Labor groups demand clamp down on manpower coops -NAGKAISA

After mounting a successful resistance against the outsourcing program at Philippine Airlines (PAL), labor groups under the Nagkaisa coalition now turn their ire against the operations of manpower cooperatives that purposely serve outsourcing needs of many companies.

Few days before the celebration of Labor Day, Nagkaisa called on the government to clamp down on manpower cooperatives particularly those that were actively involved in labor-only-contracting and non-compliance to labor standards.

In a protest rally held Friday at the offices of the Asiapro Cooperative in Pasig City, Nagkaisa members lambasted the manpower agency for hiding under the cloak of cooperativism to satisfy corporations’ callous demand for contractual labor. They also accused Asiapro of active involvement in anti-union activities.
Joining the action were members of Partido ng Manggagawa (PM), Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (ALU-TUCP), SENTRO, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), and the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA).

Asiapro prides itself to be the first and biggest manpower cooperative in the country, with 34,000 of its members, deployed to several dozen companies nationwide.

“Cooperativism is akin to unionism hence we cannot, in principle, go against the concept of cooperativism. However, the relationship is becoming adversarial when a cooperative transforms itself into a conscious instrument for undermining labor rights,” said Wilson Fortaleza, Partido ng Manggagawa spokesperson and Nagkaisa convenor.

The case of Asiapro, he said, reveals the kind of anti-labor practices many manpower cooperatives are involved — principally as suppliers of contractual workers and consequently as in-house violator of labor rights of its member/employees such as non-payment of wages and other mandatory benefits such as SSS.
Asiapro usually invokes its cooperative nature to evade compliance to labor laws. Its executives made this admission during the public hearings conducted by the Provincial Board of Bukidnon in 2010 and in its many pleadings before the courts. Asiapro is Bukidnon’s biggest contractual labor supplier, with 5,000 of its workers deployed in the province’s banana and pineapple plantations.

The Supreme Court, however, ruled in G.R. No. 172101, the existence of employer-employee relationship between Asiapro and its associate members therefore it must comply with core labor standards and other labor-related laws.

But Asiapro seems undeterred by this ruling, perhaps because of a strong backing from former labor secretary Benny Laguesma. Last March, Asiapro was able to stop, through a TRO, a union certification election in Galeo Equipment and Mining Company, a contractor that hauls mine waste from the open pit mining site at the Carmen Copper mine in Toledo City.

A total of 285 Galeo workers had already voted by the time balloting was stopped. Another 275 Galeo workers were unable to cast ballots and were disenfranchised due to the TRO.

The election dispute arose from an attempt by the Asiapro manpower cooperative to prevent the unionization efforts at Galeo. Asiapro is claiming that the Galeo workers are their members and thus exempt from unionization. Galeo workers did not even know that they were members of Asiapro.

Nagkaisa had been pushing for the passage of the security of tenure bill in Congress to deter the plague of contractualization in the country. President Aquino, however, did not certify the bill as urgent.

Nagkaisa Labor Groups' Labor Day Demands Are Now in Aquino's Hands

The eight workers' issues and non-wage benefits raised by labor group
coalition Nagkaisa since May 2012 are now in the hands of President
Aquino to act on following a last minute series of meetings with
members of his cabinet with the representatives of the group on
Wednesday.

Final details of the issues were threshed out in meetings that took
place on April 8 with the secretaries of the Department of Labor and
Employment (DOLE), Department of Justice (DOJ), and Department of
Trade and Industry (DTI), and on the following day with the Department
of Energy (DOE), said Alan Tanjusay, spokesman of the Trade Union
Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).

"After more than 100 man hours of discussions with different
government staffs, undersecretaries and secretaries within the two
year period, we think it is more than fair enough to say that the ball
is in the hands of President Aquino. These issues are now on his
table," said Gerard Seno, executive vice president of the Associated
Labor Unions-TUCP and a convenor of Nagkaisa.

The issues that were finalized by the Nagkaisa and the cabinet level
are for government to (1) ensure security of tenure of workers by
eliminating contractualization scheme and deter extra-judicial killing
of union organizers and journalists, (2) provide exemption and
enhancement on minimum wage taxation, (3) institutionalize core labor
standards in the agro-industrial plan, (4) lowering of the cost of
electricity and protect consumers from the cartelization of power, (5)
provide affordable housing program and non-violent transfer of urban
poor communities from danger zones, (7) ratification of ILO Convention
151--a convention concerning protection of the right to organize and
procedures for determining conditions for employment in the government
service, and (8) ensure a jobs-led and workers' sector participation
in the planning and implementation of programs of the rehabilitation
and reconstruction of Yolanda-hit areas.

The group also expects Aquino to make an unequivocal commitment to his
promised regular dialogue with Nagkaisa on emergent issues affecting
the working class.

Labor groups in Nagkaisa were always dismayed at Aquino's alleged
disconnect with workers' issues raised by Nagkaisa every time he meets
with labor group representatives in the traditional labor day
breakfast since 2010 in Malacanang palace.

"If we want to emphasize how important these issues are to labor
groups in Nagkaisa, well, we have expended substantial amount of
unions' financial and manpower resources for these meetings to
enlighten executives the need for government to address these issues
that endangers Filipino workers and their families today. As
representatives of workers, we have done our part in transmitting
these concerns to the administration. We will now observe very closely
how the president will respond to these issues and how he treats the
working people on or before May 1 Labor day," said Frank Mero,
chairperson of Sentro.

However, the group emphasized Nagkaisa will proceed with their Labor
day activities regardless of Aquino's response.

"With or without President Aquino's imprimatur on these issues,
Nagkaisa labor groups will go on with our May 1 Labor day simultaneous
activities nationwide. President Aquino may chose or not chose to
favorably or unfavorably respond to some or to all issues we have
raised to his attention, he has that choice. But Nagkaisa will pursue
resolution of the issues at will whatever the cost and in any possible
way because these issues are legitimate and important for workers,"
added Wilson Fortaleza, spokesman of the Partido Manggagawa.

Aside from ALU, Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP), PM and
Sentro, there are 47 other member labor federation and workers'
organizations in Nagkaisa. It was established in April 2011, the other
members of Nagkaisa includes Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP),
Federation of Free Workers (FFW), Public Services Labor Independent
Confederation (PSLINK), Philippine Government Empoyees Association
(PGEA), Confederation of Independent Unions (CIU) and KAMAO.

TUCP Partylist opposes Interruptible Load Program

Says ALL, including business must bear burden in time of power shortage



Describing the Interruptible Load Program (ILP) as "the poor

subsidizing the very rich,'' the Trade Union Congress Party (TUCP

Partylist) expressed stiff opposition to the program that the

Department of Energy (DOE) will operationalize with Meralco once the

"red alert" level indicating a power supply deficit is reached this

summer season.



Under the ILP, large commercial and industrial corporations, including

malls, will run own generator sets to power up their energy needs for

their air-conditioning, lighting and operations as a solution to the

anticipated power shortage this summer. This will free-up some power

supply that Meralco can use to service the captive residential

households and small enterprises in its franchise area. Those running

their own generator sets - the most expensive power source - will then

pass through their fuel and maintenance costs to the Meralco

consumers.



TUCP Partylist lamented that this is tantamount to a direct subsidy

from the mostly poor and middle-class customers of Meralco to the

participating industries like SM Malls and Robinson Malls owned by Sy

and Gokongwei, respectively.



"Why are Meralco residential customers going to be made to pay for

power they did not use and never consumed in their households? Why

will they be made to pay for the air-conditioning of the SM and

Robinson Malls? Anong pakialam natin kung patakbuhin nila o hindi ang

mga aircon nila? Kailan naging utang- na- loob natin sa SM o Robinsons

na kailangan tayo bilang Meralco customers ang singilin para sa

air-conditioning nila? (When did it become the obligation of the

captive Meralco residential customer to help ensure the already very

healthy profit margins of SM and Robinsons?)"



"This appears to be a wily scheme that will benefit most the big

shopping mall owners like Henry Sy of SM Group and John Gokongwei of

Robinsons Group who both holds controlling shares in the power

industry," said TUCP Partylist Representative Raymond Mendoza.



Henry Sy, Jr. is the owner of One Taipan which is a majority

shareholder in the National Grid Corporation of the Philippines (NGCP)

that has monopoly in the transmission sector in the power industry in

the Philippines. John Gokongwei on the other hand now owns 48% shares

in Meralco that were previously held by Ramon Ang.



TUCP Executive Director Louie Corral warned that the dominant position

of the Sy, Gokongwei and Manny Pangilinan groups in the power industry

and their equally dominant role in the telecoms, real estate, retail

and hospital sectors make ILP rife with conflict-of-interest. "What is

DOE thinking? Even the Pangilinan-led TV 5 and Smart Communications

will qualify as an ILP participant. Consumers will be bled dry on all

fronts for a price-gouging Meralco and from all these ILP participants

pretending to do as a good deed."



"We remind all these oligarchs that capitalism without risk is not

part of the social contract. Why will Meralco residential customers

have to pay to ensure that SM and Robinson malls have electricity for

their customers to enjoy comfort while shopping? It is not a social

good. These companies light up their malls at their own cost in order

to bring in customers from whom they earn as what they've been doing

until this ILP - they run their generator sets in times of brownouts

without getting paid by other electricity consumers. But now that they

are also in the power business, they want to earn both ways? Ginawa na

si Juan de la Cruz na charitable organization ng Meralco at ng mga

malls. Ano sila, sinusuwerte?" Corral explained.



"We believe that in time of crisis, power crisis in this instance, ALL

must sacrifice and all must bear the burden. This means including the

big businesses, the commercial and industrial sector, not just the

poor, often disadvantaged residential consumers," added Rep. Mendoza.



TUCP Partylist slammed the scheme, questioning its legality as it has

not even gone through the due process of a public hearing at the

Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC). "As if Meralco and DOE has not

learned some lessons from its rate increase last December, and here it

is again implementing a scheme without consulting the public who will

shell out hard-earned money for power it is not directly consuming."



Corral also expressed apprehension as to why the DOE has even deigned

to look at the proposed ILP as solution to the power shortage, instead

of improving policies to ensure stable and long-term supply of

electricity in the country. "When Meralco management spectacularly

failed to ensure alternative supply for the prescheduled Malampaya

shutdown last December, its automatic solution was to charge to the

consumers the expensive power it got from the Wholesale Electricity

Spot Market (WESM). Now, DOE and its cohort Meralco will again make

the hapless Meralco consumers become the insurers and fall guy against

all the policy failings and management errors in their highly

profitable power racket."



"The power companies and big corporations of Sy, Gokongwei, and

Pangilinan are not sacrificing, they continue to benefit and will now

even double profit during crisis while others suffer from heat and the

high price of electricity," stressed Corral.

Mga militante at guwardya ng Meralco, nagkabalyahan