NATIONAL labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno condemned today the illegal retrenchment of 104 plantation workers in Agusan del Sur one day after Labor Day, saying the Aquino government has emboldened capitalists to illegally lay off workers despite its rhetoric of prioritizing job generation.
The Agusan Palmoil Plantation, Inc. (API), located in Trento town and owned by Malaysian businessmen, retrenched 104 regular and unionized workers, without giving any notice to the workers, after filing a notice of closure before the Department of Labor and Employment.
API has just inked a Collective Bargaining Agreement with the workers’ union, the Pinagbuklod na Lakas ng Manggagawa sa Plantasyon ng API, last March 15. PLMPA is an affiliate of the National Federation of Labor Unions-KMU.
“One day after Aquino boasted about prioritizing job creation, we see how he has emboldened capitalists to destroy jobs by violating workers’ job security,” said Elmer “Bong” Labog, KMU chairperson.
“Not only has his government failed to generate sufficient jobs for Filipinos, it has allowed capitalists to lay off workers easily, thereby making the country’s employment situation even worse,” he added.
KMU said the illegal retrenchment is part of a drive to bust the workers’ union, saying the plantation’s operation will most likely resume after it has destroyed the union.
“The owners of API continue to rake in huge profits, that’s something workers know. They are not going bankrupt despite the destruction caused by typhoon ‘Pablo.’ They simply want to bust the workers’ union,” said Jacinto Tanduyan, NAFLU-KMU coordinator for Caraga region.
“Palm oil continues to be in demand and capitalists in the palm oil business continue to target Mindanao for expanding their operations. API will surely resume its operations and should not be allowed to bust the workers’ union. The workers should be reinstated immediately,” he added.
KMU also said that casual workers and managers should not be seen working if API has really stopped operations.