Protection of workers during business overhauls pushed

The country's largest organization of labor federations and unions will continue to fight for the protection of workers and the preservation of their jobs during mergers, consolidations or transfer of businesses.

Rep. Raymond Democrito Mendoza of the Trade Union Congress Party (TUCP) Party-List said, any merger, consolidation or transfer of business should not diminish the wages, benefits and other employment terms and conditions of the affected employees.

Mendoza filed House Bill 1557, which seeks to oblige the acquiring or transferee employers to continue the employment of the transferor employer's employees.

"An employment that has been zealously earned, industriously worked for, valued and treasured should be secured. Protection should extend to remunerations and benefits, with all the enhancements merited due to years of arduous service," Mendoza said.

Mendoza said the TUCP has consistently advocated, not only for job generation, but more importantly, for job protection and preservation.

"Competition among businesses has become tremendously intense that the dictum bigger is better has obtained zealous advocates the world over, including our country's multinational companies," Mendoza said.

"This is most especially true in this interesting time and age of globalization. Because of the need to become bigger and more competitive, the incidence of mergers, consolidations and acquisitions, including the sale or transfer of all or substantial assets, business enterprise has become very rampant," Mendoza said.

The problem is, Mendoza lamented, "some employers device these schemes - a corporate mechanism, not really for the purpose of obtaining competitiveness but with the end in view of violating workers' security of tenure, among other rights of employees."

"This plethora of previously unfamiliar corporate occurrences creates a trail of novel issues, such as the rights of employees and liabilities of the employers. This is when the issues of the security of tenure, diminution of wages and benefits and other employment terms and conditions come to fore," Mendoza said.

Mendoza has been strongly batting for his proposed measure saying it is the State's policy to extend utmost protection to the security of tenure, wages, benefits and other employment terms and conditions of employees in cases of merger or consolidation of the business of their employer with other entities.

The protection shall extend in case an employer acquires, transfers, sells, assigns, conveys or leases all, or substantially all assets, business enterprise or going concern to another employer or business entity.

Under the measure, the transferee employer shall have the obligation to continue the employment of the transferor employer's employees, without loss of seniority rights and other privileges.

In case of differences in the employment levels, wage and benefit scales, and other employment terms or conditions, the superior or most favorable to the employees shall prevail.

The transferor employer shall be liable to money claims pertaining to the period when the transferee employer was still the employer.

The measure also aims to limit the ground for termination of employment to redundancy and shall be liable for separation pay or other benefits as prescribed under the Labor Code.

"Plus it sets a presumption that if the transferee employer or new company becomes a bigger entity than the prior one, there can be no declaration of redundancy as the business can absorb the employee," Mendoza added.

The measure also requires the new company to give an employee declared to be redundant in a certain position first priority for employment in the newly created position, if qualified.

Finally, the measure sets out rules on recognition of existing bargaining agents and agreements, protecting not only the unions, but also the benefits worked hard for by them as embodied in the Collective Bargaining Agreements (CBA). - Jazmin S. Camero, Media Relations Service-PRIB

Give VMMC juridical entity to perpetuate efficient service to veterans

Veterans' welfare is one of the many legislative issues that demonstrated the collective non-partisan action of the House of Representatives on matters crucial to public interest, Rep. Herminia Roman today declared.

Roman, Chairman of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and Welfare, is citing, among others, the House-approved HB 6754 or "An Act to give juridical personality to the present Veterans Memorial Medical Center (VMMC), appropriating funds therefor, and for other purposes."

"HB 6754, like other measures promoting the welfare of our veterans and their dependents, would ensure continued free medical care for the veterans," she said, noting that the principal author of the original bill (HB 6502) is Pampanga Rep. Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.

Other principal authors of the House-passed substitute bill are: Reps. Ma. Amelita Villarosa, Hermilando Mandanas, Anthony Rolando Golez, Jr., Lani Mercado-Revilla, Leopoldo Bataoil, and Raymond Democrito Mendoza.

While transforming the VMMC into a corporate body with juridical personality, HB 6502 seeks to strengthen the hospital's financial operations, reinforces its existence and perpetuation as a first-rate and prestigious medical institution, the authors said.

While reiterating the VMMC's commitment to serve the Filipino war veterans, the measure provides greater flexibility in its operations with autonomy in the exercise of its jurisdiction.

Among other salient provisions, HB 6754 provides that the VMMC, a body corporate, acting through its Board of Trustees, shall have all powers pertaining to a juridical person, and is therefore authorized, among others, to: 1) Acquire and hold in any manner property of whatever nature or description; 2) Enter into contracts; 3) Solicit and receive donations, endowments and funds in the form of contributions, whether in cash or in kind, from both the public and private sectors;

4) Open such accounts in banks and other financial institutions, and to disburse such funds or invest the same as the Board may direct to accomplish or advance the purposes or interest of the VMMC; 5) Invite foreign health specialists and other similar experts in the various medical fields to train the personnel, trainees or residents of the VMMC;

6) Send VMMC personnel to research institutes, medical institutes or universities for advanced training or observation and to attend international or regional conventions, conferences, congresses, seminars as the Board may deem necessary. 7) enter into such agreements and arrangements with medical or other institutions, domestic or foreign as may be deemed desirable by the Board;

8) Adopt a set of by-laws, rules and regulations not inconsistent with law and the provision hereof to govern the administration and operation of the affairs of the VMMC; 9) Establish branches for the VMMC in other provinces or cities of the Philippines as may be deemed necessary for greater service coverage to veterans and their dependents that are living in almost all parts of the country; and 10) Perform all such other acts and things as are or may be necessary or incidental for the accomplishment of the purposes and objectives of the VMMC.

The VMMC Board of Trustees shall be composed of the following: the Secretary of National Defense as Chairperson; Medical Director of the VMMC as Vice Chairperson; Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Defense and Security; Chairperson of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs and Welfare; Secretary of Health; Administrator of the Philippine Veterans Affairs Office; chairman of the Philippine Veterans Banks; President of the Veterans Federation of the Philippines and three appointive members who are veterans and who have exerted conspicuous efforts towards the promotion of veterans' welfare and well-being.

The appointive members shall be appointed by the President of the Philippines and shall serve for a term of three years. - Dionisio P. Tubianosa, Media Relations Service