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Wednesday, March 10, 2004
19 ships idled; Sulpicio loses P10M
By Elias O. Baquero
CEBU -- Seafarers of Sulpicio Lines began a nationwide strike at 4 a.m. Tuesday, prompting the labor department to step into the dispute to protect the economy.
It was the second strike in eight months to hit the company, one of the five largest fleets in the country and Cebu's third largest corporation in terms of revenue.
The Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) ordered striking rank-and-file employees Tuesday afternoon to go back to work within 24 hours.
But George Pino, spokesman of the Unyon ng mga Mandaragat sa Sulpicio Solid (UMSS), said the strike will continue until management gives in to their demands.
They are demanding union recognition, better overtime pay and meal allowances and an end to alleged unfair labor practices.
Filomeno Lim, president of the Cebu Filipino-Chinese Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said the labor conflict must be resolved immediately, out of concern for the transport of goods.
Sulpicio serves crucial routes such as Manila-Cebu-Davao and Manila-Cebu-Bacolod, among others, with Cebu as the transshipment point for products and equipment.
"A labor strike is harmful to Cebu's economy," Lim said.
'P10M lost'
Lawyer Manuel Espina, Sulpicio Lines legal counsel, said there was no positive result from a conciliation meeting, but that management was ready to resume negotiations if called by the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
UMSS demanded that they be recognized as the collective bargaining agent. But Espina pointed out that as records at the labor department show, it's the Associated Labor Unions (ALU) that's currently recognized.
Lawyer Ulysses Yap, Sulpicio's vice president for legal affairs, also said that Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas has assumed jurisdiction over the labor dispute.
Sto. Tomas also stepped into the strike that hit Sulpicio in July 2003.
For the first day alone, Yap estimated the company's losses at roughly P10 million.
To minimize the damage, the Philippine Ports Authority (PPA) will assist in unloading perishable goods, said PPA General Manager Alfonso Cusi, who met with Secretary Leandro Mendoza and Undersecretary Elberto Emphasis of the Department of Transportation and Communications.
Stopgap measure
If the strike will drag on for days and Sulpicio's operations are crippled, the Maritime Industry Authority (Marina) will request other shipping lines to fill the gap, said Director Glenn Cabaņez.
Also, if the strike will be declared illegal, Marina could suspend or revoke the workers' seaman's books.
Pino of UMSS claimed total paralysis of Sulpicio's operations. But Yap said it was business as usual for some of their vessels in areas like Butuan.
Sulpicio Lines has 27 vessels, but a few are undergoing repair, said Yap.
Jaime Paglinawan of the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) said that instead of recognizing UMSS, the Sulpicio management used ALU in its "union-busting activities."
He challenged ALU to support the protest, saying that as a labor group, it should sympathize more with workers than with management.
But ALU spokesperson Joy Lim said the strikers in Cebu are not connected with Sulpicio, but are mostly members of Anakpawis and Gabriela. Some former Sulpicio workers who were "already terminated for cause" also joined the protest, she said.
Elections
Last year, UMSS filed a petition for certification election, but was denied by the Bureau of Labor Relations, because ALU has been registered as collective bargaining agent for Sulpicio.
The UMSS elevated their petition before the Court of Appeals, where it remains pending.
They questioned why the management granted only a P1 increase in their overtime pay and P50 in meal allowances per day.
They also cried foul when the management allegedly laid off 39 unlicensed crew, which they described as a violation of their agreement last February 29.
Further, the union is asking management to prioritize laid-off employees to replace crewmembers who go on vacation or emergency leaves.
Because of the strike, legal officer Yap said the management was open to a new certification election, so the workers can decide once and for all which union will represent them as their collective bargaining agent.
Leaders of the strikers' group welcomed the plan.
Under the Labor Code, workers or employers may file a petition for a certification election.
In cases where one union has been recognized by the company or selected by a workers' vote, the incumbent bargaining agent automatically becomes one of the choices in the upcoming election. With Minerva B. Gerodias
(March 10, 2004 issue)
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