PAL to launch legal battle vs ground workers after strike
MANILA — Philippine Airlines (PAL) mulls filing administrative and criminal complaints against ground employees who took part in the strike that paralyzed flight operations at Manila airport and affected about 14,000 passengers on Tuesday.
About 300 ground workers at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) took part in Tuesday’s strike and work slowdown, an apparent display of workers’ capability to cripple the airline’s operation.
PAL president Jaime Bautista said the ground workers on duty at the airport suddenly “refused to perform their official functions in the ramp, check-in counters and catering areas.”
He said the striking employees should have been declared terminated effective October 1 under a plan to outsource thousands of jobs in catering, ground handling and flight reservations.
The airline said the strikers can no longer be allowed to be involved in PAL’s ground services because of their action.
PAL Employees Association (Palea), the workers’ union, said the employees staged a protest, not a strike to defend their jobs.
The airline said in its website Tuesday night that the striking ground workers have begun to peacefully vacate their stations Tuesday afternoon barely 12 hours after they started their “sit-down strike.”
Ground personnel of PAL had refused to perform their duties starting at 6 a.m., prompting the airline management to cancel all flight departing for Manila.
PAL security, police and airport authorities led by Manila Internal Airport Authority (MIAA) general manager Angel Honrado negotiated to end the strike and escorted striking employees out of the terminal building.
Honrado also tried to convince protesting PAL ramp workers to yield control of PAL equipment like tow tugs, pushback tractors and conveyor belt loaders used for servicing arriving and departing airplanes, PAL vice president for corporate communications Joey de Guzman told Sun.Star.
The PAL expressed gratitude to the aviation security group and Honrado for the peaceful resolution of strike. No violence was reported.
As of late Tuesday night, PAL said it is exerting all efforts to check in passengers for its domestic and international flights.
In a news conference Tuesday, Bautista said the work stoppage constitutes an illegal strike, which merits the imposition of administrative and criminal sanctions.
“Our lawyers are studying all legal options, including the filing of administrative, civil and criminal charges against the illegal strikers. They are risking their retirement pay and other benefits because of their illegal actions,” he said.
In a text message to Sun.Star, Palea Visayas board member Tex Bulambot saw the upcoming lawsuits as a “normal threat.”
“The work stoppage was due to Palea’s insistence that management should back down from the scheduled implementation of its spin off/outsourcing program on October 1. There is nothing to negotiate as there is no legal basis for their demands,” Bautista said.
The affected passengers come from 172 inbound and outbound flights in PAL’s hub at the NAIA Terminal 2.
Palea president Gerry Rivera admitted that the work stoppage was a way of sending a strong message to the management of their capability in crippling the firm’s operations.
Rivera admitted that their protest on Tuesday is part of their last ditch effort to oppose the completion of the spin-off program come October 1.
Section 81 of Republic Act 9497 or the Civil Aviation Authority Act of 2008 states that it is prohibited for any person to “destroy or seriously damage the facilities of an airport or disrupt the services of an airport.”
Penalties include imprisonment ranging from one to three years and/or a fine of not less than P50,000 to P500,000.
Also on Tuesday, the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) sent a team of conciliators at the airport to iron out the differences between the contending parties.
“It really affected a lot of passengers, all PAL flights were cancelled. It really affected the economy,” presidential spokesperson Edwin Lacierda said.
Malacañang believed that although the union gave warning to government about the planned strike, the employees failed to comply with legal requirements.
Lacierda also assured that the labor row in PAL will not derail the return of President Benigno Aquino III on Wednesday, who is in Japan for a four-day working visit.
The PAL official explained that while their administrative staff is ready to take over, the airline management decided to defer deployment to prevent altercation between its ground workers and management volunteers.
While operations at the so-called Centennial Terminal had stopped, PAL flights arriving from Seoul (PR 467) and Tokyo (PR 431) were transferred to NAIA Terminal 1 in coordination with the MIAA.
“Any inconvenience brought about by the protest is temporary. Ultimately the safe and efficient operation of PAL is guaranteed if employees are regular not contractual,” Palea said in a statement.
Earlier, the labor department and the Office of the President upheld the legality of PAL’s outsourcing plan, which these agencies recognized as “a valid exercise of management prerogative.” (Virgil Lopez/Jill Beltran/AMN/Sunnex)
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