ARMM employees await dialogue on employment status in new Bangsamoro region

COTABATO CITY, Philippines – Career service employees of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) eagerly look forward to a planned dialogue with lawmakers on the status of their employment in relation with the ARMM’s proposed replacement with a new Bangsamoro entity.

Members of the ARMM’s rank-and-file personnel, whose appointments were screened and attested by the Civil Service Commission (CSC), want officials of the commission to participate in the dialogue, too.

Lawyer Laisa Alamia, executive secretary of ARMM, on Thursday said Trade Union Congress of the Philippines Partylist Rep. Raymond Democrito Mendoza announced here last week that legislators will dialogue with regional officials and employees on employment concerns amid the impending creation of the Bangsamoro outfit based on the final peace compact between the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front.

Mendoza was among members of Congress that held consultations last week in Cotabato City and nearby provinces on the legal ramifications of the draft Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL), the enabling measure for the creation of a Bangsamoro government based on the government-MILF March 27, 2014 Comprehensive Agreement on Bangsamoro.

“The supposed meeting was to take place this week. It must have been reset. We are just waiting for a notice toward that end,” Alamia said.

Employees of ARMM’s more than 40 line agencies and support offices, whose functions and powers were devolved by Malacanang to the regional government based on the region’s charter, Republic Act 9054, are apprehensive the transition, from the autonomous region to the MILF-led Bangsamoro government, will render them jobless.

Alamia said while ARMM Gov. Mujiv Hataman has continuously been assuring regional employees of protection from the CSC, their feelings and sentiments are something beyond the governor’s control.

“Even so, there is overwhelming support for the peace process from the ARMM’s personnel,” Alamia said.

Last week’s congressional consultations on the draft BBL in Central Mindanao were presided over by Cagayan de Oro Rep. Rufus Rodriguez, chair of the ad-hoc House committee tasked to enact the bill into law.

The ARMM government has no fewer than 30,000 employees, more than half of them working in the region’s Department of Education. - By John Unson (philstar.com)

Over 24,000 Filipinos to lose job next year: TUCP

MANILA: Many workers in the Philippines and abroad are expected to be displaced next year, labor groups and recruitment industry officials has warned the national government.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) was quoted as saying by Philippine Star that about 24,000 local government employees are likely to lose their jobs with the setting up of Bangsamoro Transition Council next year.

“Workers employed in municipalities, cities, provincial and regional offices will be displaced once the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao is dissolved and taken over by the Bangsamoro Transition Council,” TUCP executive director Louie Corral reportedly said.

“The major responsibility of the government is to provide safety nets for these workers who had been serving the bureaucracy quietly,” he reportedly said, adding that the Aquino government apparently has no not yet planned for the impending displacement of government employees.

He also called on the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to step in and take the necessary course of action.

“We are wondering why the commission has not geared up for one of the very important elements of the transition issue,” TUCP official Gerard Seno was quoted as saying.

Seno further said the CSC should ensure that the affected workers are integrated into the new Bangsamoro government using lateral transfer and merit-based integration rather than leaving their fate to circumstance.

Officials of the job placement industry have reported that around 4,000 Filipino workers employed in US bases in Afghanistan are also expected to be displaced by the impending pullout of US troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year.

They reportedly said about 4,000 Filipinos are still posted in Bagram Air Base and Kandahar Airfield and only around a thousand will be retained for maintenance of the military facilities.

Some of the workers are expected to return home starting November as their companies shut down after losing bids to supply logistics to the US forces.

But the workers are hoping that they will still be needed by international contractors hired by the US government, the recruitment officials were quoted as saying by Philippine Star. - The Filipino Times

Massive displacement of local, foreign workers seen next year

MANILA, Philippines - Many workers here and abroad are expected to be displaced next year, labor groups and recruitment industry officials warned the national government yesterday.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) said about 24,000 local government employees are expected to lose their jobs with the setting up of Bangsamoro Transition Council next year.

“Workers employed in municipalities, cities, provincial and regional offices will be displaced once the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao is dissolved and taken over by the Bangsamoro Transition Council,” said TUCP executive director Louie Corral.

He said the 24,000 workers are the largest number of employees to be affected as the new Bangsamoro government becomes operational.

The government, Corral said, has the primary responsibility to provide safety nets for these workers who had been serving the bureaucracy quietly.

Corral said the Aquino government apparently has no preparation in place for the impending displacement of government employees.

He called on the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to step in and take the necessary course of action.

“We are wondering why the commission has no preparations towards one of very important elements of the transition issue,” TUCP official Gerard Seno said.

Seno said the CSC should ensure that the affected workers would be integrated into the new Bangsamoro government using lateral transfer and merit-based integration rather than leaving their fate to circumstance.

Also yesterday, officials of the job placement industry reported that close to 4,000 Filipino workers employed in US bases in Afghanistan are also expected to be displaced.

Recruitment officials said thousands of overseas Filipino workers are likely to be affected by the impending pullout of US troops from Afghanistan by the end of the year.

They said about 4,000 Filipinos are still working in Bagram Air Base and Kandahar Airfield and only around a thousand will be retained for maintenance of the military facilities.

Some of the workers are expected to return home starting November as their companies closed down after losing bids to supply logistics to the US forces.

But the workers are hoping that they will still be needed by international contractors hired by the US government, the recruitment officials said. - By Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)

‘Bangsamoro should regulate Lanao plants’

THE BANGSAMORO entity that will be created to govern a Muslim autonomous region should have the primary supervision and regulation of the hydroelectric power plants in Lake Lanao, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) said on its Web site.

Citing the delineation of powers in the Annex on Power-sharing of the Framework Agreement on the Bangsamoro (FAB), the MILF said that the Bangsamoro entity would have primary jurisdiction on the issues of power generation in Mindanao.

“It is on this premise that such claim that the regulation of existing hydropower plants in Lake Lanao will remain primarily under the concerned national government agencies is not accurate, and, therefore, should be corrected at once,” the MILF said in an editorial posted on its Web site luwaran.com.

Miriam Colonel-Ferrer, the chief negotiator of the government peace panel, said that the Lake Lanao power plants will remain primarily under the concern of the national government during the Ad Hoc Committee hearing on the Bangsamoro Basic Law (BBL) last week at the House of Representatives.

However, Ms. Ferrer clarified that power plants not connected to the national transmission grid will be under the regulatory powers of the Bangsamoro government.

Under Article XIII on Economy and Patrimony, Section 22, on Inland Waters, the proposed bill says that “the Bangsamoro shall have exclusive powers over inland waters, including but not limited to lakes, marshes, rivers and tributaries.”

The proposed bill further states that “the Bangsamoro Parliament shall enact laws on the regulation, management and protection of these resources.”

According to the Office of the Presidential Adviser on the Peace Process (OPAPP), the current base-load of electricity in Mindanao comes largely from hydroelectric sources, which contributes roughly more than 700 megawatts to help meet the overall power demand of 1,300 megawatts in the Mindanao region.

BANGSAMORO COUNCIL WILL LEAD TO JOB CUTS

Meanwhile, labor groups have urged the Civil Service Commission (CSC) to step in and address the possible displacement of some 23,000 public sector workers -- most of whom are teachers -- in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) once the Bangsamoro Transition Council takes over by next year.

“The labor center expresses concern over the unknown fate of these workers who will be dislodged once the Bangsamoro law takes effect. We call on the Civil Service Commission to step in and take the necessary course of action,” said Gerard R. Seno, Associated Labor Unions (ALU) executive vice-president, in a press release.

Of the 23,000 workers in the region that may find themselves jobless, 18,000 are teachers.

“This is a significant number of public sector employees ever to be displaced in the course of Philippine government paving the way for the new Bangsamoro,” said Louie M. Corral, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) executive director, in the same release. “The government has the primary responsibility to provide safety nets for these workers who had been serving the bureaucracy quietly... They should be integrated because they are already an asset.”

For his part, CSC Commissioner Robert S. Martinez earlier said that employees which will be affected may apply for other positions if their posts will be dissolved. -- BusinessWorld Online with Jon Viktor D. Cabuenas

Concerns over possible dislocation of ARMM workers

Labour confederation says 24,000 government workers in Mindanao would be left jobless once a new body takes over from ARMM

Manila: A labour confederation has expressed fears that some 24,000 government workers in Mindanao would be left jobless once a new body takes over from the administration of the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM).

During a recent House of Representatives committee deliberation on the provisions on the proposed Bangsamoro Law, officials of the civil service commission admitted to Rep. Raymond Mendoza of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) Party list they have not made any plans concerning possible dislocation of workers once an administration for the envisioned self-rule region steps in.

“The labour centre expresses concern over the unknown fate of these workers who would be dislodged once the Bangsamoro law takes effect. We call on the civil service commission to step in and take the necessary course of action. We are wondering why the commission has no preparations towards one of the very important elements of the transition issue,” Gerard Seno, executive vice president of the Associated Labour Unions (ALU) said.

Government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front had largely focused on the political and economic aspects of the planned Bangsamoro — a self-sustaining self-rule region envisioned to be comprised by Muslim dominated areas in Central and Western Mindanao. Authorities had all but completely ignored or had forgotten about the government workers who would be left without jobs once the transition starts.

It can be recalled that in March this year, the government and the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF) signed a peace agreement, ending more than two decades of conflict with the Christian-dominated central government in Manila.

According to Seno, the labour group is proposing the civil service commission oversee transition matters pertaining to the labour sector and ensure the workforce to be integrated into the new Bangsamoro government would consider absorbing those currently employed in ARMM, with a merit-based integration adopted rather than leaving displaced employees to fend for themselves.

TUCP executive director Louie Corral said: “This is a significant number of public sector employees to be displaced. But the government has the primary responsibility to provide safety nets for these workers who had been serving the bureaucracy quietly. Rather than allowing these people fall through the crack, they should be integrated as they are already an asset.”

Sources said although a peace agreement had been signed between MILF and the government, it could still take several months until a new authority could be set up to replace ARMM.

The ARMM was set up during the administration of President Fidel V. Ramos as a result of the 1996 peace agreement between Moro National Liberation Front.

More than two decades after ARMM was established incumbent President Benigno Aquino III, as part of his promise to MILF, started work on dismantling ARMM which he described a “failed experiment” in self-rule. - By Gilbert P. Felongco, Correspondent Gulf News

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Group fears displacement of 2,400 ARMM gov't workers with creation of Bangsamoro

Labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP)-Nagkaisa is worried that around 2,400 government employees in the Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao will lose their jobs once the region is dissolved and taken over by the Bangsamoro Transition Council.

In a statement, the group said the public sector workers are currently employed in municipalities, cities, provincial and regional government offices in the region.

“The labor center expresses concern over the unknown fate of these workers who will be dislodged once the Bangsamoro law takes effect,"said Gerard Seno, executive vice president of the Associated Labor Unions (ALU).

He said the Civil Service Commission should step in, adding the CSC does not seem to have prepared for "one of the very important elements of transition."

During House deliberations on the proposed Bangsamoro Basic Law chaired by TUCP Party-list Rep. Raymond Mendoza, CSC resource persons could not answer

TUCP-Nagkaisa said the CSC should make sure that the existing workforce will be integrated into the new Bangsamoro government through "lateral transfer and merit-based integration".

Meanwhile, TUCP Executive Director Louie Corral said that it is the responsibility of the government to look after the welfare of public sector workers.

"Rather than allowing these people fell through the cracks, they should be integrated because they are already an asset," he said. — JDS, GMA News

Solons, labor split on 4-day work week

LAWMAKERS and three labor groups on Monday were divided on the four-day work week scheme for government employees in Metro Manila to address the worsening traffic situation there.

The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines said the plan could save energy and ease traffic in the metropolis, but the group Kilusang Mayo Uno said it would be bad for the workers.

The Partido ng Manggagawa said it had no problems with the plan as long as the workers’ rights were protected, while the Metro Manila Development Authority had earlier welcomed it.

The Civil Service Commission had said the government offices in Metro Manila could implement a Monday-to-Thursday or a Tuesday-to-Friday work schedule, from eight am to 7 pm, with an hour off for the lunch break.

The commission said the plan could be implemented next week, but the government offices must meet some requirements before those could implement the new scheme.

House Speaker Feliciano Belmonte Jr. and Cavite Rep. Elpidio Barzaga Jr. said the Civil Service Commission’s optional policy for government offices would be counter-productive.

“I am not in favor it,” Belmonte said.

He said the government should be able to find a solution to the worsening traffic situation without public service being made to suffer.

Barzaga agreed.

“I do not agree with the four day a week work. Public service would suffer,” Barzaga said.

Instead, he said, “I suggest we ban private vehicles at Edsa during rush hours.”

But Quezon City Rep. Bolet Banal and Abakada party-list Rep. Jonathan de la Cruz said the four-day work week should be given a chance.

“This is an experiment. It will help us not only with the traffic but also as a guide on the performance and efficiency of government workers,” De la Cruz said.

Said Banal: “As it is, it seems that five days is not enough, but let us hear the proponents out and give them a chance to prove that the proposed four-day work week can alleviate the traffic woes of the metropolis.”

1-BAP party-list Rep. Silvestre Bello III said the shortened number of days for government employees should not affect in any way the quality of service that government offices should be providing to the public.

“Somebody will have to assure the public that this will ease traffic but not at the expense of public service,” Bello said.

The TUCP said the employers should first consult their workers before implementing the four-day plan. It said the four-day work week had advantages and disadvantages, but it could not be implemented in some industries or sectors.

The KMU said increasing the work hours to 11 from eight would affect the workers’ health and violate their rights. It also raised the dangers the plan would pose to those workers who are paid on a daily basis and subject to the no work, no pay policy.

“Workers fought for the right to an eight-hour work day to protect their health. The four-day work week is a direct attack on this hard-won victory of the international works’ movement and shows how anti-worker this government is,” group chairman Elmer Labog said. - By Maricel Cruz, Vito Barcelo and Joel E. Zurbano /  Manila Standard Today

TUCP conditionally supports 4-day work week scheme

The four-day work week is believed to ease traffic congestion in the metro

MANILA, Philippines - Labor group Trade Union Congress of the Philippines-Nagkaisa (TUCP-Nagkaisa) on Monday expressed support to the plan of the Civil Service Commission (CSC) allowing government agencies to implement a four-day work week scheme.

The group, however, pointed out that there would be no diminution of salary and reduction of benefits and public sector workers’ are consulted first they should ever adopt it.

“There are pros and cons to the compressed work week scheme aimed at saving electricity, reducing traffic congestion and minimizing stress of workers. So consultations and social dialogue with public sector worker (are an) important factor before implementing the scheme to know the sentiments of the workers,” TUCP-Nagkaisa spokesperson Alan Tanjusay said.

“The four-day work week should not affect salary and benefits of workers. This is non-negotiable of course,” Tanjusay added.

He noted that health of workers working for 10 hours a day is one of the adverse effects of the scheme to government employees, compromising the quality of service.

Tanjusay said the new work scheme may also affect both their health and their productivity due to stress caused by going home late at night and waking up early.

On the other hand, the scheme may motivate workers to be more productive because of an extra quality day with family, friends or an activity away from work.

The scheme may also cut commuting expenses and allows people to do errands they are unable to do during regular work days, Tanjusay said.

He said the scheme can reduce energy consumption and help ease traffic congestion by minimizing the volume of working people. - By Dennis Carcamo (philstar.com)