PAL union inches closer to a strike

October 6, 2010
Joyce Pangco Pañares, Jeremiah de Guzman, Vito Barcelo
Manila Standard Today

THE Labor Department will assume jurisdiction over the dispute between Philippine Airlines and its cabin crew union after a mediation meeting ended in yet another deadlock, President Benigno Aquino III said Tuesday.

“Let us not panic. Let us not assume that PAL will be on strike in the next few days,” Mr. Aquino said after hearing of the stalemate.

But he toned down a threat to adopt an open-skies policy in case the labor trouble at the flag carrier disrupted its operations.

“We are not yet feeling the anticipated damage to the economy by the loss of carrier capacity,” Mr. Aquino said.

“We’re hoping this can be resolved and we won’t need to go into the open skies policy.”
Earlier, the airline’s management said it would submit the case for arbitration to Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz after the union rejected its proposal to increase salaries and rice allowance by P105 million, expand pregnancy-related benefits, and increase the retirement age of female cabin crew to 45.

“With no agreement reached during today’s conciliation meeting, PAL manifested willingness to submit the case for arbitration,” airline spokeswoman Cielo Villaluna said.

“This will enable the parties to submit their positions to the Labor secretary, who will then decide the case on the merits.”

The Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines posed no objection to government intervention.

Once the Labor Department assumes jurisdiction, the union may not strike and the management may not impose a lockout. The issues for arbitration include the economic package, the retirement age and pregnancy.

Villaluna said any work stoppage aimed at paralyzing Philippine Airlines’ operations would hurt not just the airline’s finances but also the country’s domestic and international trade and tourism. The airline started preparing contingency plans after the union filed a notice of strike with the Labor Department last month. The union said it would strike toward the end of October or in the first week of November.

Villaluna said the union’s insistence on its original demands and refusal to present any counter-offers to the management’s proposals kept the talks from proceeding.

“It’s give and take in any negotiation. It’s very difficult to negotiate if the other party only wants things to go their way,” Villaluna said.

She said PAL’s P105-million offer should be viewed in the context of the company’s financial losses in the last two years. The airline even agreed to increase the retirement age to 45 in exchange for allowing junior cabin crew to fly international routes together with their senior counterparts.
“Management has bent backwards to give part of [the union’s] demands, but they want nothing short of their original demands,” Villaluna said.

Earlier, Baldoz said she would step in to avert a strike at the airline, adding its operations were “imbued with national interest.”

Amid the airline’s labor woes, its competitor Cebu Pacific announced it was in urgent need of 300 flight attendants.

A company statement said the airline’s recruitment team would accommodate walk-in interviews from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday at the Crowne Plaza Galleria Manila Hotel.