PAL Union Turns Back on Agreement

Malaya
Thursday, September 17, 1998
By Melody Aguilar

he board of the PAL Employees’ Association (PALEA) yesterday reversed its earlier agreement freezing its collective bargaining agreement with Philippine Airlines.

The decision was reached the other day during a meeting called by PALEA Vice President Gerry Rivera.

Sources said 15 out of the 21 PALEA directors signed the resolution scrapping the agreement. The sources said eight of the signatories were among the 14 directors who last week agreed to the moratorium.

Sources said the resolution is now with PALEA President Alex Barrientos who is expected to sign it.

Under the agreement, PAL Chairman Lucio Tan cedes 30 percent of his holdings to PALEA members. The union also gets three seats in the 15-man PAL board.

PAL said the union turnaround "is a big blow to the efforts of all those working to keep PAL afloat, including the government, stockholders, employees and creditors."

The agreement, PAL said, "stemmed from the commitment of both parties to create an atmosphere conducive to investor and creditor confidence which is critical to rehabilitation."

"PAL's potential investors had required such an agreement be institutionalized as a guarantee of long-term industrial peace and harmony, without which the airline cannot hope to recover and become competitive again. Precisely, PALEA's rejection of what it has already agreed upon is a cause of worry for PAL's creditors and prospective investors," the airline said.