The Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) is getting puzzled rather than clarified at how the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) address the contentious problem of labor contractualization in the country.

The labor department came out with an announcement that a new Department Order, DO 18-A series 2011, takes effect beginning December 5, 2011 that would provide clear rules on contracting and subcontracting and that would stop the abuses against non-regular workers.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said at least 200,000 contractual workers will now enjoy security of tenure and other benefits that regular workers are receiving.

“If that is so, why did she allow us PAL workers to be downgraded as contractuals if we are going to enjoy the same entitlements that we are receiving now?  What ‘security of tenure’ is she talking about when it was this ‘tenure’ that she removed from us when she approved Lucio Tan’s outsourcing plan in PAL?,” lamented PALEA President Gerry Rivera.

According to the new order, non-regular workers would be entitled to benefits provided under the Labor Code such as 13th month pay and overtime pay as well as retirement benefits.  They will also be entitled to Social Security System, Pag-IBIG, and Philhealth benefits. Their right to self-organize or negotiate a collective bargaining agreement is also specified in the new order.

“It appears here that there seems no difference at all now between regular and contractual workers. But it’s a big NO.  Kung pareho lang sila bakit pa mag-contractual and isang kompanya?  Walang logic,” added Rivera.

The difference, he said, lie in the contract as all the rights mentioned in the new rules are co-terminus with the contract.  So if a worker is hired for just five months as most contractuals are, then it is also a temporary enjoyment of those entitlements, or none at all.  Unfortunately there is also no such thing as a five month CBA, or a five month union membership.

Rivera, who is also the vice president of Partido ng Manggagawa (PM), surmised that by coming out with this new Order, Baldoz was just trying to recover lost credibility from the labor sector, the general public, and the international community after she made an error in forcing the issue of outsourcing on PAL workers.

PAL’s outsourcing plan downgraded 2,600 regular workers into probationary contractuals, their salaries cut into half, their benefits vanished, and their tenure as well as their union demolished.

“Contractualization in PAL clearly destroyed everything that we had.  Hence, while we support the view that contractual workers (in their many categories) deserve the same entitlements being enjoyed by regular workers, we stand firm in our position that regular workers are not entitled to become contractuals and the latter deserve to become regulars,” argued  Rivera.

The group said this new Order is nothing but the government’s propaganda stunt to make the much-hated contractualization scheme more acceptable to the public.

“Lucio Tan must be with Baldoz laughing at the corner after the announcement as they both knew the fact that this new rules on contractualization is more a joke rather than a serious corrective measure that can stop the plague of contractualization,” concluded Rivera.

PRESS RELEASE
01 December  2011
Contact:  Gerry Rivera
PALEA President   @ 09157755073