnight decision. Among the 22-point “marching orders” given by President Aquino to Sec. Baldoz in the first cabinet meeting last June 30 was to re-evaluate the midnight decision given the importance of the dispute as a “litmus test” of the new government’s handling of labor-management relations.

Meanwhile the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF), of which PALEA is an affiliate, sent a letter of concern to President Aquino regarding the labor dispute at PAL. In a letter dated July 16 and sent by email, ITF General Secretary David Cockroft urged the government to “act swiftly and decisively to facilitate an acceptable resolution to the intervene the PAL-PALEA row.”

The ITF letter further argued that “The dispute has arisen due to the apparent intention of the PAL management to implement mass dismissals and to contract out jobs being performed by regular employees. The ITF understands that these actions would be in breach of provisions against labor contracting and on job security contained within the company’s collective bargaining agreement. Apart from the huge social impact that such actions would have on the workers and their families, this move by the PAL management is also perceived as a union-busting measure given the fact that these employees are all PALEA members and include the union’s officers.”

The ITF represents more than 4.6 million transport workers in 759 unions across 155 countries, including 269 aviation unions with some 650,000 members.

May 1 protest demands a stop to layoffs and contractualization

Press Release
May 1, 2010

The call to stop mass layoffs and labor contractualization rang loud and clear in protests on Labor Day. The demand to reform the wage fixing system and abolish the wage boards were also highlighted in the protest motorcade dubbed “Sakbayan para sa Trabahong Regular at Dagdag Sahod” by the party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM).

“Can the 3,000 PAL employees to be retrenched on May 31 find work in the Labor Day job fairs of the government? If ever they do, they will probably end up as contractual workers, which is their same fate in the spun off companies to be created by Lucio Tan. Regular jobs are being destroyed and replaced by contractual work in which wages are cheaper, benefits are fewer and security of tenure is abolished,” declared Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson.

The May 1 motorcade converged by 7:00 a.m. at the PAL In Flight Center along Airport Road in Paranaque. A program was held in which Gerry Rivera, PAL Employees Association (PALEA) president and PM vice-chairperson, was the main speaker. The motorcade then proceeded to Mendiola for a joint program with other labor groups by 10:00 a.m.

Rivera criticized the Department of Labor and Employment for assuming jurisdiction (AJ) of the labor dispute in PAL when PALEA has not even held a strike vote and has not yet discussed holding a strike. The AJ order was dated April 23, 2010 and stopped PALEA from continuing with the protest motorcades that had mobilized hundreds of workers last week.

Magtubo called on PAL to cancel the retrenchment planned for May 31. “The failure of elections that could result from a slowdown or paralysis of PAL’s operations is the responsibility of management since it provoked the labor dispute,” Magtubo argued. PM is supporting the series of protest actions by PAL workers against spinoff and contractualization.

Magtubo also lambasted the government for freezing wages for the past two years and its announcement that no wage hike is forthcoming. “The minimum wage has been stuck at P382 while the prices of basic goods and services have skyrocketed. In the midst of rotating brownouts and less energy consumption, consumers’ electricity bills have increased by 50% and yet the government will not lift a finger to ease workers’ burdens. To the bitter end, the Gloria Arroyo regime remains anti-labor,” he exclaimed.

PM also led May 1 protests in Cebu, Bacolod, Iloilo, Davao and Iligan. In Cebu, more than 1,000 workers marched to the campout of the displaced Alta Mode workers at the gates of the Mactan export processing zone. PAL workers in Cebu joined the Labor Day program at the Alta Mode campout. In Bacolod, a caravan of more than 20 trucks from plantations in South Negros entered Bacolod in the morning and met with other contingents for an indoor rally at the Teacher Center. At the end of the indoor rally by 3:00 p.m., the participants marched to SM-Bacolod where a job fair was being held and tore in half an employment contract in a symbolic protest at contractualization.

Meanwhile in Iloilo City, a caravan of 20 jeeps ended in a rally at Plaza Letogay. In Davao, PM members assembled by 1:00 p.m. at the corner of Magsaysay and Roxas Blvds. before marching to Orcullo Freedom Park for a joint rally with other groups. Also in Iligan, PM joined a labor unity parade by the different labor groups that went around the downtown area. A program was then held at the City Plaza where workers concerns were discussed. Finally in Koronadal City, PM members led by the union of the Yellow Bus Line marched around the downtown area in the afternoon.

All set for May 1 protest despite change in Labor Day observance

Press Release
April 29, 2010

The labor party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) announced that mass actions will push through on May 1 despite an executive order from Malacanang declaring instead May 3 as a non-working holiday. “All systems are go for the motorcade of 500 motorcycles with the theme ‘Sakbayan para sa Trabahong Regular at Dagdag Sahod.’ Labor Day is celebrated all over the world on May 1 and no order from Malacanang can change that,” asserted Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson.

“Divide and rule tactics not holiday economics are the real motive for shifting the observance of Labor Day to May 3 instead of May 1. Gloria Arroyo wants to split the labor movement and sabotage the militant protests planned for May 1. We call on the different labor federations and centers to continue with their May 1st activities. The labor unity rally at Mendiola will push through,” Magtubo insisted. He clarified that PM-affiliated labor unions are already negotiating with their respective companies so they can join the May 1 protests.

The group said that the May 1 motorcade will converge by 7:00 a.m. at the PAL In Flight Center along Airport Road in Paranaque to highlight the massive layoff of 3,000 Philippine Airlines workers. A short program will be held in which Gerry Rivera, PAL Employees Association president and PM vice-chairperson will be the main speaker. The motorcade will then proceed to Mendiola for a joint program with other labor groups by 10:00 a.m.

PM had already secured a permit from the Manila City Hall for a rally in Mendiola from 9:00 am to 12:00 noon on May 1. Two PM leaders attended a dialogue with police officials last April 23 and coordinated with the authorities the traffic issues concerning the May 1 motorcade. Representatives of PM are also negotiating with aviation security for the protest near the Centennial Terminal of the airport from which PAL operates.

Magtubo explained that the demand for a wage hike and regular jobs will be the focus of the Labor Day protests. He elaborated that “Malacanang’s announcement that no wage hike is forthcoming on Labor Day shows this regime’s anti-labor character up to the bitter end of its term. Moreover the retrenchment at PAL and others such as the dismissal of 450 workers at the Dyna Image electronics factory in the Cavite export zone expose the reality about the jobs situation. Such mass layoffs more or less cancel out the 18,000 new jobs that government boasts will be created in the Labor Day job fairs in Metro Manila. One thread connects the mass layoffs and job fairs—they are just two faces of contractualization. Regular jobs are being destroyed and replaced by contractual work in which wages are cheaper, benefits are fewer and security of tenure is abolished.”

The motorcade will have participants coming from riders clubs from Calabarzon and motorcycle-riding unionists from PAL, Marikina and Valenzuela. PM will also lead May 1 rallies in Cebu City, Bacolod City, Iloilo City, Iligan City and Davao City.

Days before Labor Day: Workers unrest over layoffs erupts

Press Release
April 27, 2010

A few days before Labor Day, workers unrest over mass layoffs and labor contractualization is erupting from export zones to the airport. More than 200 laid off workers of an electronics firm in Cavite were joined by the labor party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) in a protest today at the office of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board in Imus, Cavite. Yesterday the workers of Dyna Image Corp. Phils. walked out of their factory and marched to the gates of the Cavite Economic zone in protest at management’s attempt to force employees to sign separation papers.

Meanwhile the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) is planning another protest this Friday against the dismissal of some 3,000 workers by the end of May and the spinoff of airport services, inflight catering and call center work. Last week PALEA launched two motorcades around PAL offices in the airport area in which more than a hundred motorcycles and vehicles participated.

The Dyna Image workers protest coincided with a preventive mediation hearing called by the NCMB at 2:00 pm today. The newly-formed Samahan ng Manggagawa sa Dyna Image Corp. Phils. filed last week complaints of illegal retrenchment and harassment. “We do not believe the company’s claims of the financial losses due to the economic crisis since production is in full blast and workers are doing overtime work,” insisted Virgielita Morite, president of the Dyna Image union.

In the protest at the NCMB-Cavite today, workers held placards that read “DOLE: Stop the layoffs,” “Layoffs should be the last not the first option” and “No to contractualization.” Dennis Sequena, a leader of PM-Cavite, said that “Workers suspect that Dyna Image will just replace regular workers with contractuals whose wages will be cheaper, receive fewer benefits and have no security of tenure. Why are workers the first to bear the burden of the economic crisis when we are the last to benefit during the period of boom?”

Gerry Rivera, president of PALEA and vice-chairperson of PM, argued that “PAL is propagating the myth that the jobs to be spun off are non-core units. But how can an airline function without ground crew that handles ticketing reservations, inflight catering and airport services? These are jobs that are essential to PAL’s smooth and safe operation. Management is juggling words as an alibi for contractualization.”

The Dyna Image union and PALEA will participate in the PM-led Labor Day protest on May 1. More than a thousand workers riding some 500 motorcycles will take part in a “Sakbayan Para sa Dagdag Sahod at Trabahong Regular.” The motorcade will be led by riders clubs in Cavite, Laguna and Batangas whose membership are overwhelmingly workers.

Ilang araw bago ang Mayo Uno: Protesta laban sa tanggalan sumisiklab

Press Release
April 26, 2010

Ilang araw bago ang Araw ng Manggagawa sa Sabado ay sumisiklab ang mga protesta laban sa malawakang tanggalan at kontraktwalisasyon ng paggawa. Kaninang hapon ay nag-walkout ang mga manggagawa sa isang pabrika sa Cavite export zone bilang protesta sa pagtatanggal ng 450 empleyado, halos kalahati ng workforce. Nagmartsa ang mga manggagawa ng Dyna Image Corp. Phils., isang electronics firm na pag-aari ng mga dayuhang Intsik, mula sa kanilang pabrika at nagprograma sa gate ng Cavite Economic Zone sa bayan ng Rosario, Cavite.

Bukas ay magpoprotesta uli sila bukas kasabay ng hearing sa reklamong iligal na tanggalan at harrasment. Lagpas 200 miyembro ng Samahan ng Manggagawa sa Dyna Image Corp. Phils. at ng party-list na Partido ng Manggagawa ang magtitipon bukas ng alas dos ng hapon sa opisina ng National Conciliation and Mediation Board sa Imus, Cavite.

Bukod sa protesta sa Dyna Image ay dalawang beses nang naglunsad ng motorcade nitong nakaraang linggo ang mga empleyado ng Philippine Airlines. Sa katapusan ng Mayo naman tatanggalin ang 3,000 empleyado ng PAL, halos kalahati din ng workforce.

Iginiit ni Dennis Sequena, lider ng Partido ng Manggagawa sa Cavite, dapat ay maghanap muna ng ibang paraan bago magsibak ng mga manggagawa sang-ayon sa patakaran ng Department of Labor and Employment. Suspetsa naman ni Virgie Morite, pangulo ng unyon sa Dyna Image, papalitan lang ang mga regular na manggagawa ng mga kontraktwal na barat ang sweldo, kulang ang benepisyo at walang seguridad sa trabaho.

Lalahok ang mga unyon ng Dyna Image at PAL sa protestang pangungunahan ng Partido ng Manggagawa sa darating na Araw ng Manggagawa. Mga isang libong manggagawa na sakay ng lagpas 500 motorsiklo ang bubuo sa “Sakbayan Para sa Dagdag Sahod at Trabahong Regular” na ilulunsad sa Mayo Uno.

Cavite export zone workers walkout of factory in protest at layoffs

Press Release
April 26, 2010

More than a hundred workers of an electronics firm walked out of their factory before noon today and marched to gates of the Cavite Economic Zone in Rosario, Cavite in protest at mass layoffs. Workers for the morning shift of the Dyna Image Corp. Phils., an export firm owned by Chinese foreigners, who were supposed to be retrenched on May 10, were suddenly called management to a meeting around 10:00 am. Their cellphones were confiscated, then asked to sign quit claim forms and receive separation pay on the spot.

“This was a desperate move by management to avert their responsibilities for the illegal retrenchment and harassment of workers. Management is supposed to attend the preventive mediation hearing set for tomorrow. Instead they told the workers that the hearing tomorrow is cancelled in order to entice workers to accept the severance pay,” explained Virgielita Morite, president of the newly formed Samahan ng Manggagawa sa Dyna Image Corp. Phils.

Morite led workers who did not accept the separation pay in marching from the factory and they held a program at the gates of the export zone. Workers from the afternoon shift joined the protest at the export zone gates instead of reporting for work. Morite announced that hundreds of union members will accompany them in the 2:00 pm hearing tomorrow at National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB)-Regional Adjudication Board IV in Imus, Cavite.

Dennis Sequena, a leader of the Partido ng Manggagawa in Cavite, questioned the presence of a Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) official during the meeting called by management. He asserted that “Why is Edwin Hernandez of the DOLE-Region IV telling workers that the company is terminating workers because it is facing difficulties. The job of the DOLE officers is to protect workers not be management’s spokesperson.”

“If the company is suffering difficulties, why is production in full blast and workers required to do overtime work,” Morite questioned. The mass layoff of 450 workers, about half of the total workforce of 933, pushed the workers employees to form a union and file a case with the NCMB for preventive mediation.

The Dyna Image union will participate in the Partido ng Manggagawa’s Labor Day protest on May 1. More than a thousand workers riding some 500 motorcycles will take part in a “Sakbayan Para sa Dagdag Sahod at Trabahong Regular.” The motorcade will be led by riders clubs in Cavite, Laguna and Batangas whose membership are overwhelmingly workers.

PAL union holds new protest vs. mass layoff of 3,000 workers

Press Release
April 23, 2010

Philippine Airlines employees will hold a new motorcade today against the planned layoff of an estimated 3,000 employees by May 31. The motorcade will start at 10:30 a.m. at the Department of Labor and Employment office in Intramuros then proceed to the PAL Center at the PNB Compound along Diosdado Macapagal Ave., then move on to the PAL In Flight Center along Airport Road and then end at the Nichols terminal.

“The fight against mass layoffs in PAL continues,” declared Gerry Rivera, president of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) and vice-chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa (PM). The protests started last Monday with more than 200 employees participating in a motorcade of 100 motorcycles and cars.

“PAL is propagating the myth that the jobs to be spun off are non-core units. But how can passenger airlines function without ground crew that handles ticketing reservations, cargo handling and in flight catering? These are jobs that are essential to PAL’s smooth and safe operation, or in the language of the labor code, work that is necessary and desirable to the principal business of the company,” Rivera insisted.

The party-list PM expressed support to the struggle of PAL workers. “The fight of PAL employees is the fight of Filipino workers. Contractualization is a scourge that is ravaging the lives of workers and their families,” stated Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson.

Rivera added that “PAL is juggling words as an alibi for contractualization. If Lucio Tan is indeed losing money in PAL, he can just close it down. But instead he will just layoff regular workers and replace us with contractual workers with lower wages, less benefits and no security of tenure. No wonder Lucio Tan is one of the richest Filipinos.”

PM is calling on the labor movement to close ranks and launch solidarity with the fight of PAL employees. “The protests against spinoff will continue until Labor Day on May 1. The twin themes of the coming Labor Day commemoration are the demand for regular jobs and wage hike,” Magtubo explained.

Panibagong protesta kontra tanggalan ng 3,000 empleyado ng PAL

Press Release
April 22, 2010

Maglulunsad bukas ng isang panibagong motorcade ang mga empleyado ng Philippine Airlines kontra sa planong tanggalan ng 3,000 manggagawa. Ang motorcade ay magsisimula ng 10:30 n.u. sa Department of Labor and Employment sa Intramuros tapos tutungo sa PAL Center sa PNB Compound sa Diosdado Macapagal Ave., pupunta sa PAL In Flight Center sa Airport Road at magtatapos sa Nichols terminal.

“Tuloy ang laban sa malawakang tanggalan sa PAL,” paliwanag ni Gerry Rivera, bagong halal na pangulo ng PAL Employees Association at vice-chairperson ng Partido ng Manggagawa. Nagsimula ang protesta laban sa tanggalan sa isang motorcade noong Lunes na nilahukan ng lagpas lagpas 200 tao na sakay ng 100 motorsiklo at kotse.

“Ang layunin ng spinoff ay ibigay ang trabaho sa ibang kompanya na pag-aari pa rin ni Lucio Tan pero ang mga manggagawa ay hindi unyonisado kung kaya’t mas barat ang sweldo, kapos ang benepisyo at walang seguridad ang trabaho. Tatanggalin ang mga regular na manggagawa at papalitan sila ng mga empleyadong kontraktwal. Nangyari na ito dati nang ilipat ang ibang linya ng PAL sa Lufthansa Technik at Macro Asia kung saan stockholder si Lucio Tan,” iginiit ni Rivera.

Sinusuportahan ng party-list na Partido ng Manggagawa ang ipinaglalaban ng unyon ng PAL. “Ang laban ng mga empleyado ng PAL ay laban ng lahat ng manggagawang Pilipino. Ang kontraktwalisasyon ay isang virus na pumepesta sa kabuhayan ng mga manggagawa at kanilang pamilya,” pahayag ni Renato Magtubo, tagapangulo ng Partido ng Manggagawa.

Nananawagan ang Partido ng Manggagawa sa kilusang paggawa na magkaisa at makiisa sa laban ng mga empleyado ng PAL. “Magtutuloy ang mga pagkilos hanggang sa Araw ng Paggawa sa Mayo Uno. Ang kahilingan ng mga manggagawa sa Mayo Uno ay regular na trabaho at umento sa sweldo,” ani Magtubo.

Mass layoff sparks labor unrest in Cavite export zone

Press Release
April 21, 2010

A planned mass layoff of 450 workers, about half of the total workforce of a factory in the Cavite Economic Zone, has pushed its employees to form a union and file a case with the Labor Department. Workers of Dyna Image Corp. Phils., an electronics export firm owned by Chinese foreigners, trooped yesterday afternoon to the National Conciliation and Mediation Board-RAB IV in Imus, Cavite to file for preventive mediation of cases of illegal retrenchment and harassment.

Dyna Image will layoff the workers by May 10 and is offering them 13 days per year of service in separation pay. The company declared that the dismissal is to prevent losses due to the financial crisis. “But if the company is suffering difficulties, why is production in full blast and workers required to do overtime work,” questioned Virgielita Morite, president of the newly certified Samahan ng Manggagawa sa Dyna Image Corp. Phils.

Out of 933 total workers, 229 are already members of the union and more are signing up according to Morite. She alleges that management forced workers to sign papers giving consent to the termination. Morite added that “The fact that workers organized a union show that they do not agree to the layoff and we suspect that management will just replace regular workers with contractual agency workers.”

Raquel Monzon, president of the Rosario Workers Association, a DOLE-certified workers organization for mutual benefit and protection, argued that “The Dyna Image case is no different from the PAL spinoff that will lead to the layoff of 3,000 workers by May 31. By replacing regular with contractual workers, capitalists increase their profits by cutting labor costs. Why should workers be the first to bear the burden of the global crisis when we are the last to benefit during the period of boom?”

The labor party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) chapter in Cavite is also supporting the Dyna Image workers. Dennis Sequena, a PM-Cavite leader, said that “It is ironic that on election day hundreds of Cavite workers will lose their jobs but all we hear from presidentiables are motherhood statements on poverty but no concrete jobs policy. Contractualization is a national issue that deserves attention. Thus among the ‘Apat na Dapat’ platform of PM is the protection and promotion of regular jobs.”

The Dyna Image union will participate in the coming Labor Day protest on May 1. Some 500 motorcycles will take part in a “Sakbayan Para sa Dagdag Sahod at Trabahong Regular” to be led by riders clubs whose membership are overwhelmingly workers.

The Dyna Image workers are still awaiting a date for the hearing of their preventive mediation case that is docketed as Case No. 04004-10. The factory produces parts for cellphone cameras.

PAL union hold motorcade vs. planned layoff of 3,000 employees

Press Release
April 19, 2010

Philippine Airlines (PAL) employees held a motorcade today in protest at a massive retrenchment to be implemented on May 31. An estimated 3,000 employees, more than half of the total PAL workforce, will be laid off due to the closure of the in flight catering services, airport services (which includes ground, cargo and ramp handling) and call center reservations including all support units.

The motorcade of some 40 cars and motorcycles started around 11:30 am at the PAL Center located at the PNB Compound along the Diosdado Macapagal Ave. in Pasay City. The motorcade moved on to Nichols airport terminal then onto the PAL In Flight Center (IFC) along Airport Road in Paranaque and finally ended at the Terminal 3 of the airport.

Gerry Rivera, newly elected president of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) and vice-chairperson of the party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM), said that “Spinoff aims to outsource work to companies also owned by Lucio Tan where workers will be non-union and thus receive cheaper wages, fewer benefits and have no security of tenure. Regular workers will be retired and then rehired as contractuals. This has happened before when work was spun off to Lufthansa Technik and Macro Asia, in which Lucio Tan both had major interests. Employees retrenched from PAL because of the spinoff were employed by Macro Asia and Lufthansa Technik on new contracts.”

Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson, meanwhile expressed support to the struggle of the PAL workers. He asserted that “We challenge the presidentiables to state their position on the scourge of contractualization and their platform on job generation. The workers are not satisfied with motherhood statements but want to hear concrete programs.”

Rivera explained that the motorcade is only the opening salvo in the fight against massive layoff in PAL. Plans to spinoff the same departments last year were stopped by protests by PAL workers led by Rivera. He insisted that “Spinoff is not a solution to company losses but a scheme to contractualize labor and raise more profit not from better efficiency of work but from greater exploitation of workers.”

PALEA was furnished a memo by PAL President and CEO Jaime Bautista dated April 16 which announced the planned layoff. Before the motorcade, the PALEA protesters attended at hearing at the DOLE-NCR for an interpleader filed by PAL management. The PAL union is alleging that an election protest filed by losing candidates in union elections held last February is part of the scheme to weaken PALEA in the face of the fight against spinoff and layoff.

Workers slam employers’ opposition to P75 wage hike

Press Release
April 19, 2010

The labor party-list Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) denounced the employers’ opposition to the P75 wage hike in a hearing called today by the NCR wage board. PM members picketed the hearing at the Occupational Health and Safety Center in Quezon City at 1:00 pm today and called the employers’ arguments as “black propaganda and blackmail.”

Renato Magtubo, PM chairperson, stated that “A salary increase is again being rejected as inimical to the economy on grounds that it will lead to a spiral in prices, the bankruptcy of companies and a host of other horror stories.”

The hearing today is already the second in a series being called by the wage board in Metro Manila. In the first hearing last April 8 that was attended by the labor sector, PM expressed support for the P75 wage petition. In a position paper read at the hearing, Magtubo argued that “The threat of bankruptcies due to the wage increase is all lies. The truth is that capitalists just don’t want their profits decreased.”

The group revealed that the protest today is the start of mass actions in preparation for a massive motorcade on May 1. More than 500 motorcycles will take part in a “Sakbayan Para sa Dagdag Sahod at Trabahong Regular” to be led by riders clubs whose membership are overwhelmingly workers.

Magtubo insisted that “The employers are engaging in black propaganda and blackmail. Why should we be afraid of additional money circulating in the economy due to a wage hike when billions of dollars in remittances entering the country is always applauded?”

He added that “If the stronger purchasing power of OFW families is a positive factor in the economy then should not the same thing hold for more money in the hands of workers which we will use to buy the necessities of life? A wage hike will be good for the workers and will also be beneficial to the economy because it will spur the production of more goods and provision of more services.”