Scores of toll employees of SLEX together and their supporters are holding
a protest this afternoon in Laguna. The National Mediation and Conciliation
Board regional office in Laguna is convening a hearing today due to workers of complaint
of illegal dismissal.
Some 90 employees of the San Miguel Corp.-owned Manila Toll
Expressway System, Inc. (MATES) are to be terminated en masse this month but
are to be transferred to an outsourcing agency called PITC. Workers are
alleging that the the scheme is a union busting and job contractualization
manuever.
Randy Tuason, a leader of the MATES workers,
declared that "We are demanding that workers be absorbed as regular
employees in PITC and that the union also be recognized. It is utterly unfair
to be demoted as probationary employees in an agency when we have worked as
toll employees for years already."
The affected employees work the tolls from Alabang to Calamba,
Laguna and onto Sto. Tomas, Batangas. A union was formed and certified as a
bargaining agent just a few months ago.
In the first mediation hearing last week, no agreement was
reached. MATES-SLEX said that they will consider the demand of the workers for
absorption as regular employees. Workers also picketed the mediation hearing.
Rene Magtubo, chair of the militant group Partido Manggagawa,
which is assisting the MATES workers, said that “Ending endo was supposed to be
a policy shift of this administration. President Duterte kept repeating in
dialogues with labor leaders that he wants to stop the prevalent practice of
workers being transferred to agencies instead being hired as regular workers in
principal companies. So why is this being allowed at SLEX?”
“If this is allowed at MATES-SLEX then it will be followed in
other toll roads. Instead of toll payment interconnection as announced a few
days ago, we will have rampant contractualization in the expressways. We call
on the DOLE to intervene in this issue,” he added.
Photos of SLEX workers picket last week can be accessed here: https://www.facebook.com/partidomanggagawa/posts/10155612446129323
September 20, 2017
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