PAL union urges labor chief to quit

MANILA -- Angry members of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (Palea) on Monday called on Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz to resign following her decision to approve the cost-cutting program of the flag carrier.

In a press conference in Quezon City, Palea president Gerry Rivera said Baldoz failed to protect the interests of the 2,600 employees after she sided with the PAL management’s plan to outsource jobs to ensure the survival of the airline.

“Contractualization is an epidemic that is ravaging the wages and working conditions of Filipino workers. The Philippines will be a much poorer country if we become a nation of contractual (employees),” he said.

For his part, Renato Magtubo, chairperson of Partido ng Manggagawa (PM) asked President Benigno Aquino III to reverse Baldoz’s decision.

“Di pa huli ang lahat para ituwid ang baluktot. It is not too late for the government to follow the straight path instead of the crooked road of promoting contractualization,” he said.

Meanwhile, the airline’s ground crew earned the support of other progressive labor groups, which signed a manifesto slamming the upward trend of contractualization in various industries.

Palea’s supporters include the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (FASAP), Associated Labor Unions (ALU), Archdiocese of Manila Labor Concerns (AMLC), Alliance of Progressive Labor (APL), Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), Church Labor Conference (CLC) and Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU), among others.

The Labor department earlier set a conciliation meeting between PAL management and its employees Monday afternoon at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) in Manila. (Virgil Lopez/Sunnex)