Noynoy urged: Speak up on PAL, ABS-CBN mass lay-offs

Just a few days before his oath-taking, President-elect Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino III was urged to take a stand on the impending mass layoffs in the country’s biggest firms , especially in Philippine Airlines and media firm ABS-CBN.

“The time for Noynoy to speak up on the brewing job massacre and labor dispute in Philippine Airlines and ABS-CBN is now. Workers who stand to lose their jobs anytime cannot wait for June 30 and beyond,” Kilusang Mayo Uno chairperson Elmer “Bong” Labog said.

“During the campaign period, Aquino said and promised in his platform that he will prioritize job creation. Now, workers ask him to fulfill his campaign promise by categorically opposing schemes that lead to job massacres and intervening in cases where this is an urgent threat,” he added.

Labog issued the statement as hundreds of PAL employees trooped today to Aquino’s home on Times St. to demand his support for the employees’ campaign against the national flag carrier’s retrenchment plan, and as ABS-CBN workers stage a series of pickets at the company’s compound.

More than 2,600 PAL employees face job cuts after the labor department upheld last June 15 PAL’s spin-off and outsourcing plan for its Call Center Reservations, In-Flight Catering and Airport Services units to third-party service providers.

Meanwhile, 25 members of the ABS-CBN IJM Workers Union including its president were practically dismissed last week after the Lopez-owned media firm cancelled their schedule and denied them access to the company’s equipment and premises. The 1,400 workforce of the ABS-CBN IJM face continued harassments, union-busting, and contractualization threats.

“These anti-worker schemes in PAL and ABS-CBN form part of Arroyo’s ugly legacy, which Aquino can reverse early in his administration by simply upholding workers’ rights and reining in on capitalist greed.

“But the need for Aquino’s urgent response to workers’ appeals lie in the fact that thousands of people may welcome his administration without any source of income for their families, in stark contrast to the ‘change’ he promised during the campaign season,” Labog said.

KMU said the ongoing labor disputes in PAL and ABS-CBN, both among the country’s top 100 corporations, will test whether Aquino’s commitment is to the Filipino workers and people or to the big businesses who bankrolled his presidential bid.

“There should be no middle ground for Aquino on the issue of loss of jobs in PAL and ABS-CBN. He should stand for the workers and people, who look up to him as someone who would reverse his predecessor’s cruel anti-worker policies.

“Should Noynoy fail to shield PAL and ABS-CBN workers from highly unjust corporate schemes, Filipino workers will start treading the path to disillusionment rather than the path to justice,” Labog concluded. ###