Jaime Paglinawan, during the “Dole (Department of Labor and Employment) 7 Talks” program on Friday, July 21, said the provision allows employees, through a legal representation, to voice out and call upon their employers to address their concerns over wages, benefits, and other terms, and negotiate.
Only 47 unions
“Based on our monitoring, even though our data was still in 2019 but it is still close to reality, we have only 47 registered labor unions, of which a few of them have a Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) in Central Visayas,” Paglinawan said.
CBA is a contract in which working people, through their unions, can negotiate with their employers in terms of employment, pay, benefits, hours, leave, job policies and many more.
He added that aside from issues with their employers, red-tagging and harassment from state forces also factor in as to why only a few labor unions exist in the region.
AMA Sugbo-KMU had pleaded anew to the Commission on Human Rights (CHR) 7 to hasten the investigation on these incidents.
Death threats
It and other progressive groups filed an inquiry on Monday, July 17, seeking an update on the investigation from a complaint they filed two years ago regarding red-tagging and death threats against union leaders, among others.
Paglinawan said in a press statement on Monday that since the first submission of the complaint on Jan. 17, 2021, the case has not been resolved. Instead, the alleged incidents of harassment have only worsened, he said.
On June 29, Renato Gimenez, a former unionist, said he was harassed by a man claiming to be an intelligence officer. Casmero Mahilum, also a former unionist, said he had a similar experience. According to Mahilum, he was followed and pressured to become an informant.
Paglinawan said both incidents could be considered harassment and intimidation against labor leaders who advocate for workers’ rights, pointing out that both Gimenez and Mahilum were active in defending their coworkers’ rights against unfair labor practices of their employer.
He said that although the CHR 7 has responded to their inquiry and claimed that the office is taking action, it did not specify what actions have been taken.
The labor group condemned the death threats and red-tagging they received from state officials, which should be defending workers’ rights, and called on the CHR 7 and other agencies to put an end to this alarming practice. (EHP, AML)