VALLACAR Transit Inc. (VTI) Workers Union and The Philippine Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Workers Union-Trade Union of Congress of the Philippines (Paciwu-TUCP) denied the allegation of some dismissed workers of the bus company that they connived with the management on their termination from their respective jobs.
In a press conference Wednesday, October 2, Hernani Braza, national Paciwu-TUCP president, and Franny Santarin, VTI Union president, said they helped the affected workers and in fact, 80 of them returned to their jobs with the company after they assisted them.
"Those employees have abandoned their work after the standoff and went Awol (absence without leave) but they were able to return to their jobs after they sought help from us," he said.
Braza and Santarin said they have already warned the concerned workers not to take side during the standoff at the Ceres terminals at the height of the squabbling of the Yanson siblings.
Braza said the VTI has been for its employees, the reason it is now recognized as the biggest bus company in the country.
"We have been reaching out to the employees but they made it difficult for themselves," Santarin said.
He also revealed that the said employees were promised to be paid of their salaries by Roy Yanson, eldest of the Yanson siblings.
He also explained that the employees were made to fill up application forms after their documents went missing at the VTI office in Mansilingan after the standoff.
The union made the statement after about 30 employees of VTI slammed their illegal termination from their work.
In a press conference at the Negros Press Club on October 1, they said they have decided to come out into the open so the public will know what kind of union they have.
The employees said "they were illegally terminated after the return of Leo Roy Yanson as company president."
"We strongly condemned our dismissal from work without justifiable reason and process. We were forced to sign blank documents which we consider as an oppressive move against us the employees," the workers said.