3-Day PAL Wildcat Strike is Over; Agreement Signed

The Philippine Journal

Sunday, November 3, 1996

By CONRADO CHING

THE three-day strike that hit the Philippine Airlines ended yesterday after management and the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association signed a memorandum of understanding.

With the signing, PALEA agreed to lift immediately the pickets at PAL premises and let its members to return to work no later than 12 noon today. PAL management would accept them without sanctions and loss of benefits and positions.

The agreement was formally signed at the Department of Labor and Employment before DOLE Secretary Leonardo Quisumbing and other labor officials.

Signing for PAL were Antonio V. Ocampo Corporate Secretary and SVP-Corporate Counsel and Henry So Uy, VP & Executive Assistant to the Chairman/CEO.

Union President Alexander Barrientos and three other union officers signed for PALEA.

A new collective bargaining agreement would be concluded by the two parties within 10 days from Nov. 11.

PAL management would come up with a counter-proposal to PALEA's P3.2 billion CBA package by Tuesday. All other issues covered by the two DOLE assumption orders will also be addressed by the management and the union.

The three-day wildcat strike had caused PAL some P100 million in losses, according to Manuel Panlilio, PAL Vice-President for Airport Services.

The losses arose from the grounding of PAL's fleet of planes the rebooking of passengers, expenses for stranded passengers.

"Any plane on the ground is non-productive and, therefore, incurs losses," Panlilio said.

He also revealed that PAL's passenger backlog in its international flight was low because they were able to endorse stranded passengers to other airlines operating at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.

For domestic and international flight, some 150 flights were cancelled due to the strike.

At the same time, general sentiment among NAIA officials and passengers showed that the strike, timed to coincide with the annual All Saints’ Day break, caused more harm to the riding public.

Lee Chok Chan, a Singaporean national who had to wait for more than two hours before his scheduled flight for Seoul, Korea, had to endure for three more hours at the NAIA arrival area before getting his baggage.

Lee told NAIA reporters: "If the demands of the union officials was really for the benefit of the members, that's good.

"But it seems that the union is being used by the leftist organizations for other causes. Also, if your government wants to entice us foreigners to invest in your country, they must make sure there is industrial peace. Not like this."

Collector Rodolfo Buendia, NAIA Customs Collector for Passengers Services, rued the timing saying it was "inconsiderate" on the part of the strikers.

"Why should they do it with the All Saints’ Day celebration. They must not hold the country hostage," Buendia said.

The strike also translated into losses for the government since those who were not able to fly out had their travel tax and airport terminal fees refunded.