FLIGHT ADVISORY: Passengers for tomorrow's flights (September 16, 2011) are advised to leave much earlier than usual for the airport, or at least four hours before their scheduled departure time, in anticipation of heavy traffic along the roads leading to the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA).
The PAL Employees Association is expected to conduct mass actions within the vicinity of the airport in celebration of PALEA's anniversary.
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Wednesday, June 22, 2011
Biz Buzz: Fighting manipulation
By: the staff
Philippine Daily Inquirer
1:09 am | Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011
Spend money to make money
Philippine Airlines may be back in the black this year, but that doesn’t mean the flag carrier is about to start taking it easy.
Apart from its much-talked-about efforts to streamline its sometimes cumbersome cost structure inherited from its days as a government-owned firm, PAL is also trying to improve its revenue profile.
One particular area of interest for the airline is its lucrative trans-Pacific route which, according to our source, accounts for the biggest share of PAL’s revenue pie, but also has some of the slimmest profit margins.
To improve this, PAL not only needs to fly more passengers but it has to be able to do this more efficiently by using its brand-new Boeing 777 jets for its Manila-Los Angeles and Manila-San Francisco services (something currently prohibited by US government “Category 2” restrictions).
So PAL isn’t sitting around while waiting for this elusive upgrade to Category 1. In fact, PAL began last month paying for the services of a world-renowned aviation consultant, Tim Neel, whose specialty is getting downgraded countries upgraded to Category 1 status.
No, Tim Neel isn’t advising PAL, as the airline has always been up to par with international standards. The airline is paying him solely to help the government-run Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. That’s how important this is for PAL’s sustained profitability.—Daxim L. Lucas
Philippine Daily Inquirer
1:09 am | Wednesday, June 22nd, 2011
Spend money to make money
Philippine Airlines may be back in the black this year, but that doesn’t mean the flag carrier is about to start taking it easy.
Apart from its much-talked-about efforts to streamline its sometimes cumbersome cost structure inherited from its days as a government-owned firm, PAL is also trying to improve its revenue profile.
One particular area of interest for the airline is its lucrative trans-Pacific route which, according to our source, accounts for the biggest share of PAL’s revenue pie, but also has some of the slimmest profit margins.
To improve this, PAL not only needs to fly more passengers but it has to be able to do this more efficiently by using its brand-new Boeing 777 jets for its Manila-Los Angeles and Manila-San Francisco services (something currently prohibited by US government “Category 2” restrictions).
So PAL isn’t sitting around while waiting for this elusive upgrade to Category 1. In fact, PAL began last month paying for the services of a world-renowned aviation consultant, Tim Neel, whose specialty is getting downgraded countries upgraded to Category 1 status.
No, Tim Neel isn’t advising PAL, as the airline has always been up to par with international standards. The airline is paying him solely to help the government-run Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines. That’s how important this is for PAL’s sustained profitability.—Daxim L. Lucas
Monday, June 20, 2011
SC junks bid to reinstate PAL pilots
The Philippine Star
By Edu Punay
June 20, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) has dismissed a petition of a group of commercial pilots to reinstate the pilots of Philippine Airlines (PAL), who claimed they were illegally dismissed in 1998.
The High Court’s first division junked the motion for reconsideration of Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines (Alpap) on its 2002 ruling on the labor case, saying "a judgment that has attained finality is immutable and could thus no longer be modified.”
In a 13-page decision penned by Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo, the court held that reopening the case would pave the way for “vicious and vexatious proceedings,” considering that the grounds raised in the petition were already provided and resolved in the earlier decision of the court.
Chief Justice Renato Corona and Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Roberto Abad and Jose Perez all concurred with the ruling.
The SC also noted that Alpap raised the issues “at a very late stage."
“Interestingly, these defenses were not raised and discussed when the case was still pending before the DOLE(Department of Labor and Employment) Secretary, the CA (Court of Appeals) or even before this court… Alpap was given all opportunities to present its evidence and arguments. It cannot now complain that it was denied due process,” it added.
The case stemmed from Alpap’s plea for DOLE to identify who among its members were terminated by PAL after the pilots went on strike on June 5, 1998.
Alpap alleged in their petition that a number of their members were unceremoniously dismissed even though they did not participate in the strike, which the high tribunal held as illegal in its April 10, 2002, decision.
The same ruling upheld PAL’s order to sack pilots who refused to report to work even after then Labor Secretary Cresenciano Trajano issued a return-to-work order on June 7, 1998.
DOLE in its June 1, 1999, resolution, also upheld PAL’s termination order.
The airline’s management dismissed some 600 Alpap members when they embarked on a strike to protest the flag carrier’s order for all pilots who have reached 20 years of service or have flown 20,000 hours, to retire regardless of age.
But some of the axed pilots said they were on official leave or were abroad when the strike occurred.
In an attempt to save their employment, the pilots asked the Dole on Jan. 13, 2003, to identify Alpap officers and members who were covered by the dismissal order.
In a letter dated July 4, 2003, then acting Labor Secretary Manuel Imzon argued that no less than the Supreme Court had affirmed the legality of PAL’s dismissal orders.
Imzon’s predecessor,Patricia Sto. Tomas, also raised the same argument in her letter to Alpap.
By Edu Punay
June 20, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The Supreme Court (SC) has dismissed a petition of a group of commercial pilots to reinstate the pilots of Philippine Airlines (PAL), who claimed they were illegally dismissed in 1998.
The High Court’s first division junked the motion for reconsideration of Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines (Alpap) on its 2002 ruling on the labor case, saying "a judgment that has attained finality is immutable and could thus no longer be modified.”
In a 13-page decision penned by Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo, the court held that reopening the case would pave the way for “vicious and vexatious proceedings,” considering that the grounds raised in the petition were already provided and resolved in the earlier decision of the court.
Chief Justice Renato Corona and Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Roberto Abad and Jose Perez all concurred with the ruling.
The SC also noted that Alpap raised the issues “at a very late stage."
“Interestingly, these defenses were not raised and discussed when the case was still pending before the DOLE(Department of Labor and Employment) Secretary, the CA (Court of Appeals) or even before this court… Alpap was given all opportunities to present its evidence and arguments. It cannot now complain that it was denied due process,” it added.
The case stemmed from Alpap’s plea for DOLE to identify who among its members were terminated by PAL after the pilots went on strike on June 5, 1998.
Alpap alleged in their petition that a number of their members were unceremoniously dismissed even though they did not participate in the strike, which the high tribunal held as illegal in its April 10, 2002, decision.
The same ruling upheld PAL’s order to sack pilots who refused to report to work even after then Labor Secretary Cresenciano Trajano issued a return-to-work order on June 7, 1998.
DOLE in its June 1, 1999, resolution, also upheld PAL’s termination order.
The airline’s management dismissed some 600 Alpap members when they embarked on a strike to protest the flag carrier’s order for all pilots who have reached 20 years of service or have flown 20,000 hours, to retire regardless of age.
But some of the axed pilots said they were on official leave or were abroad when the strike occurred.
In an attempt to save their employment, the pilots asked the Dole on Jan. 13, 2003, to identify Alpap officers and members who were covered by the dismissal order.
In a letter dated July 4, 2003, then acting Labor Secretary Manuel Imzon argued that no less than the Supreme Court had affirmed the legality of PAL’s dismissal orders.
Imzon’s predecessor,Patricia Sto. Tomas, also raised the same argument in her letter to Alpap.
Pilots’ union loses illegal dismissal case vs. PAL
Manila Standard Today
June 20, 2011
by Rey E. Requejo
THE Supreme Court has affirmed a 2003 Labor Department decision favoring Philippine Airlines over a wrongful dismissal suit filed by its pilots.
The Court’s First Division also sustained a Court of Appeals ruling on the same case on Dec. 22, 2004, which ruled that then Labor secretary Patricia Santo Tomas and acting Secretary Manuel Imson did not abuse their powers when they denied a plea by the Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines to find out who among its officers and members had actually participated in a June 5, 1998 strike.
The controversy arose after the pilots’ union filed a notice of strike on Dec. 9, 1997 over the airline’s alleged unfair labor practices.
Citing the public interest, the Labor secretary assumed jurisdiction over the case and prohibited all strikes and lockouts at the national flag carrier, but the pilots struck anyway.
Two days later, the Labor Department issued a return-to-work order, but the pilots reported for work only on June 26, prompting the airline to refuse to take them back.
The pilots filed a complaint for illegal lockout against the carrier, but the National Labor Relations Commission eventually dismissed it for lack of merit. It also upheld the dismissal of the union officers and members who joined the June 5 strike and defied the government’s return-to-work order.
The pilots’ petitions before the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court were similarly denied, but in a bid to revive the case in 2003, the pilots’ union asked the Labor Department to conduct proceedings to determine who among its officers and members should be reinstated or deemed to have lost their employment with the airline, since “a significant number” of members did not join the strike.
Imson merely noted the union’s request and did not act on it because of the final nature of the Supreme Court’s decision, prompting the pilots to file a case against him and Sto. Tomas for grave abuse of discretion.
The Court of Appeals dismissed their petition on Dec. 22, 2004.
June 20, 2011
by Rey E. Requejo
THE Supreme Court has affirmed a 2003 Labor Department decision favoring Philippine Airlines over a wrongful dismissal suit filed by its pilots.
The Court’s First Division also sustained a Court of Appeals ruling on the same case on Dec. 22, 2004, which ruled that then Labor secretary Patricia Santo Tomas and acting Secretary Manuel Imson did not abuse their powers when they denied a plea by the Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines to find out who among its officers and members had actually participated in a June 5, 1998 strike.
The controversy arose after the pilots’ union filed a notice of strike on Dec. 9, 1997 over the airline’s alleged unfair labor practices.
Citing the public interest, the Labor secretary assumed jurisdiction over the case and prohibited all strikes and lockouts at the national flag carrier, but the pilots struck anyway.
Two days later, the Labor Department issued a return-to-work order, but the pilots reported for work only on June 26, prompting the airline to refuse to take them back.
The pilots filed a complaint for illegal lockout against the carrier, but the National Labor Relations Commission eventually dismissed it for lack of merit. It also upheld the dismissal of the union officers and members who joined the June 5 strike and defied the government’s return-to-work order.
The pilots’ petitions before the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court were similarly denied, but in a bid to revive the case in 2003, the pilots’ union asked the Labor Department to conduct proceedings to determine who among its officers and members should be reinstated or deemed to have lost their employment with the airline, since “a significant number” of members did not join the strike.
Imson merely noted the union’s request and did not act on it because of the final nature of the Supreme Court’s decision, prompting the pilots to file a case against him and Sto. Tomas for grave abuse of discretion.
The Court of Appeals dismissed their petition on Dec. 22, 2004.
Sunday, June 19, 2011
SC junks petition of pilots
Manila Bulletin
By LEONARD D. POSTRADO
June 19, 2011, 5:31pm
MANILA, Philippines -- The Supreme Court (SC) has junked a petition of a group of commercial pilots seeking the reinstatement of its members who were allegedly an unlawfully dismissed by the Philippine Airlines (PAL) over a labor dispute 13 years ago.
Saying that the case lacked merit, the SC First Division voted for the petition of Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines (ALPAP) to be dismissed.
They also argued that granting the petitioners' plea was tantamount to reopening the labor dispute case between PAL and Alpap which the court had already resolved with finality in 2002.
"A judgment that has attained finality is immutable and could thus no longer be modified. A proceeding may not be reopened upon grounds already available to the parties during the pendency of such proceedings,” read the 13-page decision of SC penned by Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo dated June 6.
Concurring with Del Castillo's opinion were Chief Justice Renato Corona and Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Roberto Abad and Jose Perez.
Court records showed that the case stemmed from Alpap's plea asking the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) to identify specifically who among its members were terminated by PAL after the pilots went on strike on June 5, 1998.
By LEONARD D. POSTRADO
June 19, 2011, 5:31pm
MANILA, Philippines -- The Supreme Court (SC) has junked a petition of a group of commercial pilots seeking the reinstatement of its members who were allegedly an unlawfully dismissed by the Philippine Airlines (PAL) over a labor dispute 13 years ago.
Saying that the case lacked merit, the SC First Division voted for the petition of Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines (ALPAP) to be dismissed.
They also argued that granting the petitioners' plea was tantamount to reopening the labor dispute case between PAL and Alpap which the court had already resolved with finality in 2002.
"A judgment that has attained finality is immutable and could thus no longer be modified. A proceeding may not be reopened upon grounds already available to the parties during the pendency of such proceedings,” read the 13-page decision of SC penned by Associate Justice Mariano del Castillo dated June 6.
Concurring with Del Castillo's opinion were Chief Justice Renato Corona and Associate Justices Teresita Leonardo-de Castro, Roberto Abad and Jose Perez.
Court records showed that the case stemmed from Alpap's plea asking the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) to identify specifically who among its members were terminated by PAL after the pilots went on strike on June 5, 1998.
Wednesday, June 15, 2011
PAL income expected to recover sharply
Financial turnaround comes despite weak market
By: Daxim L. Lucas
Philippine Daily Inquirer
1:22 am | Wednesday, June 15th, 2011
Philippine Airlines expects to report a profit for its recently ended fiscal year, marking a sharp turnaround for the flag carrier despite being saddled by persistent labor issues.
In an interview, PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista said he was expecting the airline’s bottom line to “land in positive territory” for its 2010-2011 fiscal year, which ended on March 31.
“The numbers look good and we are just waiting for the board to approve the figures later this month,” Bautista said, declining to provide more details.
According to airline sources, the Lucio Tan-owned airline will likely report “total comprehensive income” of about $80 million for the previous fiscal year—a turnaround from the $14.3-million loss reported in March 31, 2010.
“We would have beaten the $100-million mark [for last year], had it not been for all the unforeseen events we had in the first quarter [of 2011],” the source said, requesting anonymity because the numbers have yet to be reviewed by the company’s board.
In particular, the official pointed out that the effects of the earthquake and ensuing tsunami on the Japanese market and the spike in fuel prices caused by the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa dampened PAL’s net income toward the end of its fiscal year.
Bautista pointed out that the turnaround in PAL’s financial performance came despite an ongoing dispute with its labor unions, which have forced the airline to temporarily suspend its rationalization program.
“Given that we could save as much as $15 million annually with our planned streamlining efforts, the company could be a better contributor to the economy should we be allowed to implement our plans,” he said.
The PAL chief said the airline had recorded higher passenger traffic to and from key destinations, especially Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok and its recently inaugurated New Delhi service.
PAL had also experienced higher passenger traffic between Manila and the cities of Tokyo, Nagoya and Fukuoka, but this market fell off sharply in the wake of the twin tragedies that struck Japan in early March.
The airline’s overall load factor remained at the “high 70s,” Bautista said.
PAL flew about nine million passengers in fiscal year 2010-2011. This was slightly lower than the 9.3 million passengers it ferried in the previous year—a situation he attributed to active measures to shift domestic traffic to PAL’s Air Philippines subsidiary.
The planned shift in focus resulted in PAL reporting an increase in the number of international passengers but a slight decline on domestic routes.
“We didn’t renew the lease on six Airbus A320s for PAL, but instead took in new aircraft of the same type for Air Philippines,” he said.
Next year, however, PAL will add two new A320s to its fleet, plus another two Boeing 777s, which it hopes to finally use for its lucrative trans-Pacific service, should the country finally be upgraded back to Category 1 status by US aviation regulators.
Bautista emphasized the importance of bringing more B777s into PAL’s fleet—and maximizing their use with long-distance flights—as a key factor in improving the airline’s efficiency.
In addition, he said PAL must also be allowed to shed excess staffers and outsource non-core services from firms which can provide the same service more efficiently, similar to other airlines’ operations.
By: Daxim L. Lucas
Philippine Daily Inquirer
1:22 am | Wednesday, June 15th, 2011
Philippine Airlines expects to report a profit for its recently ended fiscal year, marking a sharp turnaround for the flag carrier despite being saddled by persistent labor issues.
In an interview, PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime Bautista said he was expecting the airline’s bottom line to “land in positive territory” for its 2010-2011 fiscal year, which ended on March 31.
“The numbers look good and we are just waiting for the board to approve the figures later this month,” Bautista said, declining to provide more details.
According to airline sources, the Lucio Tan-owned airline will likely report “total comprehensive income” of about $80 million for the previous fiscal year—a turnaround from the $14.3-million loss reported in March 31, 2010.
“We would have beaten the $100-million mark [for last year], had it not been for all the unforeseen events we had in the first quarter [of 2011],” the source said, requesting anonymity because the numbers have yet to be reviewed by the company’s board.
In particular, the official pointed out that the effects of the earthquake and ensuing tsunami on the Japanese market and the spike in fuel prices caused by the unrest in the Middle East and North Africa dampened PAL’s net income toward the end of its fiscal year.
Bautista pointed out that the turnaround in PAL’s financial performance came despite an ongoing dispute with its labor unions, which have forced the airline to temporarily suspend its rationalization program.
“Given that we could save as much as $15 million annually with our planned streamlining efforts, the company could be a better contributor to the economy should we be allowed to implement our plans,” he said.
The PAL chief said the airline had recorded higher passenger traffic to and from key destinations, especially Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok and its recently inaugurated New Delhi service.
PAL had also experienced higher passenger traffic between Manila and the cities of Tokyo, Nagoya and Fukuoka, but this market fell off sharply in the wake of the twin tragedies that struck Japan in early March.
The airline’s overall load factor remained at the “high 70s,” Bautista said.
PAL flew about nine million passengers in fiscal year 2010-2011. This was slightly lower than the 9.3 million passengers it ferried in the previous year—a situation he attributed to active measures to shift domestic traffic to PAL’s Air Philippines subsidiary.
The planned shift in focus resulted in PAL reporting an increase in the number of international passengers but a slight decline on domestic routes.
“We didn’t renew the lease on six Airbus A320s for PAL, but instead took in new aircraft of the same type for Air Philippines,” he said.
Next year, however, PAL will add two new A320s to its fleet, plus another two Boeing 777s, which it hopes to finally use for its lucrative trans-Pacific service, should the country finally be upgraded back to Category 1 status by US aviation regulators.
Bautista emphasized the importance of bringing more B777s into PAL’s fleet—and maximizing their use with long-distance flights—as a key factor in improving the airline’s efficiency.
In addition, he said PAL must also be allowed to shed excess staffers and outsource non-core services from firms which can provide the same service more efficiently, similar to other airlines’ operations.
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
PAL hiring workers for ground duty
The Philippine Star
By Mary Ann Ll. ReyeS
June 14, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) will be hiring workers for ground duty to augment its current workforce and replace those who resigned over the past few weeks.
In a statement, PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said the flag carrier intends to directly hire 60 customer service agents (CSAs) to man check-in counters and perform other ground duties. She said this would replace CSAs who either resigned or were pirated abroad.
“To avoid inconvenience to our passengers in terms of longer queues and waiting times, PAL management started processing applications for customer service agents,” she explained.
Contrary to claims by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA), Villaluna said PAL management would not hire people from MacroAsia Corp. “In fact, the decision to hire directly instead of getting a service provider was even proposed by PALEA officers during a management-union dialogue last week,” she said.
Villaluna explained that the original management proposal was to temporarily engage the services of MacroAsia for six months just to fill the gap. But since the union opposed this, management decided that it would just hire employees directly to end the debate, she stressed.
By Mary Ann Ll. ReyeS
June 14, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) will be hiring workers for ground duty to augment its current workforce and replace those who resigned over the past few weeks.
In a statement, PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said the flag carrier intends to directly hire 60 customer service agents (CSAs) to man check-in counters and perform other ground duties. She said this would replace CSAs who either resigned or were pirated abroad.
“To avoid inconvenience to our passengers in terms of longer queues and waiting times, PAL management started processing applications for customer service agents,” she explained.
Contrary to claims by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA), Villaluna said PAL management would not hire people from MacroAsia Corp. “In fact, the decision to hire directly instead of getting a service provider was even proposed by PALEA officers during a management-union dialogue last week,” she said.
Villaluna explained that the original management proposal was to temporarily engage the services of MacroAsia for six months just to fill the gap. But since the union opposed this, management decided that it would just hire employees directly to end the debate, she stressed.
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