PALEA & Nagkaisa hold Jericho March at San Miguel in celebration of human rights day

NAGKAISA!

PRESS RELEASE

December 10, 2012

Reference: Alnem Pretencio

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Workers hold Jericho March at San Miguel in celebration of human rights day

Invoking the principle “Workers’ rights are human rights!”, members of the broad labor coalition Nagkaisa! celebrated today’s International Human Rights Day looking for justice for the long-suffering members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA).

But instead of a traditional march to Mendiola, Nagkaisa! members held a ‘Jericho March’ at the headquarters of San Miguel Corporation (SMC)  in  Pasig City to reiterate its demands for the reinstatement of locked out workers of PAL and the dropping of criminal charges against several  leaders and members of PALEA.

Aside from labor, the human rights community lead by the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA) also joined the protest.  Both argued that PAL’s outsourcing/contractualization of regular jobs was in gross violation of the workers’ constitutional right to security of tenure.

PALEA members had been fighting a desperate battle for reinstatement after the old management of the flag carrier locked them out in September last year after 2,400 regular workers refused to be outsourced in another service company.

SMC President Ramon Ang took control of the Philippine Airlines (PAL) in April this year after the beer giant infused at least US$500 million of fresh equity to the ailing flag carrier.  Upon his takeover of the captain’s seat, he declared that one of his top priorities was to resolve the lingering labor dispute in PAL.

“One year was too long a wait for justice that PALEA members rightfully deserved. Their rights have been violated and we in the labor movement wanted to see if the new management under Ramon Ang will keep true his pronouncements to find a just resolution to the dispute,” said Eva Arcos of the Association of Labor Unions (ALU)-TUCP, a convenor of Nagkaisa!

Nagkaisa! is bothered lately when instead of having marathon negotiations to end the dispute, warrant of arrests came out against the 39 members of PALEA, creating signals that the dispute is actually far from getting resolved.

On his part, PALEA president and Partido ng Manggagawa vice chair Gerry Rivera, reiterated his appeal for the new management to fast track the negotiations so that both parties, including the riding public, can again fly PAL with pride.

He added that PALEA after more than one year of struggle continues to enjoy wide support from the local and international trade union movement.    In fact beginning December 12, international unions will also be holding solidarity actions for PALEA at several airports where PAL has regular flights.

Rivera said labor and human rights groups’ support to PALEA will never end until the ‘walls of Jericho’ that is preventing their reinstatement crumble. 

He added that the policy of contractualization demonstrated in PAL’s outsourcing plan is the latest form of modern-day slavery that the labor movement wants eradicated.

Photos of event @ https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=pcb.10200934365020464&type=1

Workers to hold Jericho March at San Miguel in celebration of human rights day

PRESS RELEASE

December 09, 2012

Invoking the principle workers’ rights are human rights, members of the broad labor coalition Nagkaisa! will be celebrating the International Human Rights Day tomorrow, December 10. 

But instead of a traditional march to Mendiola, Nagkaisa! members is holding a ‘Jericho March’ at the headquarters of San Miguel Corporation (SMC)  in  Pasig City to lend support to PALEA’s year-old battle for reinstatement and labor justice. 

“The labor and human rights movement’s support to PALEA will never end until the ‘walls of Jericho’ which were preventing their reinstatement crumble,” declared Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) chair and one of Nagkaisa! convenors Renato Magtubo.

Aside from labor, the human rights community lead by the Philippine Alliance of Human Rights Advocates (PAHRA) is joining the protest.  Both argued that PAL’s outsourcing/contractualization of regular jobs was in gross violation of the workers’ constitutional right to security of tenure.

SMC President Ramon Ang took control of the Philippine Airlines (PAL) in April this year after the beer giant infused at least US$500 million of fresh equity to the ailing flag carrier.  And upon his takeover of the captain’s seat, he declared that one of his top priorities was to resolve the lingering labor dispute in PAL.

“On the part of organized labor, we strongly believe that a just resolution of the PAL-PALEA dispute will serve the best interest of both parties, including the riding public who want to see PAL fly again with pride,” explained Magtubo. 

PALEA members had been fighting a desperate battle for reinstatement after the old management of the flag carrier locked them out in September last year after 2,400 regular workers refused to be outsourced in another service company.

Magtubo said the policy of contractualization demonstrated in PAL’s outsourcing plan is the latest form of modern-day slavery that workers want eradicated.

The labor leader also announced that beginning December 12, international unions will also be holding solidarity actions for PALEA at several airports where PAL has regular flights. 

Advisory: Workers celebrate HR day at SMC

MEDIA ADVISORY

09 December 2012

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Contacts:

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Workers’ rights are human rights!

Workers Celebrate

Human Rights Day

@

SAN MIGUEL

In support of PALEA

December 10, 2012, 10:30am

in front of

San Miguel Corporation

San Miguel Ave., Ortigas, Pasig City

Assembly Point @ Podium 9:30 AM, before marching to San Miguel

NAGKAISA!

ALU-TUCP  (APSOTEU), METAL, PSU, TEXTILE, TRANSPORT,VIMCOMTU * AFW * AIWA-SENTRO

APL-SENTRO * ATU-TUCP *BMP * CIU * CLASS-TUCP * FCCU-SENTRO * FFW * KAMAO-SENTRO

KILUSAN-TUCP * KKKP-TUCP * LIBO-SENTRO * MAKABAYAN * MARINO * NABU-SENTRO * NAFLU * NAMAWU * NCL * NCTU-SENTRO * NUPP-TUCP * NUWHRAIN-SENTRO * PALEA-TUCP * PEUP-SENTRO PGEA-TUCP * PIGLAS-SENTRO * PILLU-TUCP * PIPSEA-SENTRO * PM * PMA-SENTRO * PSLINK * PTGWO-TUCP * TESDA-ACE-TUCP * WSN-SENTRO

PALEA calls on Ramon Ang to drop charges against members

Press Release

November 9, 2012

PALEA

The Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) today called on new Philippine Airlines (PAL) President Ramon Ang to drop all charges against its members in order to facilitate a solution to the labor row. Last Wednesday a second PALEA member was arrested in Makati City while the first was detained for several days last October in Malvar, Batangas.

Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and vice chair of Partido ng Manggagawa, said that “We hold Mr. Ang to his commitment to Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo that he desires a just and mutually beneficial resolution of the dispute. Arresting PALEA members one by one in order to demoralize our determination to fight is contrary to the contents of Mr. Ang’s letter to Bishop Pabillo. We hope Mr. Ang realizes that for PAL to fly the flag proud it needs motivated regular workers not just brand new planes and a bigger airport.”

PALEA member Ether Gonzaga was served a warrant yesterday noon while attending a barangay meeting. Meanwhile Romeo Sayas was arrested in his hometown in Batangas. Gonzaga declared that “Our will to struggle against contractualization is strengthened not weakened by PAL’s trumped op charges. We will gladly eat harassment cases for breakfast, lunch and dinner.” Gonzaga, aged 54, worked as catering coordinator at PAL for 20 years before being retrenched last year. A single parent to two sons, her job at PAL supported an extended family that included her 86-year old mother, a sister, two brothers and relatives in Iloilo.

Rivera insisted that “The arrest of Romeo and Esther are a travesty of justice. They should not have been arrested in the first place and the charges should have been dismissed outright.” He quoted the Department of Justice Ministry Circular No. 15 (Series of 1982) and the Department of Labor and Employment Order No. 40-G-03 (Series of 2010) that no criminal information can be filed against workers without the required clearance from the DOLE.

Sayas, Gonzaga and another 37 PALEA members were issued warrants of arrest by the Pasay City Municipal Trial Court branch 44 after finding probable cause to a grave coercion case filed by Philippine Airlines against workers who defended the protest camp when it was attacked by hired goons on October 29, 2011.

With the onset of the air travel peak season, Renato Magtubo, PM national chair, renewed the call of labor and church groups for the public to boycott PAL until the labor dispute is resolved and charges against PALEA members are dropped. “We ask OFW’s, balikbayans, students, workers and other travelers to book airlines other than PAL and Air Philippines as labor rights are being violated at the flag carrier,” he reiterated.

Rivera extolled Sayas as a “working class martyr.” “Sayas worked for 20 years as ramp equipment operator in the airport, at first as a contractual, and then he became a regular PAL employee but was finally retrenched for refusing to be outsourced. He has two children, and hails from a working class family—his brother is also a fighting PALEAn and their father formerly worked at PAL,” he stated.

PALEA lawyers have previously file a motion to quash or recall the arrest warrants Aside from the case against the PALEA 39, there are is another criminal suit and a separate civil suit pending against union members, all arising out of the labor row concerning outsourcing at PAL.

PALEA slams arrest of another member

Press Release

November 8, 2012
PALEA

The Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) condemned the arrest of another of its members as it planned protests at the airport area in response. PALEA member Esther Gonzaga was arrested yesterday around noon in Makati City and was granted temporary freedom by 6:30 pm after posting bail.

Gonzaga’s arrest follows the earlier apprehension of Romeo Sayas who was detained in Malvar, Batangas for several days before he was released on bail.  Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and PM vice chair declared that “The harassment case of grave coercion was filed by the management of PAL against the PALEA 39 who valiantly defended the protest camp when it was attacked by hired goons on October 29, 2011.”

Aside from the case against the PALEA 39, there are two more criminal suits pending against union members due to the labor row. Rivera called on new PAL President Ramon Ang “to facilitate the resolution of the labor dispute by dropping the trumped up charges against our members which were filed under the old company management of Jaime Bautista.”

Gonzaga was arrested near her residence while attending a barangay meeting as she is a community leader. She is one of two women among the PALEA 39. PALEA believes that the warrants of arrest on the remaining 37 PALEA members may also be served in the coming days.

Rivera explained that as enunciated under DOJ Ministry Circular No. 15 (Series of 1982) and DOLE Order No. 40-G-03 (Series of 2010), no criminal information can be filed against workers without the required clearance from the DOLE. “Absent such clearance, the courts are mandated to dismiss the charges outright. Such a policy, started after the formal lifting of martial law, aims to resolve rather than aggravate labor disputes and regulate the proclivity of capitalists to engage in harassment suits against workers,” Rivera elaborated.

PALEA also lambasted Pasay Assistant City Prosecutor Orlando Mariano and Judge Bibiano Colasito of the Pasay MTC Branch 44 for finding probable cause and ordering the issuance of arrest warrants against 39 PALEA members. “These officers of the court not only defied labor statutes but infringed on our members right to due process, and thus deserve to face administrative charges,” Rivera insisted.

He also denounced PAL lawyer Atty. Santiago “Sonny” Quial for “legal machinations.” Quial is running for district representative in Pasay for the coming elections. “As many PALEA members are Pasay voters, we will make sure that a law breaker does not become a law maker,” Rivera claimed.