By Nancy C. Carvajal, Sara Pacia, Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 07:37:00 04/28/2011
MANILA, Philippines—It’s status quo for now at the Philippine Airlines.
“No strike yet, for now everything remains the same and we are directed to submit our position papers on the issue not later than May 9,” said Gerry Rivera, president of the Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA).
The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) conducted the first arbitration hearing between PAL management and employees Wednesday.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz earlier handed over the labor dispute to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration.
PALEA had accused PAL management of refusal to enter into a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) and filed a notice of strike at the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), but this was stopped by Baldoz.
PALEA wanted to include the issue of contractualization in the CBA talks but this was rejected by PAL management.
PAL president Jaime J. Bautista, who attended the hearing, said they are willing to talk with the airline’s labor union.
However, Bautista said PAL would still push through with the outsourcing of its in-flight catering, airline service and call center reservations.
He said it would be absurd for the PAL management to agree to include the “spin-off” issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DoLE and Malacañang to proceed with the plan.
“We should not include any more a case which has been decided. Let us honor the decision of DoLE and the President,” he said.
Friday, April 29, 2011
Spin-off can’t be undone, PAL insists
by Eric B. Apolonio
Manila Standard Today
Philippine Airlines on Wednesday maintained its position that a new collective bargaining agreement with its ground workers’ union should not include discussions on the ‘spin-off’ issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission, PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.”
The Labor department under President Arroyo and even President Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs, Bautista stressed.
While the ‘spin-off’ will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers, Bautista said.
“No man will be left behind,” he said. “Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline.”
Bautista also belied claims by the PAL employees association that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA.
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be absurd for the PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and Malacanang to proceed with the same.
Manila Standard Today
Philippine Airlines on Wednesday maintained its position that a new collective bargaining agreement with its ground workers’ union should not include discussions on the ‘spin-off’ issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission, PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.”
The Labor department under President Arroyo and even President Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs, Bautista stressed.
While the ‘spin-off’ will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers, Bautista said.
“No man will be left behind,” he said. “Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline.”
Bautista also belied claims by the PAL employees association that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA.
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be absurd for the PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and Malacanang to proceed with the same.
Thursday, April 28, 2011
PAL stands firm on spin-off issue
By Rudy Santos
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 28, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) maintained its position yesterday that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the ‘spin-off’ issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving PAL’s catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.”
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) during the time of President (Gloria Macapagal) Arroyo and even President (Benigno Simeon) Aquino recognized PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs,” Bautista stressed.
He explained that while the ‘spin-off’ will result in the early retirement of
some 2,600 PAL ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers. “No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” Bautista said.
He also belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA).
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB). “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be absurd for PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and Malacañang to proceed with the same.
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 28, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) maintained its position yesterday that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the ‘spin-off’ issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving PAL’s catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.”
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) during the time of President (Gloria Macapagal) Arroyo and even President (Benigno Simeon) Aquino recognized PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs,” Bautista stressed.
He explained that while the ‘spin-off’ will result in the early retirement of
some 2,600 PAL ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers. “No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” Bautista said.
He also belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA).
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB). “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be absurd for PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and Malacañang to proceed with the same.
PAL firm CBA talks must not include issue of spinoff
Wednesday, 27 April 2011 19:37 Sara Susanne D. Fabunan / Correspondent
Business Mirror
FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) maintained its position Wednesday that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the issue of the planned spinoff of several services.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spinoff plan involving PAL’s catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.” The decision has already been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
“The Department of Labor and Employment [DOLE] during the time of President [Gloria] Arroyo and even President Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long-term survival and save jobs,” Bautista stressed.
He explained that while the planned spinoff will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 PAL workers, these employees will be absorbed or hired by third-party service providers.
“No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them while the remaining 5,000 workers will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” Bautista said.
He also belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association.
Bautista said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the CBA on March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be illogical for the PAL management to agree to include the spinoff issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and the administration to proceed with the same.
Business Mirror
FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) maintained its position Wednesday that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the issue of the planned spinoff of several services.
Appearing before the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), PAL president and chief operating officer Jaime J. Bautista reiterated the flag carrier’s position that the spinoff plan involving PAL’s catering, call center reservations and groundhandling departments “is firm, non-negotiable and therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants.” The decision has already been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
“The Department of Labor and Employment [DOLE] during the time of President [Gloria] Arroyo and even President Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long-term survival and save jobs,” Bautista stressed.
He explained that while the planned spinoff will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 PAL workers, these employees will be absorbed or hired by third-party service providers.
“No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them while the remaining 5,000 workers will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” Bautista said.
He also belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association.
Bautista said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the CBA on March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board. “This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” he stressed.
He added that it will be illogical for the PAL management to agree to include the spinoff issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DOLE and the administration to proceed with the same.
PAL stands firm on ‘spin-off’ stance
By LESLIE ANN G. AQUINO
April 27, 2011, 6:50pm
Manila Bulletin
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Airlines (PAL) Wednesday maintained its position that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the “spin-off” issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
PAL President and COO Jaime J. Bautista, in a statement, said the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving PAL’s Catering, Call Center Reservations, and ground-handling departments remains firm, non-negotiable, and “therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants”.
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), during the time of President [Gloria Macapagal] Arroyo and even President [Benigno Simeon] Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs,” he said.
Bautista said although the “spin-off” will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 PAL ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers.
“No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” he said.
Bautista then belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA).
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” said Bautista.
He added that it will be absurd for the PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DoLE and Malacañang to proceed with the same.
April 27, 2011, 6:50pm
Manila Bulletin
MANILA, Philippines — The Philippine Airlines (PAL) Wednesday maintained its position that a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with its ground union should not include discussions on the “spin-off” issue as the same has been upheld as a legal and valid exercise of management prerogative.
PAL President and COO Jaime J. Bautista, in a statement, said the flag carrier’s position that the spin-off plan involving PAL’s Catering, Call Center Reservations, and ground-handling departments remains firm, non-negotiable, and “therefore cannot be part of a new CBA that the union wants”.
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE), during the time of President [Gloria Macapagal] Arroyo and even President [Benigno Simeon] Aquino recognized the PAL management’s right to restructure its operations to ensure long term survival and save jobs,” he said.
Bautista said although the “spin-off” will result in the early retirement of some 2,600 PAL ground workers, these employees will be absorbed/hired by third party service providers.
“No man will be left behind. Those who are willing to work for the service providers have secure jobs waiting for them, while the remaining 5,000 workers of PAL will have a better chance of keeping their jobs in the leaner but meaner airline,” he said.
Bautista then belied claims by the union that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by leaders of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA).
He said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union,” said Bautista.
He added that it will be absurd for the PAL management to agree to include the ‘spin-off’ issue in the CBA negotiations when it has already secured the green light from DoLE and Malacañang to proceed with the same.
Thursday, April 21, 2011
PAL expects passenger volume to increase this year
By Mary Ann Reyes (The Philippine Star) Updated April 21, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - The number of Philippine Airlines (PAL) passengers flying this Holy Week is expected to increase slightly compared to last year, as the flag carrier maintains its regular domestic and international schedules with minor adjustments in domestic flights on Good Friday and Black Saturday.
From April 17 (Palm Sunday) to April 24 (Easter Sunday), PAL expects to fly close to 200,000 passengers throughout its network of 26 international and 20 domestic destinations.
The flag carrier’s international passengers are expected to exceed 90,000 - a five percent increase compared to 2010. Total domestic passengers are expected to reach about 100,000.
Last year, actual domestic passengers flown were 97,838. The positive passenger numbers indicate continuing confidence in the flag carrier despite many challenges.
All flights for Holy Week - except 16 domestic flights - will follow published schedules.
In observance of Good Friday and Black Saturday, the following will not be operated: April 22 - PR131/132 & PR157/158 (Manila-Bacolod, vice versa); PR849/850 & PR855/856 (Manila-Cebu, v.v.); PR185/186 & PR281/282 (Manila-Cagayan de Oro, v.v.); PR187/188 (Manila-Cotabato, v.v.); PR821/822 (Manila-Davao, v.v.); PR139/140 & PR143/144 (Manila-Iloilo, v.v.); PR393/394 (Manila-Tacloban, v.v.); and PR123/124 (Manila-Zamboanga, v.v.)
April 23 - PR843/844 (Manila-Cebu, v.v.); PR181/182 (Manila-Cagayan de Oro, v.v.); PR139/140 & PR143/144 (Manila-Iloilo, v.v.)
PAL employees who are required to report for duty between April 21 (Maundy Thursday) and April 24 (Easter Sunday) shall receive special incentive pay.
PAL is giving the additional P700 per day on top of the daily rate, holiday pay (double the daily rate) and overtime to those required to work during the holidays. This includes pilots, flight attendants, ground staff, administrative personnel and management officials. The extra remuneration is being given as part of PAL’s 70th anniversary celebration.
MANILA, Philippines - The number of Philippine Airlines (PAL) passengers flying this Holy Week is expected to increase slightly compared to last year, as the flag carrier maintains its regular domestic and international schedules with minor adjustments in domestic flights on Good Friday and Black Saturday.
From April 17 (Palm Sunday) to April 24 (Easter Sunday), PAL expects to fly close to 200,000 passengers throughout its network of 26 international and 20 domestic destinations.
The flag carrier’s international passengers are expected to exceed 90,000 - a five percent increase compared to 2010. Total domestic passengers are expected to reach about 100,000.
Last year, actual domestic passengers flown were 97,838. The positive passenger numbers indicate continuing confidence in the flag carrier despite many challenges.
All flights for Holy Week - except 16 domestic flights - will follow published schedules.
In observance of Good Friday and Black Saturday, the following will not be operated: April 22 - PR131/132 & PR157/158 (Manila-Bacolod, vice versa); PR849/850 & PR855/856 (Manila-Cebu, v.v.); PR185/186 & PR281/282 (Manila-Cagayan de Oro, v.v.); PR187/188 (Manila-Cotabato, v.v.); PR821/822 (Manila-Davao, v.v.); PR139/140 & PR143/144 (Manila-Iloilo, v.v.); PR393/394 (Manila-Tacloban, v.v.); and PR123/124 (Manila-Zamboanga, v.v.)
April 23 - PR843/844 (Manila-Cebu, v.v.); PR181/182 (Manila-Cagayan de Oro, v.v.); PR139/140 & PR143/144 (Manila-Iloilo, v.v.)
PAL employees who are required to report for duty between April 21 (Maundy Thursday) and April 24 (Easter Sunday) shall receive special incentive pay.
PAL is giving the additional P700 per day on top of the daily rate, holiday pay (double the daily rate) and overtime to those required to work during the holidays. This includes pilots, flight attendants, ground staff, administrative personnel and management officials. The extra remuneration is being given as part of PAL’s 70th anniversary celebration.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Birds strike instead of PAL employees
SPY BITS By Babe Romualdez (The Philippine Star) Updated April 19, 2011 12:00 AM
Last Friday, PAL’s brand new Boeing 777 got struck by a bird shortly before landing at the Vancouver International Airport. Fortunately, no one got hurt, but chaos and havoc naturally reigned when the plane’s return flight PR 117 to Manila had to be cancelled. The incident inevitably made PAL’s flight PR 107 from Las Vegas via Vancouver to become overbooked for its return flight to Manila. As of this writing, PAL’s Boeing 777 is still on the ground waiting for an engine howling part to be replaced. Unbelievably, the said part could not be secured immediately despite the fact that Boeing’s Everett factory in Washington state is just a hop away across the border from Vancouver.
While PAL has been able to avert strike threats from employees after talks brokered by the Department of Labor and Employment repeatedly failed, it seems the flag carrier can’t do much about bird strikes. The fowl that hit the plane was most likely a Canadian goose, but the real albatross that hangs on the head of PAL is the fact that their brand new Boeing 777 jets are still barred from entering the United States because for some unknown reason, the Philippines’ category 2 rating from the Federal Aviation Authority has not been lifted despite the fact that the issues involved have nothing to do with PAL’s excellent safety and maintenance record – which certainly is better than most US airlines.
In any case, climate change and early bird migration is probably the reason why there seems to be a growing incidence of bird strikes reported in the western hemisphere. Also recently, a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong bound for San Francisco had to be diverted to Vancouver because the plane hit a flock of birds. There has been some conjecture about the design of Boeing’s engines due to several bird strike incidents showing the birds being sucked in and getting rotated in the engine fan blades, thereby causing what is called a cascading failure. According to experts, this type of bird strike, which is also called “avian ingestion” for obvious reasons, mostly happens during takeoff when the plane is on a low altitude and the engine is turning at a very rapid rate.
These bird strikes have caused a lot of damage to the whole airline industry estimated at $1.2 billion yearly. This is also probably the worst time of the year for airlines because a lot of bird migration occurs due to seasonal changes with spring now heralding a much warmer weather.
It can be recalled that in 2009, a domestic US Airways flight 1549 (from La Guardia airport in New York and headed for North Carolina) suffered total engine failure six minutes after takeoff when a flock of Canadian geese hit the engines. The pilot, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, successfully ditched his aircraft over the Hudson River with no casualties whatsoever – an unprecedented feat that turned him into a hero. The incident has since been called the “Miracle on the Hudson,” and consequently described as “the most successful ditching in aviation history.” Captain Sully has since retired from US Airways a year after the incident but continues to be an active airline safety advocate.
The incident also triggered calls for the Federal Aviation Authority to similarly ditch its proposal that would prevent access to a critical database on the number of bird strikes that have been happening. The public outcry to release such records compelled US president Barack Obama to release a memo which partly read, “The government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears.”
Lorenzo’s oil
With the recent filing of plunder charges against former Agriculture Secretary Luis “Cito” Lorenzo by the Office of the Ombudsman, you would think the former Cabinet Official would be losing most of his friends overnight. Fortunately for Cito, a number of his friends have decided to rally behind him because many of them strongly feel that he is just being made a scapegoat. Close friends of the former Agriculture Secretary vowed to keep the “oil” burning until he is completely exonerated and cleared of all the charges.
Not-so-holy alliance
Opposition Congressman and RH bill main proponent Edcel Lagman found himself in a “not-so-holy” alliance with President Noynoy Aquino who recently declared at the UP graduation exercises that he is determined to push the Reproductive Health bill despite the threat of excommunication by the Catholic Church. A number of people who did not vote for P-Noy have also decided to take a stand and rally behind the beleaguered president. They, too, are ready “to be excommunicated” – or so they declare!
Spy Tidbit
– Former president Joseph Estrada celebrated his 74th birthday with former cabinet officials and a small group of friends at his new condo penthouse unit in Mandaluyong. Erap has definitely decided to sell his house in Polk St. in Greenhills, San Juan. Like most retirees, the former president has also decided to downsize.
Spy Bits note: We will be taking time off for the Holy Week starting this Thursday and will be back next Tuesday. Have a blessed Holy Week!
Last Friday, PAL’s brand new Boeing 777 got struck by a bird shortly before landing at the Vancouver International Airport. Fortunately, no one got hurt, but chaos and havoc naturally reigned when the plane’s return flight PR 117 to Manila had to be cancelled. The incident inevitably made PAL’s flight PR 107 from Las Vegas via Vancouver to become overbooked for its return flight to Manila. As of this writing, PAL’s Boeing 777 is still on the ground waiting for an engine howling part to be replaced. Unbelievably, the said part could not be secured immediately despite the fact that Boeing’s Everett factory in Washington state is just a hop away across the border from Vancouver.
While PAL has been able to avert strike threats from employees after talks brokered by the Department of Labor and Employment repeatedly failed, it seems the flag carrier can’t do much about bird strikes. The fowl that hit the plane was most likely a Canadian goose, but the real albatross that hangs on the head of PAL is the fact that their brand new Boeing 777 jets are still barred from entering the United States because for some unknown reason, the Philippines’ category 2 rating from the Federal Aviation Authority has not been lifted despite the fact that the issues involved have nothing to do with PAL’s excellent safety and maintenance record – which certainly is better than most US airlines.
In any case, climate change and early bird migration is probably the reason why there seems to be a growing incidence of bird strikes reported in the western hemisphere. Also recently, a Cathay Pacific flight from Hong Kong bound for San Francisco had to be diverted to Vancouver because the plane hit a flock of birds. There has been some conjecture about the design of Boeing’s engines due to several bird strike incidents showing the birds being sucked in and getting rotated in the engine fan blades, thereby causing what is called a cascading failure. According to experts, this type of bird strike, which is also called “avian ingestion” for obvious reasons, mostly happens during takeoff when the plane is on a low altitude and the engine is turning at a very rapid rate.
These bird strikes have caused a lot of damage to the whole airline industry estimated at $1.2 billion yearly. This is also probably the worst time of the year for airlines because a lot of bird migration occurs due to seasonal changes with spring now heralding a much warmer weather.
It can be recalled that in 2009, a domestic US Airways flight 1549 (from La Guardia airport in New York and headed for North Carolina) suffered total engine failure six minutes after takeoff when a flock of Canadian geese hit the engines. The pilot, Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger, successfully ditched his aircraft over the Hudson River with no casualties whatsoever – an unprecedented feat that turned him into a hero. The incident has since been called the “Miracle on the Hudson,” and consequently described as “the most successful ditching in aviation history.” Captain Sully has since retired from US Airways a year after the incident but continues to be an active airline safety advocate.
The incident also triggered calls for the Federal Aviation Authority to similarly ditch its proposal that would prevent access to a critical database on the number of bird strikes that have been happening. The public outcry to release such records compelled US president Barack Obama to release a memo which partly read, “The government should not keep information confidential merely because public officials might be embarrassed by disclosure, because errors and failures might be revealed, or because of speculative or abstract fears.”
Lorenzo’s oil
With the recent filing of plunder charges against former Agriculture Secretary Luis “Cito” Lorenzo by the Office of the Ombudsman, you would think the former Cabinet Official would be losing most of his friends overnight. Fortunately for Cito, a number of his friends have decided to rally behind him because many of them strongly feel that he is just being made a scapegoat. Close friends of the former Agriculture Secretary vowed to keep the “oil” burning until he is completely exonerated and cleared of all the charges.
Not-so-holy alliance
Opposition Congressman and RH bill main proponent Edcel Lagman found himself in a “not-so-holy” alliance with President Noynoy Aquino who recently declared at the UP graduation exercises that he is determined to push the Reproductive Health bill despite the threat of excommunication by the Catholic Church. A number of people who did not vote for P-Noy have also decided to take a stand and rally behind the beleaguered president. They, too, are ready “to be excommunicated” – or so they declare!
Spy Tidbit
– Former president Joseph Estrada celebrated his 74th birthday with former cabinet officials and a small group of friends at his new condo penthouse unit in Mandaluyong. Erap has definitely decided to sell his house in Polk St. in Greenhills, San Juan. Like most retirees, the former president has also decided to downsize.
Spy Bits note: We will be taking time off for the Holy Week starting this Thursday and will be back next Tuesday. Have a blessed Holy Week!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Good news and bad news on tourism
DEMAND AND SUPPLY
By Boo Chanco
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 18, 2011 12:00 AM
Mabuhay
One of the incentives to take at least one regional flight on Philippine Airlines monthly is the chance to read and maybe take home a copy of Mabuhay, its excellent in-flight magazine. Edited by Jun Ventura, it had been perhaps the best promoter of Philippine tourism through the years. Its excellent photography and articles always make a Pinoy reader proud of his country. And for foreigners, it gives many compelling reasons to visit.
The April issue I had the chance to read on my flight last Wednesday is particularly interesting. Jun’s special feature on Davao provides a lot of information the typical Metro Manilan probably didn’t know about the wonders of this major metropolis in the south. Also laudable are the stories on Antique and CamSur. One wonders why the tourism sections of the major broadsheets don’t have features as colorful and compelling as Mr. Ventura’s Mabuhay.
Maybe the Department of Tourism and PAL can work together to give more exposure to this magazine as part of a good tourism promotions program. PAL should consider making the magazine available in the bookstores and hotel lobby shops. That could help increase traffic to our tourist sites and I guess, PAL ticket sales. Mabuhay could also be a very effective selling tool for our tourism attaches abroad.
My congratulations to Jun V for this great work.
By Boo Chanco
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 18, 2011 12:00 AM
Mabuhay
One of the incentives to take at least one regional flight on Philippine Airlines monthly is the chance to read and maybe take home a copy of Mabuhay, its excellent in-flight magazine. Edited by Jun Ventura, it had been perhaps the best promoter of Philippine tourism through the years. Its excellent photography and articles always make a Pinoy reader proud of his country. And for foreigners, it gives many compelling reasons to visit.
The April issue I had the chance to read on my flight last Wednesday is particularly interesting. Jun’s special feature on Davao provides a lot of information the typical Metro Manilan probably didn’t know about the wonders of this major metropolis in the south. Also laudable are the stories on Antique and CamSur. One wonders why the tourism sections of the major broadsheets don’t have features as colorful and compelling as Mr. Ventura’s Mabuhay.
Maybe the Department of Tourism and PAL can work together to give more exposure to this magazine as part of a good tourism promotions program. PAL should consider making the magazine available in the bookstores and hotel lobby shops. That could help increase traffic to our tourist sites and I guess, PAL ticket sales. Mabuhay could also be a very effective selling tool for our tourism attaches abroad.
My congratulations to Jun V for this great work.
Saturday, April 16, 2011
PAL offers discounts to Filipino evacuees
April 16, 2011
Manila Standard Today
by Jeremiah F. de Guzman and Eric B. Apolonio
FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines said Fridiay it is cutting the fares on its flights from Japan to Manila to help Filipino evacuees from Fukushima Prefecture.
The price of a one-way ticket from Narita to Manila or Cebu will be reduced for a limited time to about $335 from $500, the airline said.
President and chief executive Lucio Tan ordered the discounts, the airline said.
More than 55 Filipinos living within the 100-kilometer radius of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant are expected to arrive in Manila on Sunday on board flight PR 431 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2.
Filipino evacuees were advised to coordinate with the Philippine Embassy in Japan, which is in charge of the repatriation.
Only Filipino evacuees facing involuntary evacuation from areas within the danger zone declared by authorities may avail themselves of the “all-in” discounted tickets, which exclude Japanese taxes and other fees.
Meanwhile, the Japanese government ordered the operator of Japan’s tsunami-damaged nuclear plant Friday to pay an initial $12,000 for each household forced to evacuate because of leaking radiation, a handout some of the displaced slammed as too little.
The utility will start paying out the roughly $600 million in compensation April 28 to those forced to evacuate, with families getting about $12,000 and single adults getting about $9,000, the government said.
Roughly 48,000 households living within about 19 miles of the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant would be eligible for the payments, said Trade Ministry spokesman Hiroaki Wada. With AP
Manila Standard Today
by Jeremiah F. de Guzman and Eric B. Apolonio
FLAG carrier Philippine Airlines said Fridiay it is cutting the fares on its flights from Japan to Manila to help Filipino evacuees from Fukushima Prefecture.
The price of a one-way ticket from Narita to Manila or Cebu will be reduced for a limited time to about $335 from $500, the airline said.
President and chief executive Lucio Tan ordered the discounts, the airline said.
More than 55 Filipinos living within the 100-kilometer radius of the Fukushima Dai-ichi Nuclear Power Plant are expected to arrive in Manila on Sunday on board flight PR 431 at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2.
Filipino evacuees were advised to coordinate with the Philippine Embassy in Japan, which is in charge of the repatriation.
Only Filipino evacuees facing involuntary evacuation from areas within the danger zone declared by authorities may avail themselves of the “all-in” discounted tickets, which exclude Japanese taxes and other fees.
Meanwhile, the Japanese government ordered the operator of Japan’s tsunami-damaged nuclear plant Friday to pay an initial $12,000 for each household forced to evacuate because of leaking radiation, a handout some of the displaced slammed as too little.
The utility will start paying out the roughly $600 million in compensation April 28 to those forced to evacuate, with families getting about $12,000 and single adults getting about $9,000, the government said.
Roughly 48,000 households living within about 19 miles of the crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant would be eligible for the payments, said Trade Ministry spokesman Hiroaki Wada. With AP
PAL cuts fare on flights from Narita to Manila
By Rudy Santos
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 16, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) slashed its fare by more than 30 percent on flights from Narita, Japan to Manila as a way of helping Filipino evacuees from Fukushima prefecture.
The price of a one-way ticket from Narita to Manila or Narita-Cebu has been reduced for a limited time from $500 to $335.
PAL chairman and CEO Lucio Tan ordered the discounting of plane tickets for Filipinos following reports of high radiation levels near Fukushima.
But only those facing involuntary evacuation from areas declared as danger zones by Japanese authorities can avail themselves of the “all-in” discounted tickets, excluding Japanese taxes or fees.
They are advised to coordinate with the Philippine embassy in Japan in charge of overseeing the repatriation.
Regular passengers, on the other hand, may buy their tickets through the PAL sales office in Narita Airport, PAL ticket offices in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka and Nagoya, and accredited travel agents in Japan or the PAL website.
PAL said the latest airlift assistance is the company’s contribution to the Philippine government in charge of repatriating Filipino victims of earthquake, tsunami and radiation leaks.
The company said the reduced fares are just enough to recover actual cost of operating the flights such as jet fuel, landing and parking fees, crew salaries, other airport fees, among others.
A few weeks ago, PAL started shipping thousands of bottles of water to Japan.
Donated by Asia Brewery Inc., another Tan-owned company, the drinking water was coursed through the Tokyo metropolitan government.
A total of 700,000 bottles of distilled water were shipped for free by PAL to help calamity victims.
Last March 9 and 10, PAL also repatriated over 700 Filipinos and their families from Libya.
PAL flies once a day from Narita (Tokyo) to Manila using the 370-seater Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, and five times a week from Narita to Cebu using the 302-seater Airbus A330-300.
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 16, 2011 12:00 AM
MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) slashed its fare by more than 30 percent on flights from Narita, Japan to Manila as a way of helping Filipino evacuees from Fukushima prefecture.
The price of a one-way ticket from Narita to Manila or Narita-Cebu has been reduced for a limited time from $500 to $335.
PAL chairman and CEO Lucio Tan ordered the discounting of plane tickets for Filipinos following reports of high radiation levels near Fukushima.
But only those facing involuntary evacuation from areas declared as danger zones by Japanese authorities can avail themselves of the “all-in” discounted tickets, excluding Japanese taxes or fees.
They are advised to coordinate with the Philippine embassy in Japan in charge of overseeing the repatriation.
Regular passengers, on the other hand, may buy their tickets through the PAL sales office in Narita Airport, PAL ticket offices in Tokyo, Osaka, Fukuoka and Nagoya, and accredited travel agents in Japan or the PAL website.
PAL said the latest airlift assistance is the company’s contribution to the Philippine government in charge of repatriating Filipino victims of earthquake, tsunami and radiation leaks.
The company said the reduced fares are just enough to recover actual cost of operating the flights such as jet fuel, landing and parking fees, crew salaries, other airport fees, among others.
A few weeks ago, PAL started shipping thousands of bottles of water to Japan.
Donated by Asia Brewery Inc., another Tan-owned company, the drinking water was coursed through the Tokyo metropolitan government.
A total of 700,000 bottles of distilled water were shipped for free by PAL to help calamity victims.
Last March 9 and 10, PAL also repatriated over 700 Filipinos and their families from Libya.
PAL flies once a day from Narita (Tokyo) to Manila using the 370-seater Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, and five times a week from Narita to Cebu using the 302-seater Airbus A330-300.
Friday, April 15, 2011
Cebu Pacific, PAL question draft implementing rules of EO 29
By Mary Ann LL. Reyes
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 15, 2011 12:00 AM
Manila, Philippines - The country’s two biggest air carriers questioned yesterday the draft implementing rules of Executive Order 29 adopting a pocket open skies policy in the Philippines for being vague and unrealistic.
Cebu Pacific (CEB), in particular, scored a provision that will set aside the requirement to grant reciprocal traffic rights to local carriers when national interest calls for it.
Philippine Airlines (PAL), for its part, criticized the non-inclusion of representatives from local carriers in the Philippine Air Panel that will negotiate air service agreements. The carriers shall as observers, prior to any negotiation submit their position/requirements relative to the bilateral partner.
PAL president Jaime Bautista in an interview with The STAR said he questioned Rule 2.7 which “reserves to the Air Panel the right to amend, alter, or revise any position taken, prior to the bilateral talks, if it deems to be more in keeping with national interest.”
President Aquino last month issued twin executive orders that will implement open skies in the Philippines, eventually allowing foreign airlines to serve selected local routes. EO 28 creates the Philippine Air Negotiating Panel (PANP) and the Philippine Air Consultation Panel (PACP), while EO 29 authorizes the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and the two panels to explore discussions with foreign carriers regarding the aviation liberalization policy commonly known as “open skies.”
Bautista stressed that he does not see the point of all these considering that there are many available entitlements, but not takers.
Meanwhile, CEB president Lance Gokongwei told The STAR that the provisions of Rule IV under the draft IRR EO 29 (transformation of operating rights into traffic rights) tend to contradict each other.
Rule 4.1 of the draft IRR provides that the Philippine Air Panels and the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) shall hold talks with the respective states of registry of the carriers operating under EO 29 for the conversion of operating rights into traffic rights. This, the rule said, shall include the inclusion of reciprocal grant to Philippine carriers of equivalent traffic rights by the said states.
Rule 4.2, meanwhile, provides that the CAB, in case of failure to reach mutual agreement to grant reciprocal rights to Philippine carriers within 12 months from the grant mentioned in the preceding rules, may revoke the conversion of operating rights into traffic rights.
Gokongwei said government has to explain why it had to include in the draft IRR Rules 4.3 and 4.4 which contradict the reciprocity rule provided in Rules 4.1 and 4.2
According to Rule 4.3, notwithstanding the non-inclusion of traffic rights mentioned in Rule 4.1 in the relevant air service agreement (ASA), the CAB may continue to allow operation of traffic rights under EO 29 if it deems it to promote national interest and/or mutual benefits.
Rule 4.4, on the other hand, says the CAB reserves the right to revoke, suspend, or restrict operations granted in the event the state of registry of the foreign carrier operating under this grant failed to extend reciprocal rights and/or equal opportunity to Philippine carriers.
CEB has been asking government to include in the IRR of EO 28 and 29 provisions that will ensure that reciprocal traffic rights are granted to domestic carriers.
The ASA, or bilaterals, governs the civil aviation relationship between states that are parties to it. Traffic rights, meanwhile, is a market access right which specifies who or what may be transported over an authorized route or parts thereof in the aircraft.
A foreign air carrier’s permit (FACP) is a permit issued by the CAB and approved by the President which authorizes a foreign carrier to engage in foreign air transportation. A temporary operating permit (TOP), on the one hand, is the authorization issued by the CAB for a fixed term for the operation of scheduled or non-scheduled services by an air carrier pending the issuance of a FACP.
An FACP or TOP is a condition before any foreign carrier is granted operating rights under EO 29.
EO 29 seeks to further liberalize civil aviation in the Philippines, specifically to airports other that the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and “to promote a more liberalized policy for the expansion of direct air services, both passenger and cargo to secondary gateways outside of Metro Manila in order to advance domestic tourism…”
It provides that the Philippine Air Panel may offer third, fourth or fifth freedom traffic rights without restrictions on frequency, capacity and type of aircraft and other arrangements in the consideration of national interest as may be determined by the CAB.
The third freedom gives the right to fly from one’s own country to another while the fourth freedom covers the right to fly from another country to one’s own. The fifth freedom is the right to carry passengers from one’s own country to a second country, and from that country to a third country.
However, the same EO prohibits CAB from granting any foreign air carriers cabotage traffic rights of any kind, such as the right to transport passengers and goods between two or more points within the Philippines.
In both EO 29 and 28, designated national carriers have been relegated to mere observers instead of members of the Philippine Air Panel. The draft EO 29 IRR said that prior to any negotiation with other states by the Panel, the carriers shall submit their respective requirements and/or positions relative to the bilateral partner.
Gokongwei said that they have no problem with being mere observers since this is a practice also being observed by other countries.
(The Philippine Star)
Updated April 15, 2011 12:00 AM
Manila, Philippines - The country’s two biggest air carriers questioned yesterday the draft implementing rules of Executive Order 29 adopting a pocket open skies policy in the Philippines for being vague and unrealistic.
Cebu Pacific (CEB), in particular, scored a provision that will set aside the requirement to grant reciprocal traffic rights to local carriers when national interest calls for it.
Philippine Airlines (PAL), for its part, criticized the non-inclusion of representatives from local carriers in the Philippine Air Panel that will negotiate air service agreements. The carriers shall as observers, prior to any negotiation submit their position/requirements relative to the bilateral partner.
PAL president Jaime Bautista in an interview with The STAR said he questioned Rule 2.7 which “reserves to the Air Panel the right to amend, alter, or revise any position taken, prior to the bilateral talks, if it deems to be more in keeping with national interest.”
President Aquino last month issued twin executive orders that will implement open skies in the Philippines, eventually allowing foreign airlines to serve selected local routes. EO 28 creates the Philippine Air Negotiating Panel (PANP) and the Philippine Air Consultation Panel (PACP), while EO 29 authorizes the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and the two panels to explore discussions with foreign carriers regarding the aviation liberalization policy commonly known as “open skies.”
Bautista stressed that he does not see the point of all these considering that there are many available entitlements, but not takers.
Meanwhile, CEB president Lance Gokongwei told The STAR that the provisions of Rule IV under the draft IRR EO 29 (transformation of operating rights into traffic rights) tend to contradict each other.
Rule 4.1 of the draft IRR provides that the Philippine Air Panels and the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) shall hold talks with the respective states of registry of the carriers operating under EO 29 for the conversion of operating rights into traffic rights. This, the rule said, shall include the inclusion of reciprocal grant to Philippine carriers of equivalent traffic rights by the said states.
Rule 4.2, meanwhile, provides that the CAB, in case of failure to reach mutual agreement to grant reciprocal rights to Philippine carriers within 12 months from the grant mentioned in the preceding rules, may revoke the conversion of operating rights into traffic rights.
Gokongwei said government has to explain why it had to include in the draft IRR Rules 4.3 and 4.4 which contradict the reciprocity rule provided in Rules 4.1 and 4.2
According to Rule 4.3, notwithstanding the non-inclusion of traffic rights mentioned in Rule 4.1 in the relevant air service agreement (ASA), the CAB may continue to allow operation of traffic rights under EO 29 if it deems it to promote national interest and/or mutual benefits.
Rule 4.4, on the other hand, says the CAB reserves the right to revoke, suspend, or restrict operations granted in the event the state of registry of the foreign carrier operating under this grant failed to extend reciprocal rights and/or equal opportunity to Philippine carriers.
CEB has been asking government to include in the IRR of EO 28 and 29 provisions that will ensure that reciprocal traffic rights are granted to domestic carriers.
The ASA, or bilaterals, governs the civil aviation relationship between states that are parties to it. Traffic rights, meanwhile, is a market access right which specifies who or what may be transported over an authorized route or parts thereof in the aircraft.
A foreign air carrier’s permit (FACP) is a permit issued by the CAB and approved by the President which authorizes a foreign carrier to engage in foreign air transportation. A temporary operating permit (TOP), on the one hand, is the authorization issued by the CAB for a fixed term for the operation of scheduled or non-scheduled services by an air carrier pending the issuance of a FACP.
An FACP or TOP is a condition before any foreign carrier is granted operating rights under EO 29.
EO 29 seeks to further liberalize civil aviation in the Philippines, specifically to airports other that the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) and “to promote a more liberalized policy for the expansion of direct air services, both passenger and cargo to secondary gateways outside of Metro Manila in order to advance domestic tourism…”
It provides that the Philippine Air Panel may offer third, fourth or fifth freedom traffic rights without restrictions on frequency, capacity and type of aircraft and other arrangements in the consideration of national interest as may be determined by the CAB.
The third freedom gives the right to fly from one’s own country to another while the fourth freedom covers the right to fly from another country to one’s own. The fifth freedom is the right to carry passengers from one’s own country to a second country, and from that country to a third country.
However, the same EO prohibits CAB from granting any foreign air carriers cabotage traffic rights of any kind, such as the right to transport passengers and goods between two or more points within the Philippines.
In both EO 29 and 28, designated national carriers have been relegated to mere observers instead of members of the Philippine Air Panel. The draft EO 29 IRR said that prior to any negotiation with other states by the Panel, the carriers shall submit their respective requirements and/or positions relative to the bilateral partner.
Gokongwei said that they have no problem with being mere observers since this is a practice also being observed by other countries.
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
PAL union set to defy Baldoz’s no-strike order
by Eric B. Apolonio
Manila Standard Today
April 11, 2011
THE Philippine Airlines Employees Association is going to use social networking sites such as Facebook to organize protests and strikes, group president Gerry Rivera said over the weekend.
“We plan to test the law and defy the assumption and certification order of the Labor secretary which has been abused to deny workers their means of defense,” Rivera said.
“We will be maximizing Facebook and social media in organizing the strike and other protests just as the people of Egypt and Tunisia did.”
The union is protesting the airline’s plan, approved by Malacañang, to lay off its ground workers and outsource its ground services.
The union says 2,600 ground workers will be cut as a result of it, but the airline says they will receive a generous severance pay and get hired by the outsourcing companies it will tap.
So far, the union has used Facebook to mobilize its members and gather public support.
“Since a majority of [the union’s] members are on Facebook, it is easy to connect with them,” Rivera said.
“We have tried it and it is effective. The Labor Secretary can abuse her power to suppress the right to strike, but the government cannot afford to shut down the Internet.”
Rivera said the union had asked the Office of the President to reconsider its decision to allow Philippine Airlines to proceed with its planned outsourcing.
He said labor groups, the airline’s flight crew, and even the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines were supporting the union’s plan to strike over the outsourcing plan.
Philippine Airlines, meanwhile, has assured its passengers it is ready for any work stoppage.
Manila Standard Today
April 11, 2011
THE Philippine Airlines Employees Association is going to use social networking sites such as Facebook to organize protests and strikes, group president Gerry Rivera said over the weekend.
“We plan to test the law and defy the assumption and certification order of the Labor secretary which has been abused to deny workers their means of defense,” Rivera said.
“We will be maximizing Facebook and social media in organizing the strike and other protests just as the people of Egypt and Tunisia did.”
The union is protesting the airline’s plan, approved by Malacañang, to lay off its ground workers and outsource its ground services.
The union says 2,600 ground workers will be cut as a result of it, but the airline says they will receive a generous severance pay and get hired by the outsourcing companies it will tap.
So far, the union has used Facebook to mobilize its members and gather public support.
“Since a majority of [the union’s] members are on Facebook, it is easy to connect with them,” Rivera said.
“We have tried it and it is effective. The Labor Secretary can abuse her power to suppress the right to strike, but the government cannot afford to shut down the Internet.”
Rivera said the union had asked the Office of the President to reconsider its decision to allow Philippine Airlines to proceed with its planned outsourcing.
He said labor groups, the airline’s flight crew, and even the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines were supporting the union’s plan to strike over the outsourcing plan.
Philippine Airlines, meanwhile, has assured its passengers it is ready for any work stoppage.
Monday, April 11, 2011
PAL unions must recognize market reality
The Philippine Star
April 11, 2011
DEMAND AND SUPPLY By Boo Chanco
I don’t know if the PAL rank and file union will strike this Holy Week to cause maximum headache to management even if it will guarantee maximum inconvenience to passengers out for a Holy Week break. Those of us whose holiday excursions involve a flight with PAL should probably have a Plan “B” just in case. I asked the Cebu Pacific people if they will honor a PAL ticket in such an emergency and they said they will be happy to do that but PAL must ask first. They have apparently offered in the past and got no reply from PAL. They are also almost fully booked by now for Holy Week.
Our poor flag carrier, Asia’s first, had been getting it pretty bad from their unions in recent weeks. They should all be working together instead. Everyone in PAL should realize that they are no longer the country’s number one airline, at least not in terms of number of passengers flown last year. They are now just number two and that’s why they must try even harder to please. Cebu Pacific is now the country’s largest carrier. Based on government statistics, Cebu Pacific last year flew 10,036,503 local and international passengers to PAL’s 9,259,982. In the domestic market, Cebu Pacific leads with 7,972,659 passengers to PAL’s 5,311,168. PAL still leads Cebu Pacific in the international market.
And guess what? Cebu Pacific flew more passengers with less staff. Cebu Pacific has 4,000 people working for it, about half of that are outsourced. The 2,000 staff members outsourced by Cebu Pacific are holding the same positions that PAL wants to outsource. There is just no way for PAL to continue to have 7,000 employees on its payroll. Aviation market conditions have changed so much and the older airlines, not just PAL, must do something about their so-called legacy costs or just simply lose out to more nimble competitors like Cebu Pacific.
The conditions just got tougher with our unilateral Open Skies declaration. There will be more regional budget airlines taking to our skies and it is important that PAL’s cost structure becomes more comparable to theirs. My Singapore-based son was able to fly to Manila on a whim one weekend on a roundtrip ticket costing him $150 on Tiger Air. I know PAL is trying to match such cut-throat competitors with $250 tickets but its ability to do so on a sustained basis is questionable unless it revamps its cost structure.
In the end, PAL must be financially viable for all its employees to continue to have jobs. If they are able to restructure PAL’s cost, a good part of the present employee force will continue to have jobs in the airline. But if they strike and PAL folds up, everything and everyone goes down the drain. Cebu Pacific, on the other hand, has already invested a billion dollars and planning to invest more.
Business organizations evolve and change in response to market conditions. That’s all there is to it. PAL’s present structure may have worked in the past when it was a monopoly. That is no longer the case. And there is no national interest that can justify a government takeover to save PAL. It is survival of the fittest in the marketplace and PAL is too financially unfit to survive the challenge of Cebu Pacific, Tiger Air, Air Asia and all those new budget carriers whose price structures we love as consumers. The PAL unions must help win this competitive challenge not by striking but by agreeing to restructure the airline.
Coloma
I received a reaction from Secretary Sonny Coloma to our column last week on the CommGroup. Here are relevant excerpts of his e-mail.
It is sad that you would claim that “(I) have no experience in public relations,” considering that we have known each other since the early seventies. We were colleagues in the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) when you were working with PNOC and I was employed by Far East Bank and Trust Company.
The field of public relations spans several publics: an organization’s clients or customers, its own employees, government, mass media, and other stakeholders. I served as vice president and head of Far East Bank’s corporate relations department and also of its employee relations (including employee communication) department during my ten-year stint with the bank.
When I joined the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) as a professor in 1988, I introduced an elective entitled Corporate Public Communication, which is all about public relations. In fact, you were my preferred resource person on the topic of issues management. Other PR professionals can attest to the fact that I have designed and delivered a practitioner-oriented course on public relations in keeping with AIM’s academic standards.
My response: It is true that we organized the Philippine chapter of IABC in the early 80s. It is also true that I knew about Sonny’s PR course at AIM. In fact, I think I was his guest lecturer a couple of times. I thought of mentioning both items when I was writing my column but later on decided both facts were irrelevant. The point I was trying to make was the fact that Sonny didn’t have the kind of PR experience required of his current job. Issue management and Crisis Management are two of the more relevant skills needed at the Palace that can only be had by actual experience.
And while Sonny can say he is familiar with PR concepts from an academic perspective… that is not nearly enough. This lack of experience would have been mitigated if he had actual media experience. That would have enabled him to think like a reporter or an editor and thus be able to serve media’s information needs better as well as tweak his material to better catch media attention.
I have always been impressed with the fact that your columns are research-based. However, you might have been misinformed because, not a single centavo of appropriation
is provided in the national budget for Channels 4, 9, and 13. The charter or law that created the People’s Television Network, Inc. (PTNI) does not allow Channel 4 to receive an annual appropriation from the national government. Channels 9 and 3 are also sequestered entities that are not entitled to budgetary support from the government.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) that I head has a total budget of 976 million pesos for 2011 which is lower than the 2010 outlay of 1.16 billion pesos. Only about half of this amount is allotted for mass media: 293 million for the Bureau of Broadcast Services and 250 million for the Philippine Information Agency that has a field network of regional and provincial offices. When our budget for 2012 is presented anew to both houses of Congress, I am mindful that I will have to justify all items of expenses for personal services, maintenance and other operating expenses, as well as for capital outlays. This is in accordance with President Aquino’s policy on zero-based budgeting, to ensure that every centavo of the taxpayers’ money is properly spent.
My response: That’s more resources than most PR professionals get to spread their good news. The budget aside, Channel 4 could have more impact if used to provide what we cannot expect from the commercial networks. Maybe you can work out a deal with Armida Siguion Reyna to show her well produced cultural show Aawitan Kita. Or show some of the cultural features in the tourism channel. Our current generation of Pinoys must be exposed to our rich cultural heritage. Or maybe, Channel 4 can air curriculum based educational programs during school days. Knowledge Channel is doing it now but only reaches those schools with cable or satellite connections. The thing is, make Channel 4 useful. Trying to imitate what the networks are already doing in news and entertainment is a waste of resources.
(Note: Sonny also responded to my suggestions on social media. I need space to tackle those in a future column).
Paris in spring
Rosan Cruz, now in Paris to run the Paris Marathon, sent this one.
A thief stole some paintings from the Louvre. Captured a block away when his van run out of gas, he told police he stole the paintings because he had no Monet to buy Degas, to make the Van Gogh. He had De Gaulle to do it because he had nothing TOULOUSE.
I hope Rosan finished her marathon with no injuries yesterday.
April 11, 2011
DEMAND AND SUPPLY By Boo Chanco
I don’t know if the PAL rank and file union will strike this Holy Week to cause maximum headache to management even if it will guarantee maximum inconvenience to passengers out for a Holy Week break. Those of us whose holiday excursions involve a flight with PAL should probably have a Plan “B” just in case. I asked the Cebu Pacific people if they will honor a PAL ticket in such an emergency and they said they will be happy to do that but PAL must ask first. They have apparently offered in the past and got no reply from PAL. They are also almost fully booked by now for Holy Week.
Our poor flag carrier, Asia’s first, had been getting it pretty bad from their unions in recent weeks. They should all be working together instead. Everyone in PAL should realize that they are no longer the country’s number one airline, at least not in terms of number of passengers flown last year. They are now just number two and that’s why they must try even harder to please. Cebu Pacific is now the country’s largest carrier. Based on government statistics, Cebu Pacific last year flew 10,036,503 local and international passengers to PAL’s 9,259,982. In the domestic market, Cebu Pacific leads with 7,972,659 passengers to PAL’s 5,311,168. PAL still leads Cebu Pacific in the international market.
And guess what? Cebu Pacific flew more passengers with less staff. Cebu Pacific has 4,000 people working for it, about half of that are outsourced. The 2,000 staff members outsourced by Cebu Pacific are holding the same positions that PAL wants to outsource. There is just no way for PAL to continue to have 7,000 employees on its payroll. Aviation market conditions have changed so much and the older airlines, not just PAL, must do something about their so-called legacy costs or just simply lose out to more nimble competitors like Cebu Pacific.
The conditions just got tougher with our unilateral Open Skies declaration. There will be more regional budget airlines taking to our skies and it is important that PAL’s cost structure becomes more comparable to theirs. My Singapore-based son was able to fly to Manila on a whim one weekend on a roundtrip ticket costing him $150 on Tiger Air. I know PAL is trying to match such cut-throat competitors with $250 tickets but its ability to do so on a sustained basis is questionable unless it revamps its cost structure.
In the end, PAL must be financially viable for all its employees to continue to have jobs. If they are able to restructure PAL’s cost, a good part of the present employee force will continue to have jobs in the airline. But if they strike and PAL folds up, everything and everyone goes down the drain. Cebu Pacific, on the other hand, has already invested a billion dollars and planning to invest more.
Business organizations evolve and change in response to market conditions. That’s all there is to it. PAL’s present structure may have worked in the past when it was a monopoly. That is no longer the case. And there is no national interest that can justify a government takeover to save PAL. It is survival of the fittest in the marketplace and PAL is too financially unfit to survive the challenge of Cebu Pacific, Tiger Air, Air Asia and all those new budget carriers whose price structures we love as consumers. The PAL unions must help win this competitive challenge not by striking but by agreeing to restructure the airline.
Coloma
I received a reaction from Secretary Sonny Coloma to our column last week on the CommGroup. Here are relevant excerpts of his e-mail.
It is sad that you would claim that “(I) have no experience in public relations,” considering that we have known each other since the early seventies. We were colleagues in the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC) when you were working with PNOC and I was employed by Far East Bank and Trust Company.
The field of public relations spans several publics: an organization’s clients or customers, its own employees, government, mass media, and other stakeholders. I served as vice president and head of Far East Bank’s corporate relations department and also of its employee relations (including employee communication) department during my ten-year stint with the bank.
When I joined the Asian Institute of Management (AIM) as a professor in 1988, I introduced an elective entitled Corporate Public Communication, which is all about public relations. In fact, you were my preferred resource person on the topic of issues management. Other PR professionals can attest to the fact that I have designed and delivered a practitioner-oriented course on public relations in keeping with AIM’s academic standards.
My response: It is true that we organized the Philippine chapter of IABC in the early 80s. It is also true that I knew about Sonny’s PR course at AIM. In fact, I think I was his guest lecturer a couple of times. I thought of mentioning both items when I was writing my column but later on decided both facts were irrelevant. The point I was trying to make was the fact that Sonny didn’t have the kind of PR experience required of his current job. Issue management and Crisis Management are two of the more relevant skills needed at the Palace that can only be had by actual experience.
And while Sonny can say he is familiar with PR concepts from an academic perspective… that is not nearly enough. This lack of experience would have been mitigated if he had actual media experience. That would have enabled him to think like a reporter or an editor and thus be able to serve media’s information needs better as well as tweak his material to better catch media attention.
I have always been impressed with the fact that your columns are research-based. However, you might have been misinformed because, not a single centavo of appropriation
is provided in the national budget for Channels 4, 9, and 13. The charter or law that created the People’s Television Network, Inc. (PTNI) does not allow Channel 4 to receive an annual appropriation from the national government. Channels 9 and 3 are also sequestered entities that are not entitled to budgetary support from the government.
The Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO) that I head has a total budget of 976 million pesos for 2011 which is lower than the 2010 outlay of 1.16 billion pesos. Only about half of this amount is allotted for mass media: 293 million for the Bureau of Broadcast Services and 250 million for the Philippine Information Agency that has a field network of regional and provincial offices. When our budget for 2012 is presented anew to both houses of Congress, I am mindful that I will have to justify all items of expenses for personal services, maintenance and other operating expenses, as well as for capital outlays. This is in accordance with President Aquino’s policy on zero-based budgeting, to ensure that every centavo of the taxpayers’ money is properly spent.
My response: That’s more resources than most PR professionals get to spread their good news. The budget aside, Channel 4 could have more impact if used to provide what we cannot expect from the commercial networks. Maybe you can work out a deal with Armida Siguion Reyna to show her well produced cultural show Aawitan Kita. Or show some of the cultural features in the tourism channel. Our current generation of Pinoys must be exposed to our rich cultural heritage. Or maybe, Channel 4 can air curriculum based educational programs during school days. Knowledge Channel is doing it now but only reaches those schools with cable or satellite connections. The thing is, make Channel 4 useful. Trying to imitate what the networks are already doing in news and entertainment is a waste of resources.
(Note: Sonny also responded to my suggestions on social media. I need space to tackle those in a future column).
Paris in spring
Rosan Cruz, now in Paris to run the Paris Marathon, sent this one.
A thief stole some paintings from the Louvre. Captured a block away when his van run out of gas, he told police he stole the paintings because he had no Monet to buy Degas, to make the Van Gogh. He had De Gaulle to do it because he had nothing TOULOUSE.
I hope Rosan finished her marathon with no injuries yesterday.
Thursday, April 7, 2011
Biz Buzz: PSE election fever
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 21:09:00 04/05/2011
By Daxim L. Lucas
Outsourcing, anyone?
A TORCH rally by some 500 Philippine Airlines ground workers and their militant supporters caused bedlam near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) last Friday. With traffic hardly moving along the stretch of Tramo, MIA and Sucat roads, many airport-bound commuters (presumably passengers of PAL and other international airlines going to the adjacent Naia 1) were seen on foot in a desperate attempt to catch their respective flights.
Many seemed to be foreign tourists and businessmen—trolleys in tow—heading toward the two terminals on foot. PAL deployed buses to pick up passengers, but the tourists’ unpleasant experience was no doubt another disincentive for luring them back to the country, open skies notwithstanding.
That thousands of passengers and ordinary commuters can be held hostage by a small band of protesters is another wake-up call for authorities. (Why was the mass action allowed near the airport in the first place?)
Protesting workers of PAL got little sympathy from those made miserable by the anxiety of missing their flights or being late for appointments.
The supreme irony of it was that many of those at the protest rally against the flag carrier were not even PAL employees, but militants from groups like Partido Manggagawa, among others. A case of “outsourcing” rallies?—Daxim L. Lucas
First Posted 21:09:00 04/05/2011
By Daxim L. Lucas
Outsourcing, anyone?
A TORCH rally by some 500 Philippine Airlines ground workers and their militant supporters caused bedlam near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) last Friday. With traffic hardly moving along the stretch of Tramo, MIA and Sucat roads, many airport-bound commuters (presumably passengers of PAL and other international airlines going to the adjacent Naia 1) were seen on foot in a desperate attempt to catch their respective flights.
Many seemed to be foreign tourists and businessmen—trolleys in tow—heading toward the two terminals on foot. PAL deployed buses to pick up passengers, but the tourists’ unpleasant experience was no doubt another disincentive for luring them back to the country, open skies notwithstanding.
That thousands of passengers and ordinary commuters can be held hostage by a small band of protesters is another wake-up call for authorities. (Why was the mass action allowed near the airport in the first place?)
Protesting workers of PAL got little sympathy from those made miserable by the anxiety of missing their flights or being late for appointments.
The supreme irony of it was that many of those at the protest rally against the flag carrier were not even PAL employees, but militants from groups like Partido Manggagawa, among others. A case of “outsourcing” rallies?—Daxim L. Lucas
Slowdown, delays hit PAL flights
Manila Standard Today
April 6, 2011
A SLOWDOWN by Philippine Airlines’ ground workers throttled its operations Tuesday, causing 14 flights to be delayed and one to be canceled.
At Terminal 2 in Manila, the flights to Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Shanghai, Singapore and Taipei were delayed for an average of 30 minutes, the flight operations divisions said.
The PR511 flight to Singapore was canceled due to a problem with the aircraft. The passengers on the return flight were transferred to another plane to Manila.
A number of domestic flights to Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Cagayan de Oro were also delayed for an average of 30 minutes as they awaited air traffic control clearance.
The carrier’s ground workers are disputing its decision to outsource some of its services, saying that would result in the layoff of thousands of them. They also claim that the airline has been refusing to bargain.
The airline says it needs to outsource those services to stay in business, adding the workers to be laid off will receive generous separation packages and be rehired by the outsourcing companies. It disagrees that it has been refusing to bargain.
The airline on Tuesday assured its passengers it was ready for the worst, and that it had contingency plans to minimize flight disruptions in case its ground workers walked out.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” airline president Jaime Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience the threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled.”
Bautista said the planned strike had no legal basis.
“First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association,” he said.
“Second, the union’s claim that there is no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units—airport services, in-flight catering and call center reservations—likewise has no leg to stand on.”
April 6, 2011
A SLOWDOWN by Philippine Airlines’ ground workers throttled its operations Tuesday, causing 14 flights to be delayed and one to be canceled.
At Terminal 2 in Manila, the flights to Ho Chi Minh, Hong Kong, Bangkok, Shanghai, Singapore and Taipei were delayed for an average of 30 minutes, the flight operations divisions said.
The PR511 flight to Singapore was canceled due to a problem with the aircraft. The passengers on the return flight were transferred to another plane to Manila.
A number of domestic flights to Bacolod, Cebu, Davao, Cagayan de Oro were also delayed for an average of 30 minutes as they awaited air traffic control clearance.
The carrier’s ground workers are disputing its decision to outsource some of its services, saying that would result in the layoff of thousands of them. They also claim that the airline has been refusing to bargain.
The airline says it needs to outsource those services to stay in business, adding the workers to be laid off will receive generous separation packages and be rehired by the outsourcing companies. It disagrees that it has been refusing to bargain.
The airline on Tuesday assured its passengers it was ready for the worst, and that it had contingency plans to minimize flight disruptions in case its ground workers walked out.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” airline president Jaime Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience the threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled.”
Bautista said the planned strike had no legal basis.
“First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association,” he said.
“Second, the union’s claim that there is no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units—airport services, in-flight catering and call center reservations—likewise has no leg to stand on.”
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
PAL union retreats from holding strike
Manila Standard Today
Monday, April 4, 2011
by Vito Barcelo
PHILIPPINE Airlines’ ground workers retreated from their threatened strike on Saturday after the Labor Department intervened and referred their dispute with the management to the National Labor Relations Commission for compulsory arbitration.
The Philippine Airlines Employees Union had threatened to strike over what it claims as management’s refusal to bargain collectively, and after the strike ban prescribed by law ended Friday.
The Labor Department-sponsored series of conciliation talks between the two sides failed to produce results, and on Friday the union said it was ready to strike the following day after the strike ban lapsed.
Union president Gerry Rivera described the department’s order stopping them from striking as a “bad April Fool’s prank.”
“We will go back to the drawing board and plan our next legal move,” he said.
“We will strike without any announcement, that’s for sure. We will not conduct any work slowdown. It will be a big surprise.”
Airline president Jaime Bautista said “PAL will follow the order, but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly.”
The union is protesting against the impending dismissal of 2,600 workers as a result of management’s decision to outsource some of its businesses to third parties.
“We are ready to defy the order of Labor Secretary [Rosalinda] Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoffs and contractualization at PAL,” Rivera said.
He criticized the Labor Department’s referral of the labor dispute to the Labor Relations Commission, saying the union received the order after some 2,000 members and supporters rallied at the airport.
The carrier, meanwhile, assured its passengers that its operations remained normal, and that no flights had been canceled.
“Strikes do not happen overnight,” spokeswoman Cielo Villaluna said.
“The PAL management will take all legal remedies to prevent such from happening.”
Monday, April 4, 2011
by Vito Barcelo
PHILIPPINE Airlines’ ground workers retreated from their threatened strike on Saturday after the Labor Department intervened and referred their dispute with the management to the National Labor Relations Commission for compulsory arbitration.
The Philippine Airlines Employees Union had threatened to strike over what it claims as management’s refusal to bargain collectively, and after the strike ban prescribed by law ended Friday.
The Labor Department-sponsored series of conciliation talks between the two sides failed to produce results, and on Friday the union said it was ready to strike the following day after the strike ban lapsed.
Union president Gerry Rivera described the department’s order stopping them from striking as a “bad April Fool’s prank.”
“We will go back to the drawing board and plan our next legal move,” he said.
“We will strike without any announcement, that’s for sure. We will not conduct any work slowdown. It will be a big surprise.”
Airline president Jaime Bautista said “PAL will follow the order, but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly.”
The union is protesting against the impending dismissal of 2,600 workers as a result of management’s decision to outsource some of its businesses to third parties.
“We are ready to defy the order of Labor Secretary [Rosalinda] Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoffs and contractualization at PAL,” Rivera said.
He criticized the Labor Department’s referral of the labor dispute to the Labor Relations Commission, saying the union received the order after some 2,000 members and supporters rallied at the airport.
The carrier, meanwhile, assured its passengers that its operations remained normal, and that no flights had been canceled.
“Strikes do not happen overnight,” spokeswoman Cielo Villaluna said.
“The PAL management will take all legal remedies to prevent such from happening.”
PAL sets contingency measures in case of actual work stoppage
Manila Bulletin
April 4, 2011, 6:53pm
By EDU LOPEZ
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) has assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a "worst case scenario" of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground workers pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said PAL continues to appeal to its workers to respect and remain within the legal conciliation process. “But make no mistake, PAL is also ready to exercise its legal options in case any work stoppage is declared illegal by proper authorities,” he stressed.
Bautista explained that the planned strike has no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA). Second, the union’s claim that there are no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units – Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations – likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
PAL’s spin-off plan was thrice upheld as legal and valid by the labor secretaries of the past and present administrations.
Last March 25, the Office of the President likewise upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
April 4, 2011, 6:53pm
By EDU LOPEZ
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) has assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a "worst case scenario" of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground workers pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said PAL continues to appeal to its workers to respect and remain within the legal conciliation process. “But make no mistake, PAL is also ready to exercise its legal options in case any work stoppage is declared illegal by proper authorities,” he stressed.
Bautista explained that the planned strike has no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA). Second, the union’s claim that there are no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units – Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations – likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
PAL’s spin-off plan was thrice upheld as legal and valid by the labor secretaries of the past and present administrations.
Last March 25, the Office of the President likewise upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
PAL sets contingency measures in case of actual work stoppage
Manila Bulletin
By EDU LOPEZ
April 4, 2011, 6:53pm
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) has assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a "worst case scenario" of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground workers pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said PAL continues to appeal to its workers to respect and remain within the legal conciliation process. “But make no mistake, PAL is also ready to exercise its legal options in case any work stoppage is declared illegal by proper authorities,” he stressed.
Bautista explained that the planned strike has no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA). Second, the union’s claim that there are no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units – Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations – likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
PAL’s spin-off plan was thrice upheld as legal and valid by the labor secretaries of the past and present administrations.
Last March 25, the Office of the President likewise upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
By EDU LOPEZ
April 4, 2011, 6:53pm
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) has assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a "worst case scenario" of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground workers pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said PAL continues to appeal to its workers to respect and remain within the legal conciliation process. “But make no mistake, PAL is also ready to exercise its legal options in case any work stoppage is declared illegal by proper authorities,” he stressed.
Bautista explained that the planned strike has no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new Collective Bargaining Agreement as claimed by the PAL Employees Association (PALEA). Second, the union’s claim that there are no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units – Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations – likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
PAL submitted its counter proposal to the collective bargaining agreement last March 28 at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
PAL’s spin-off plan was thrice upheld as legal and valid by the labor secretaries of the past and present administrations.
Last March 25, the Office of the President likewise upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
PAL launches direct flights to New Delhi
Manila Bulletin
By ANJO PEREZ
April 4, 2011, 3:37pm
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) now has direct flights to India with the launch of its Manila to New Delhi service last March 29. PAL’s return to India comes after 57 years of absence as the flag carrier used to make technical stops in Calcutta for its Manila-Europe flights.
The inaugural flight to New Delhi, PR 758, took off from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at exactly 9:20 p.m. It took the Boeing 777-ER (extended range) wide-body jet just six and a half hours to cover the 4,775-kilometer route, with the flight arriving at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) at 1:30 a.m., India time.
More than 200 passengers disembarked at Gate 1A of the IGIA with no less than PAL chairman, Lucio C. Tan, heading the delegation. Indian tourism officials as well as airline and other business executives were on hand to welcome the group.
PAL president and Chief Operating Officer, Jaime Bautista, said, “Indeed, today, PAL is flying to India that’s a destination in its own right. Your country has emerged in recent years as one of the world’s economic powerhouses, with GDP growth of close to 9 percent this financial year. India’s economy is now the third largest in Asia and 11th largest in the world.”
According to Bautista, India’s booming economy has resulted in the emergence of a high-spending middle class of more than 300 million consumers that is growing by 20 million annually. Bautista added that travel is a major aspiration of the middle class and that PAL aims to tap in to that growing market.
Bautista said eight million Indians traveled to international destinations in 2009. Two million headed to Southeast Asia with most of them traveling to Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia—with only 32,817 going to Manila. With the new flight services, PAL aims to increase Indian passenger traffic with PAL providing 188,000 airline seats annually.
To formally launch the service in New Delhi, PAL hosted a luncheon for the local media at the Taj Palace Hotel. Aside from the big number of the local press, also in attendance were PAL executives headed by EVP-Commercial Group, Vivienne K. Tan, Foreign Affairs Secretary Esteban Conejos, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director General Ramon Gutierrez, officials from the Department of Tourism and the Civil Aeronautics Board as well as selects guests from the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and the Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
By ANJO PEREZ
April 4, 2011, 3:37pm
MANILA, Philippines – Philippine Airlines (PAL) now has direct flights to India with the launch of its Manila to New Delhi service last March 29. PAL’s return to India comes after 57 years of absence as the flag carrier used to make technical stops in Calcutta for its Manila-Europe flights.
The inaugural flight to New Delhi, PR 758, took off from the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) at exactly 9:20 p.m. It took the Boeing 777-ER (extended range) wide-body jet just six and a half hours to cover the 4,775-kilometer route, with the flight arriving at the Indira Gandhi International Airport (IGIA) at 1:30 a.m., India time.
More than 200 passengers disembarked at Gate 1A of the IGIA with no less than PAL chairman, Lucio C. Tan, heading the delegation. Indian tourism officials as well as airline and other business executives were on hand to welcome the group.
PAL president and Chief Operating Officer, Jaime Bautista, said, “Indeed, today, PAL is flying to India that’s a destination in its own right. Your country has emerged in recent years as one of the world’s economic powerhouses, with GDP growth of close to 9 percent this financial year. India’s economy is now the third largest in Asia and 11th largest in the world.”
According to Bautista, India’s booming economy has resulted in the emergence of a high-spending middle class of more than 300 million consumers that is growing by 20 million annually. Bautista added that travel is a major aspiration of the middle class and that PAL aims to tap in to that growing market.
Bautista said eight million Indians traveled to international destinations in 2009. Two million headed to Southeast Asia with most of them traveling to Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia and Indonesia—with only 32,817 going to Manila. With the new flight services, PAL aims to increase Indian passenger traffic with PAL providing 188,000 airline seats annually.
To formally launch the service in New Delhi, PAL hosted a luncheon for the local media at the Taj Palace Hotel. Aside from the big number of the local press, also in attendance were PAL executives headed by EVP-Commercial Group, Vivienne K. Tan, Foreign Affairs Secretary Esteban Conejos, Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) Director General Ramon Gutierrez, officials from the Department of Tourism and the Civil Aeronautics Board as well as selects guests from the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and the Filipino-Chinese Chambers of Commerce and Industry.
Monday, April 4, 2011
PAL to abide by DOLE order
Philippine Star
Updated April 04, 2011 12:00 AM
By Rudy Santos
MANILA, Philippines - The management of Philippine Airlines (PAL) said yesterday it would respect a labor department order remanding its labor dispute case with employees to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) for compulsory arbitration.
The PAL management said it is ready to implement contingency measures to prevent disruption of airline operations.
“PAL will follow the DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment) order, but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly,” said PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista.
He said he was informed only on Friday night about the certification order issued by Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz remanding the labor dispute case to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration.
Baustista said the airline management is yet to receive an official copy of the order.
Last Friday, PALEA held a pre-strike rally that disrupted traffic near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminals 1 and 2. All scheduled flights, however, pushed through.
Bautista said management was prepared for a worst-case scenario, including the threat of work stoppage by PALEA at midnight of April 2, which did not happen.
“We are ready for any PALEA action because not only do we have contingency measures in place, we also have the commitment of many ground workers that they will not join the strike,” he said.
The union has filed a notice of strike on March 7 but may no longer carry it out because of the order issued by DOLE.
Bautista said PAL lawyers are studying the airline’s legal position when the case is heard by the NLRC.
PALEA president Gerry Rivera had said the union will defy the labor department order, even tearing a copy of it on national television.
“This gesture reveals PALEA’s true nature: that it will not accept or respect anything less than what it wants. I hope government would not allow itself to be held hostage by PALEA’s scare tactics,” Bautista said.
Baldoz said the airline management can file charges of illegal strike against the union if it defies the order.
“It’s their (PAL) decision if they (PALEA) would push through with the planned strike despite our order,” Baldoz said.
She said she certified the labor case to the NLRC to settle the dispute peacefully.
“What we want to provide is an orderly and peaceful way of settling and resolving the dispute so we could protect the riding public,” she said.
Rivera said the union has the right to hold a strike against the airline that he describes as having “the awesome powers of capital.”
“The order has not stopped a strike at PAL. It has merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government cannot now know in advance,” he said.
The NLRC conducted a series of conciliation talks between the airline and the union but both sides failed to reach an agreement until last Friday, the last day of the strike ban period prescribed by law.
As this develops, Bautista assured passengers that the airline management will regularly issue updates through the media. Passengers may also be informed of any sudden changes in flight schedules. PAL’s reservation hotline may be contacted 24 hours at 855-8888.
They may also log on to www.philippineairlines.com for more information. - with Mayen Jaymalin
Updated April 04, 2011 12:00 AM
By Rudy Santos
MANILA, Philippines - The management of Philippine Airlines (PAL) said yesterday it would respect a labor department order remanding its labor dispute case with employees to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) for compulsory arbitration.
The PAL management said it is ready to implement contingency measures to prevent disruption of airline operations.
“PAL will follow the DOLE (Department of Labor and Employment) order, but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly,” said PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista.
He said he was informed only on Friday night about the certification order issued by Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz remanding the labor dispute case to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration.
Baustista said the airline management is yet to receive an official copy of the order.
Last Friday, PALEA held a pre-strike rally that disrupted traffic near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminals 1 and 2. All scheduled flights, however, pushed through.
Bautista said management was prepared for a worst-case scenario, including the threat of work stoppage by PALEA at midnight of April 2, which did not happen.
“We are ready for any PALEA action because not only do we have contingency measures in place, we also have the commitment of many ground workers that they will not join the strike,” he said.
The union has filed a notice of strike on March 7 but may no longer carry it out because of the order issued by DOLE.
Bautista said PAL lawyers are studying the airline’s legal position when the case is heard by the NLRC.
PALEA president Gerry Rivera had said the union will defy the labor department order, even tearing a copy of it on national television.
“This gesture reveals PALEA’s true nature: that it will not accept or respect anything less than what it wants. I hope government would not allow itself to be held hostage by PALEA’s scare tactics,” Bautista said.
Baldoz said the airline management can file charges of illegal strike against the union if it defies the order.
“It’s their (PAL) decision if they (PALEA) would push through with the planned strike despite our order,” Baldoz said.
She said she certified the labor case to the NLRC to settle the dispute peacefully.
“What we want to provide is an orderly and peaceful way of settling and resolving the dispute so we could protect the riding public,” she said.
Rivera said the union has the right to hold a strike against the airline that he describes as having “the awesome powers of capital.”
“The order has not stopped a strike at PAL. It has merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government cannot now know in advance,” he said.
The NLRC conducted a series of conciliation talks between the airline and the union but both sides failed to reach an agreement until last Friday, the last day of the strike ban period prescribed by law.
As this develops, Bautista assured passengers that the airline management will regularly issue updates through the media. Passengers may also be informed of any sudden changes in flight schedules. PAL’s reservation hotline may be contacted 24 hours at 855-8888.
They may also log on to www.philippineairlines.com for more information. - with Mayen Jaymalin
Palace still hopes for PAL row mediation
BusinessMirror
News
Sunday, 03 April 2011 20:32
by Mia Gonzalez, Estrella Torres
MALACAÑANG expressed hope on Sunday that Philippine Airlines management and employees can still iron out their differences through compulsory mediation so that their labor row would not have to be brought before the International Labor Organization (ILO) for resolution.
In an interview with state-run Radyo ng Bayan, Deputy Presidential Spokesman Abigail Valte said that while it is the right of the PAL Employees Association (Palea) to raise their case before the ILO, “our part, we hope that it will be resolved. Even if it has become apparent that the two groups are clashing on the issue, we are hoping for a good resolution.”
She also reiterated that PAL workers may face possible charges if they go on strike as their labor row with PAL management has been “submitted for compulsory mediation.”
Valte added, “They should avail themselves first of compulsory mediation from the National Conciliation and Mediation board....We are hoping that the compulsory mediation of the two groups would bear good results.”
She said that under the certification order released by Baldoz, any strike may be deemed illegal if the case involved has been submitted for compulsory mediation.
Palea members are set to hold a picket rally in front of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) office in Manila on Monday to protest the issuance of a certification order stopping the workers’ strike that seeks to stop the dismissal of some 2,600 workers of the flag carrier.
Palea president Gerry Rivera said the holding of the strike was postponed over the weekend but will be continued with a picket at the DOLE office.
PAL workers were protesting the airlines’ move to outsource services occupied by some 2,600 regular workers and were planning to hold a strike to paralyze the airline operations. On the eve of the planned workers’ strike on Friday, Baldoz issued a certification order that referred the PAL dispute to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC).
“I have intervened and certified the dispute to the National Labor Relations Commission on the ground of national interest ,and particularly the riding public,” Baldoz said late Friday.
She said the National Conciliation and Mediation Board conducted a series of con-ciliation talks between PAL and Palea, but both sides failed to reach an agreement even until Friday, the last day of the strike ban period prescribed by law.
(Mia Gonzalez, Estrella Torres)
News
Sunday, 03 April 2011 20:32
by Mia Gonzalez, Estrella Torres
MALACAÑANG expressed hope on Sunday that Philippine Airlines management and employees can still iron out their differences through compulsory mediation so that their labor row would not have to be brought before the International Labor Organization (ILO) for resolution.
In an interview with state-run Radyo ng Bayan, Deputy Presidential Spokesman Abigail Valte said that while it is the right of the PAL Employees Association (Palea) to raise their case before the ILO, “our part, we hope that it will be resolved. Even if it has become apparent that the two groups are clashing on the issue, we are hoping for a good resolution.”
She also reiterated that PAL workers may face possible charges if they go on strike as their labor row with PAL management has been “submitted for compulsory mediation.”
Valte added, “They should avail themselves first of compulsory mediation from the National Conciliation and Mediation board....We are hoping that the compulsory mediation of the two groups would bear good results.”
She said that under the certification order released by Baldoz, any strike may be deemed illegal if the case involved has been submitted for compulsory mediation.
Palea members are set to hold a picket rally in front of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) office in Manila on Monday to protest the issuance of a certification order stopping the workers’ strike that seeks to stop the dismissal of some 2,600 workers of the flag carrier.
Palea president Gerry Rivera said the holding of the strike was postponed over the weekend but will be continued with a picket at the DOLE office.
PAL workers were protesting the airlines’ move to outsource services occupied by some 2,600 regular workers and were planning to hold a strike to paralyze the airline operations. On the eve of the planned workers’ strike on Friday, Baldoz issued a certification order that referred the PAL dispute to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC).
“I have intervened and certified the dispute to the National Labor Relations Commission on the ground of national interest ,and particularly the riding public,” Baldoz said late Friday.
She said the National Conciliation and Mediation Board conducted a series of con-ciliation talks between PAL and Palea, but both sides failed to reach an agreement even until Friday, the last day of the strike ban period prescribed by law.
(Mia Gonzalez, Estrella Torres)
Palace wary of PAL row reaching ILO
Business
04/03/2011 | 02:17 PM
(Updated 9:07 p.m.) Wary of the labor row between flag carrier Philippine Airlines and its ground crew union reaching an international forum, Malacañang appealed to both sides Sunday to abide by the compulsory mediation ordered by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
Deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte said that while it is the union's right to take the case to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Palace is hoping the issue can be resolved at the level of the compulsory mediation.
"Karapatan nila 'yan but again sa atin we hope maresolba kahit mukha talagang nagkakagirian ang dalawang grupo. Sana magkaroon rin ng magandang resolution sa compulsory mediation," she said on government-run radio dzRB when asked about the PAL Employees' Association's (PALEA) plan to take the case to the ILO.
(It is the union's right, but from our end, we hope the case can be resolved despite the clash of the two sides. We can only hope for a resolution through compulsory mediation.)
Last weekend, PALEA said it may take the case to the ILO as it accused the government of siding with PAL management.
PALEA also said it is ready to defy DOLE's order for compulsory mediation, which effectively puts on hold PALEA's plan to stage a strike.
Malacañang on Saturday said PALEA may face legal action if it pushes through with its strike.
"Dahil naglabas ng certification order si (DOLE Secretary Rosalinda) Baldoz, hindi puwedeng mag-strike pag na-submit for compulsory mediation ang isang kaso. Magiging illegal ang strike nila kung pilit nila gawin yan," Valte said.
(Since Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz issued a certification order, no strike can push through in a case that is undergoing compulsory mediation. Such a strike will be deemed illegal.)
"Umaasa tayo sana may magandang resolution ang compulsory mediation (For now we can only hope the compulsory mediation will lead to a positive solution)," she added.
PAL to abide by DOLE order
PAL president Jaime Bautista, for his part, said the airline will "respect and abide by" DOLE’s order, while warning PALEA against any “illegal action."
“PAL will follow the DOLE order, but any illegal action of the PALEA to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly," he said in a statement Sunday.
He added that the PAL management was informed of the compulsory mediation on Friday night, and is still awaiting a copy of the order.
The flag carrier’s labor union earlier warned that it will proceed with its planned strike despite the DOLE’s postponement order, pending the resolving of the matter through labor dispute settlement before the National Labor Relations Commission.
Bautista however maintained that PALEA’s plan for a work stoppage will not cripple the airline’s operations.
“We are ready for any PALEA action because not only do we have contingency measures in place, we also have the commitment of many ground workers that they will not join the strike," he said.
He likewise urged the protesting workers to respect the government orders and not resort to “scare tactics." — with Andreo C. Calonzo/KBK/VS, GMA News
04/03/2011 | 02:17 PM
(Updated 9:07 p.m.) Wary of the labor row between flag carrier Philippine Airlines and its ground crew union reaching an international forum, Malacañang appealed to both sides Sunday to abide by the compulsory mediation ordered by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
Deputy presidential spokeswoman Abigail Valte said that while it is the union's right to take the case to the International Labor Organization (ILO), the Palace is hoping the issue can be resolved at the level of the compulsory mediation.
"Karapatan nila 'yan but again sa atin we hope maresolba kahit mukha talagang nagkakagirian ang dalawang grupo. Sana magkaroon rin ng magandang resolution sa compulsory mediation," she said on government-run radio dzRB when asked about the PAL Employees' Association's (PALEA) plan to take the case to the ILO.
(It is the union's right, but from our end, we hope the case can be resolved despite the clash of the two sides. We can only hope for a resolution through compulsory mediation.)
Last weekend, PALEA said it may take the case to the ILO as it accused the government of siding with PAL management.
PALEA also said it is ready to defy DOLE's order for compulsory mediation, which effectively puts on hold PALEA's plan to stage a strike.
Malacañang on Saturday said PALEA may face legal action if it pushes through with its strike.
"Dahil naglabas ng certification order si (DOLE Secretary Rosalinda) Baldoz, hindi puwedeng mag-strike pag na-submit for compulsory mediation ang isang kaso. Magiging illegal ang strike nila kung pilit nila gawin yan," Valte said.
(Since Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz issued a certification order, no strike can push through in a case that is undergoing compulsory mediation. Such a strike will be deemed illegal.)
"Umaasa tayo sana may magandang resolution ang compulsory mediation (For now we can only hope the compulsory mediation will lead to a positive solution)," she added.
PAL to abide by DOLE order
PAL president Jaime Bautista, for his part, said the airline will "respect and abide by" DOLE’s order, while warning PALEA against any “illegal action."
“PAL will follow the DOLE order, but any illegal action of the PALEA to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly," he said in a statement Sunday.
He added that the PAL management was informed of the compulsory mediation on Friday night, and is still awaiting a copy of the order.
The flag carrier’s labor union earlier warned that it will proceed with its planned strike despite the DOLE’s postponement order, pending the resolving of the matter through labor dispute settlement before the National Labor Relations Commission.
Bautista however maintained that PALEA’s plan for a work stoppage will not cripple the airline’s operations.
“We are ready for any PALEA action because not only do we have contingency measures in place, we also have the commitment of many ground workers that they will not join the strike," he said.
He likewise urged the protesting workers to respect the government orders and not resort to “scare tactics." — with Andreo C. Calonzo/KBK/VS, GMA News
PAL workers unfazed, vow to still strike
By Philip Tubeza, Norman Bordadora
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 02:13:00 04/03/2011
MANILA, Philippines—The ground crew union of Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Saturday threatened to defy Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and proceed with their planned strike anytime.
“We are ready to defy the order of Labor Secretary Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoffs and contractualization at PAL,” PAL Employees Association (Palea) president Gerry Rivera said in a statement.
PAL’s management, however, said they were ready for any action by Palea.
Baldoz sent the PAL labor case to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) for compulsory arbitration on Friday, effectively preventing Palea from going on strike.
Rivera, however, belittled the order, saying that it had not stopped a strike at PAL but merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government would not know in advance.
Palea cannot go on strike now that the labor dispute is up for compulsory mediation, Malacañang said yesterday.
“They can’t go on strike while the National Conciliation and Mediation Board is hearing their case,” Deputy Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said over government-run radio station dzRB.
PAL said on Saturday that it would respect and abide by the order of the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) but was ready to deal with Palea’s repeated threats of a work stoppage.
“PAL will follow the DoLE order but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly,” PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista said.
He said PAL was only informed late Friday night of Baldoz’s certification order remanding PAL’s labor dispute to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration.
The airline management had yet to receive an official copy of the order, he said.
Bautista said that despite Palea’s pre-strike rally Friday which snarled traffic near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 and 2 complexes, all PAL flights ran on schedule.
There were no cancellations and 100 percent of PAL’s daily average of 160 inbound and outbound domestic and international flights were able to operate, he said.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 02:13:00 04/03/2011
MANILA, Philippines—The ground crew union of Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Saturday threatened to defy Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz and proceed with their planned strike anytime.
“We are ready to defy the order of Labor Secretary Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoffs and contractualization at PAL,” PAL Employees Association (Palea) president Gerry Rivera said in a statement.
PAL’s management, however, said they were ready for any action by Palea.
Baldoz sent the PAL labor case to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) for compulsory arbitration on Friday, effectively preventing Palea from going on strike.
Rivera, however, belittled the order, saying that it had not stopped a strike at PAL but merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government would not know in advance.
Palea cannot go on strike now that the labor dispute is up for compulsory mediation, Malacañang said yesterday.
“They can’t go on strike while the National Conciliation and Mediation Board is hearing their case,” Deputy Presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte said over government-run radio station dzRB.
PAL said on Saturday that it would respect and abide by the order of the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) but was ready to deal with Palea’s repeated threats of a work stoppage.
“PAL will follow the DoLE order but any illegal action of the PAL Employees Association to disrupt airline operations will not be treated lightly,” PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista said.
He said PAL was only informed late Friday night of Baldoz’s certification order remanding PAL’s labor dispute to the NLRC for compulsory arbitration.
The airline management had yet to receive an official copy of the order, he said.
Bautista said that despite Palea’s pre-strike rally Friday which snarled traffic near the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 1 and 2 complexes, all PAL flights ran on schedule.
There were no cancellations and 100 percent of PAL’s daily average of 160 inbound and outbound domestic and international flights were able to operate, he said.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
Palace won't dip hands into PALEA strike
The Philippine Star News
Updated April 03, 2011 12:00 AM
By Aurea Calica
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) could no longer go on strike as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had ruled the union’s dispute with management is subject to compulsory mediation, Malacañang asserted yesterday.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte added there was no need for Malacañang to dip its hands into the issue at this time.
“They can’t go on strike while the National Conciliation and Mediation Board is hearing their case,” Valte pointed out.
She said DOLE had issued certification order on the compulsory arbitration or mediation, which PALEA was expected to follow.
PALEA, on the other hand, declared they would push through its planned “paralyzing strike” against Philippine Airlines (PAL).
“We are ready to defy the order of DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoff and contractualization at PAL,” said PALEA president Gerry Rivera.
He said the compulsory arbitration order issued by Baldoz “is a bad April fool’s prank.”
“The (compulsory arbitration) order has not stopped a strike at PAL, it has merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government cannot now know in advance,” Rivera said.
Rivera refused to elaborate on how and when PALEA intends to carry out the strike.
PALEA was contesting Malacañang’s decision allowing PAL to outsource some of its services that would lead to the termination of more than 2,000 workers.
Baldoz issued the order banning the strike in pointing out that there was no deadlock in the talks on collective bargaining agreement yet.
Asked by The STAR about PALEA’s planned defiance of the order, Baldoz just shrugged it off and said, “It’s okay. That’s their right.”
Baldoz though expressed confidence that the strike still not push through. “I don’t think they will defy,” she said.
Ready for the worst scenario
PAL, on the other hand, assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a “worst scenario” of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case the strike pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said the planned strike has no legal basis.
Bautista denied allegations that PAL management had refused to convene negotiations for a CBA with PALEA.
He added PALEA’s claim of no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units — Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations — had no legal basis.
Bautista said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the CBA last March 28 before the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off, which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
Bautista said the DOLE thrice upheld PAL’s spin-off plan as legal and valid.
He said that last March 25, Malacañang upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
Last ditch efforts
The planned mass action stemmed from the failure of PALEA and PAL management to reach an agreement concerning its collective bargaining agreement during a series of conciliation talks before DOLE’s National Conciliation and Mediation Board.
PALEA was to start its nationwide strike shortly after midnight yesterday when the strike ban prescribed by law ended.
But Friday night, Baldoz intervened and certified the dispute to the DOLE’s National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) “on the ground of national interest particularly the riding public.”
In her order, Baldoz noted, “earnest efforts to help the parties find a mutually acceptable settlement to the dispute have not gained positive results because of the parties’ intransigence.”
Citing national interest, Baldoz maintained a strike at the flag carrier during critical times cannot be tolerated “as we are now hampered by the debilitating effects of the global crisis spawned by man-made and natural calamities.” Because of the circumstances surrounding the labor dispute, Baldoz said DOLE has decided to intervene “motu propio” (on its own initiative) to certify the case to the NLRC for “immediate compulsory arbitration.”
Rivera said that allowing the NLRC to decide on the labor dispute resulted in stopping them from holding the strike while the case is pending. He said Baldoz’s order virtually sided with PAL.
Rivera claimed President Aquino has “not only legalized the actions of (PAL owner) Lucio Tan but also illegalized the action PALEA through Baldoz’s order.
“PALEA will resist being a victim of P-Noy’s (Aquino’s) anti-labor policy… the right to strike is a constitutionally protected freedom by workers to defend themselves against the awesome powers of capital,” Rivera said.
Rivera revealed PALEA is planning to elevate the case to the International Labor Organization, citing the “govern-ment’s suppression of the conventions on the right to self-organization and collective bargaining.”
“We have directed our members and supporters to be on standby. We will push through with our planned strike. We’ve been pushed too much to the wall already,” Rivera added.
Valte added the government could not be accused of being anti-labor because the DOLE made a ruling in December favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines. – With Sheila Crisostomo, Rudy Santos
Updated April 03, 2011 12:00 AM
By Aurea Calica
MANILA, Philippines - The Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) could no longer go on strike as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) had ruled the union’s dispute with management is subject to compulsory mediation, Malacañang asserted yesterday.
Deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte added there was no need for Malacañang to dip its hands into the issue at this time.
“They can’t go on strike while the National Conciliation and Mediation Board is hearing their case,” Valte pointed out.
She said DOLE had issued certification order on the compulsory arbitration or mediation, which PALEA was expected to follow.
PALEA, on the other hand, declared they would push through its planned “paralyzing strike” against Philippine Airlines (PAL).
“We are ready to defy the order of DOLE Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz any time we deem it necessary to go on strike in order to prevent layoff and contractualization at PAL,” said PALEA president Gerry Rivera.
He said the compulsory arbitration order issued by Baldoz “is a bad April fool’s prank.”
“The (compulsory arbitration) order has not stopped a strike at PAL, it has merely postponed it to a date that PAL and the government cannot now know in advance,” Rivera said.
Rivera refused to elaborate on how and when PALEA intends to carry out the strike.
PALEA was contesting Malacañang’s decision allowing PAL to outsource some of its services that would lead to the termination of more than 2,000 workers.
Baldoz issued the order banning the strike in pointing out that there was no deadlock in the talks on collective bargaining agreement yet.
Asked by The STAR about PALEA’s planned defiance of the order, Baldoz just shrugged it off and said, “It’s okay. That’s their right.”
Baldoz though expressed confidence that the strike still not push through. “I don’t think they will defy,” she said.
Ready for the worst scenario
PAL, on the other hand, assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a “worst scenario” of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case the strike pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said the planned strike has no legal basis.
Bautista denied allegations that PAL management had refused to convene negotiations for a CBA with PALEA.
He added PALEA’s claim of no justifiable reasons for the spin-off of three units — Airport Services, In-flight Catering and Call Center Reservations — had no legal basis.
Bautista said PAL submitted its counter proposal to the CBA last March 28 before the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB).
“This is the best proof that PAL is willing to negotiate with its union. Meanwhile, the planned spin-off, which was recently upheld by the Office of the President, is not the subject of any notice of strike as this has just been recently resolved by Executive Secretary Pacquito Ochoa,” he added.
Bautista said the DOLE thrice upheld PAL’s spin-off plan as legal and valid.
He said that last March 25, Malacañang upheld PAL’s right to spin off its three units to third party service providers.
Last ditch efforts
The planned mass action stemmed from the failure of PALEA and PAL management to reach an agreement concerning its collective bargaining agreement during a series of conciliation talks before DOLE’s National Conciliation and Mediation Board.
PALEA was to start its nationwide strike shortly after midnight yesterday when the strike ban prescribed by law ended.
But Friday night, Baldoz intervened and certified the dispute to the DOLE’s National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) “on the ground of national interest particularly the riding public.”
In her order, Baldoz noted, “earnest efforts to help the parties find a mutually acceptable settlement to the dispute have not gained positive results because of the parties’ intransigence.”
Citing national interest, Baldoz maintained a strike at the flag carrier during critical times cannot be tolerated “as we are now hampered by the debilitating effects of the global crisis spawned by man-made and natural calamities.” Because of the circumstances surrounding the labor dispute, Baldoz said DOLE has decided to intervene “motu propio” (on its own initiative) to certify the case to the NLRC for “immediate compulsory arbitration.”
Rivera said that allowing the NLRC to decide on the labor dispute resulted in stopping them from holding the strike while the case is pending. He said Baldoz’s order virtually sided with PAL.
Rivera claimed President Aquino has “not only legalized the actions of (PAL owner) Lucio Tan but also illegalized the action PALEA through Baldoz’s order.
“PALEA will resist being a victim of P-Noy’s (Aquino’s) anti-labor policy… the right to strike is a constitutionally protected freedom by workers to defend themselves against the awesome powers of capital,” Rivera said.
Rivera revealed PALEA is planning to elevate the case to the International Labor Organization, citing the “govern-ment’s suppression of the conventions on the right to self-organization and collective bargaining.”
“We have directed our members and supporters to be on standby. We will push through with our planned strike. We’ve been pushed too much to the wall already,” Rivera added.
Valte added the government could not be accused of being anti-labor because the DOLE made a ruling in December favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines. – With Sheila Crisostomo, Rudy Santos
Palea to stage nationwide strike
The Manila Times
April 2, 2011
Darwin G. Amojelar
PHILIPPINE Airlines Employees Association (Palea) on Friday said it was “all systems” for its first nationwide strike in 13 years.
In a statement, Palea said a nationwide strike would push through any day after today.
“Palea is 100-percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of PAL that in cahoots with the Aquino government wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement [CBA]. The only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions,” Gerry Rivera, Palea president said.
Palea filed a notice of strike on March 7 and on March 25 a strike vote revealed that 95.44 percent of the employees were supported the planned strike.
After a seven-day “strike ban” period, Palea expects a strike on April 2.
“PAL will earn $1.6 billion in profit this year. Yet it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA. PAL’s workers have already sacrificed with a 12-year CBA suspension that has resulted in the stagnation of wages, benefits and working conditions. In contrast Lucio Tan has become even richer as a result of CBA moratorium and outsourcing,” Rivera said.
On Friday, Malacañang upheld the decision of the Department of Labor and Employment upholding the legality of PAL’s spin-off of three non-core units.
PAL’s spin-off package rose to P2.75 billion after Malacañang ordered a doubling of the gratuity to P100,000 from P50,000 for each employee.
PAL said that contingency measures were in place to keep its airplanes flying in case members of the Palea stage an illegal strike.
The Lucio Tan-owned airline said flights will continue to be operated according to published schedules while all ticket offices and other sales and airport facilities in Metro Manila, the provinces and stations abroad will maintain regular business operations.
In a separate statement, the Flight Attendants’ and Stewards’ Association of the Philippines said the Labor department affirmed its decision granting salary increases to its members, increases of rice allowance, raising the compulsory retirement age to 60 years old and improvements on pregnancy and maternity benefits.
“We hope that PAL management will accept this decision and finally put to rest the dispute with Fasap. The competition in the airline industry will heighten, and it would be best for PAL to unite with its front liners, mend the bruises and work together to reclaim its rightful place as the number one Airline in the country,” Bob Anduiza, Fasap president said.
April 2, 2011
Darwin G. Amojelar
PHILIPPINE Airlines Employees Association (Palea) on Friday said it was “all systems” for its first nationwide strike in 13 years.
In a statement, Palea said a nationwide strike would push through any day after today.
“Palea is 100-percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of PAL that in cahoots with the Aquino government wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement [CBA]. The only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions,” Gerry Rivera, Palea president said.
Palea filed a notice of strike on March 7 and on March 25 a strike vote revealed that 95.44 percent of the employees were supported the planned strike.
After a seven-day “strike ban” period, Palea expects a strike on April 2.
“PAL will earn $1.6 billion in profit this year. Yet it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA. PAL’s workers have already sacrificed with a 12-year CBA suspension that has resulted in the stagnation of wages, benefits and working conditions. In contrast Lucio Tan has become even richer as a result of CBA moratorium and outsourcing,” Rivera said.
On Friday, Malacañang upheld the decision of the Department of Labor and Employment upholding the legality of PAL’s spin-off of three non-core units.
PAL’s spin-off package rose to P2.75 billion after Malacañang ordered a doubling of the gratuity to P100,000 from P50,000 for each employee.
PAL said that contingency measures were in place to keep its airplanes flying in case members of the Palea stage an illegal strike.
The Lucio Tan-owned airline said flights will continue to be operated according to published schedules while all ticket offices and other sales and airport facilities in Metro Manila, the provinces and stations abroad will maintain regular business operations.
In a separate statement, the Flight Attendants’ and Stewards’ Association of the Philippines said the Labor department affirmed its decision granting salary increases to its members, increases of rice allowance, raising the compulsory retirement age to 60 years old and improvements on pregnancy and maternity benefits.
“We hope that PAL management will accept this decision and finally put to rest the dispute with Fasap. The competition in the airline industry will heighten, and it would be best for PAL to unite with its front liners, mend the bruises and work together to reclaim its rightful place as the number one Airline in the country,” Bob Anduiza, Fasap president said.
PAL makes history in New Delhi
by Eric Apolonio
Manila Standard Today
April 2, 2011
After 57 years of absence in the vast India market, Philippine Airlines on Tuesday resumed its flight to New Delhi, marking the start of a regular service to and from the capital city three times a week and another three flights weekly via Bangkok.
With 300 passengers, PAL’s Boeing 777 aircraft landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and made aviation history.
PAL President-chief executive officer Jaime Bautista said: “This time, India is no longer a stopover but a regular destination.”
PAL first flew to India in May 1947 when it made a stopover at Calcutta on the way to Rome, Madrid and London during PAL’s inaugural flight to Europe.
The flag carrier flies to India by availing of the entitlements granted in the 2005 RP-India air services agreement, Bautista said. This treaty allows PAL to fly to Mumbai,Calcutta and Chennai (Madras), with Bangkok as a stop-over point, he said.
PAL can fly seven times a week from any point in the Philippines to New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai and has allocated 188,000 seats annually for the Indian route.
The service to India has become more attractive by the Indian government’s easing the visa requirements for Philippine passport holders. Filipinos, along with residents of selected Southeast Asian countries, are granted visa upon arrival in India. Passengers arriving in New Delhi only need to present a passport valid for at least four to six months, a return airline ticket and two photos.
PAL will make available over 188,000 airline seats a year for Indian travellers.
PAL executive vice-president Vivienne Tan told Manila Standard during the formal launch of the services at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi on Wednesday that the carrier’s target is to make the people of the two countries know, explore and learn from each other better through enhanced connectivity and ease of travel.
Manila Standard Today
April 2, 2011
After 57 years of absence in the vast India market, Philippine Airlines on Tuesday resumed its flight to New Delhi, marking the start of a regular service to and from the capital city three times a week and another three flights weekly via Bangkok.
With 300 passengers, PAL’s Boeing 777 aircraft landed at the Indira Gandhi International Airport and made aviation history.
PAL President-chief executive officer Jaime Bautista said: “This time, India is no longer a stopover but a regular destination.”
PAL first flew to India in May 1947 when it made a stopover at Calcutta on the way to Rome, Madrid and London during PAL’s inaugural flight to Europe.
The flag carrier flies to India by availing of the entitlements granted in the 2005 RP-India air services agreement, Bautista said. This treaty allows PAL to fly to Mumbai,Calcutta and Chennai (Madras), with Bangkok as a stop-over point, he said.
PAL can fly seven times a week from any point in the Philippines to New Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata and Chennai and has allocated 188,000 seats annually for the Indian route.
The service to India has become more attractive by the Indian government’s easing the visa requirements for Philippine passport holders. Filipinos, along with residents of selected Southeast Asian countries, are granted visa upon arrival in India. Passengers arriving in New Delhi only need to present a passport valid for at least four to six months, a return airline ticket and two photos.
PAL will make available over 188,000 airline seats a year for Indian travellers.
PAL executive vice-president Vivienne Tan told Manila Standard during the formal launch of the services at the Taj Palace Hotel in New Delhi on Wednesday that the carrier’s target is to make the people of the two countries know, explore and learn from each other better through enhanced connectivity and ease of travel.
PAL girds up as union calls for a strike today
by Vito Barcelo
Manila Standard Today
April 2, 2011
PHILIPPINE Airlines’ ground workers said Friday they will strike today despite the Labor Department’s efforts to keep the flag carrier’s operations from being disrupted.
More than 500 members of the PAL Employees Association said they will also rally at the airport after the ban preventing them from striking lapsed Friday.
“[The union] is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of PAL that, in cahoots with the Aquino government, wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement,” group president Gerry Rivera said.
“The only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.”
The airline said it was ready for the worst, and that many administrative employees and even union members were ready to man the posts to be vacated by protesting workers.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience the threats of work stoppage have spawned,” airline president Jaime Bautista said.
“We are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled.”
Last week, the Palace affirmed a Labor Department ruling allowing the airline to lay off 2,600 employees as part of a program to spin off its ground service operations and outsource those services.
Rivera said other labor groups will join the ground workers at Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Ground workers will also strike in Cebu and Davao.
“This mass action is an expression of the unity of the labor movement in the common fight for regular jobs and against the government’s policy of contractualization,” he said.
“This is also a dress rehearsal for the nationwide strike.”
Also on Friday, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz affirmed a previous decision favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines in its collective bargaining agreement dispute with PAL management.
She ordered the airline to reinstate the eight flight pursers who were retired when their cases were still being reviewed.
The carrier served notices of retirement to eight senior flight attendants who turned 55 years old in January, but the flight attendants’ union challenged the the decision before the Labor Department.
Manila Standard Today
April 2, 2011
PHILIPPINE Airlines’ ground workers said Friday they will strike today despite the Labor Department’s efforts to keep the flag carrier’s operations from being disrupted.
More than 500 members of the PAL Employees Association said they will also rally at the airport after the ban preventing them from striking lapsed Friday.
“[The union] is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of PAL that, in cahoots with the Aquino government, wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement,” group president Gerry Rivera said.
“The only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.”
The airline said it was ready for the worst, and that many administrative employees and even union members were ready to man the posts to be vacated by protesting workers.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience the threats of work stoppage have spawned,” airline president Jaime Bautista said.
“We are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled.”
Last week, the Palace affirmed a Labor Department ruling allowing the airline to lay off 2,600 employees as part of a program to spin off its ground service operations and outsource those services.
Rivera said other labor groups will join the ground workers at Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport. Ground workers will also strike in Cebu and Davao.
“This mass action is an expression of the unity of the labor movement in the common fight for regular jobs and against the government’s policy of contractualization,” he said.
“This is also a dress rehearsal for the nationwide strike.”
Also on Friday, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz affirmed a previous decision favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines in its collective bargaining agreement dispute with PAL management.
She ordered the airline to reinstate the eight flight pursers who were retired when their cases were still being reviewed.
The carrier served notices of retirement to eight senior flight attendants who turned 55 years old in January, but the flight attendants’ union challenged the the decision before the Labor Department.
Labor takes over PAL row
MANILA, Philippines—Hours before the strike ban imposed on the Philippine Airlines’ (PAL) ground crew union lapsed on Friday, the labor department turned over the case to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), effectively averting a work stoppage at the national flag carrier.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz on Friday issued a certification order, handing over the labor dispute to the NLRC since the issue involved “unfair labor practices” and not a deadlock in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) cannot assume jurisdiction because what is being talked about is unfair labor practices, not a deadlock in the CBA,” Baldoz told the Inquirer by phone on Friday night.
Same effect
But the certification order has the same effect as the assumption of jurisdiction as the former would also prevent the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (Palea) from going on strike, explained Baldoz.
Palea cannot push through with its planned work stoppage while the case is being heard by the NLRC, she said.
DoLE also upheld its earlier decision to stop PAL from retiring senior flight attendants who reach the age of 55.
In its ruling, the DoLE Friday affirmed its previous decision favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (Fasap) in its CBA dispute with PAL.
Baldoz also directed PAL to reinstate the flight pursers who were retired while the labor case was being heard.
Before the DoLE order, Palea members and their supporters snarled traffic along Tramo Street in Pasay City Frid\ afternoon as they marched to Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
‘All systems go’
Palea members, along with other militant groups, announced that it’s all systems go for their first nationwide strike since 1998.
“Palea is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of Philippine Airlines which is in cahoots with the Aquino government in denying workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement (CBA),” said Palea president Gerry Rivera in a statement.
He stressed that a strike could only be prevented if PAL heeds their demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.
Rivera added that synchronized mass actions were also held in Cebu and Davao.
“PAL will earn $1.6 billion in profit this year. Yet it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA,” Rivera insisted.
Ready for the worst
But PAL Friday assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a ‘worst case scenario’ of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground crew pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said the planned strike had no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by Palea. Second, the union’s claim that there is no justifiable reasons for the spinoff of three units—airport services, in-flight catering and call center reservations—likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz on Friday issued a certification order, handing over the labor dispute to the NLRC since the issue involved “unfair labor practices” and not a deadlock in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA).
“The Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) cannot assume jurisdiction because what is being talked about is unfair labor practices, not a deadlock in the CBA,” Baldoz told the Inquirer by phone on Friday night.
Same effect
But the certification order has the same effect as the assumption of jurisdiction as the former would also prevent the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (Palea) from going on strike, explained Baldoz.
Palea cannot push through with its planned work stoppage while the case is being heard by the NLRC, she said.
DoLE also upheld its earlier decision to stop PAL from retiring senior flight attendants who reach the age of 55.
In its ruling, the DoLE Friday affirmed its previous decision favoring the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (Fasap) in its CBA dispute with PAL.
Baldoz also directed PAL to reinstate the flight pursers who were retired while the labor case was being heard.
Before the DoLE order, Palea members and their supporters snarled traffic along Tramo Street in Pasay City Frid\ afternoon as they marched to Terminal 2 of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport.
‘All systems go’
Palea members, along with other militant groups, announced that it’s all systems go for their first nationwide strike since 1998.
“Palea is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of Philippine Airlines which is in cahoots with the Aquino government in denying workers the right to regular jobs and a collective bargaining agreement (CBA),” said Palea president Gerry Rivera in a statement.
He stressed that a strike could only be prevented if PAL heeds their demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.
Rivera added that synchronized mass actions were also held in Cebu and Davao.
“PAL will earn $1.6 billion in profit this year. Yet it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA,” Rivera insisted.
Ready for the worst
But PAL Friday assured its passengers that the national flag carrier is ready for a ‘worst case scenario’ of an actual work stoppage.
In a statement, PAL said it is ready to implement contingency measures to minimize flight disruptions and avoid passenger inconvenience in case a threatened walkout by its ground crew pushes through.
“Many PAL administrative employees, and even union members themselves, believe that a strike will not do the company any good. As such, they are ready to man posts to be vacated by protesting workers,” PAL president and COO Jaime J. Bautista said.
“We apologize to our passengers for whatever anxiety and inconvenience threats of work stoppage have spawned. Rest assured we are doing everything we can to ensure that your flights will proceed as scheduled,” he added.
Bautista said the planned strike had no legal basis. “First, it’s not true that management refuses to convene negotiations for a new CBA as claimed by Palea. Second, the union’s claim that there is no justifiable reasons for the spinoff of three units—airport services, in-flight catering and call center reservations—likewise have no leg to stand on,” he stressed.
Saturday, April 2, 2011
Baldoz stops PALEA from holding nationwide strike
The Philippine Star
Updated April 02, 2011 12:00 AM
By Sheila Crisostomo
MANILA, Philippines - Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz yesterday stopped the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) from holding a nationwide strike.
“I transferred the case to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC). It’s for the commission now to decide,” Baldoz said in a telephone interview.
The stoppage of the projected strike came on the heels of PALEA’s decision to go on a nationwide strike to demand the start of negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with management.
“PALEA is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of Philippine Airlines (PAL) that, in cahoots with the Aquino government, wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a CBA,” said PALEA president Gerry Rivera.
The Labor chief was expected to assume “jurisdiction” of the case but she said that she could not exercise this option since the CBA dispute did not end in deadlock.
“It was not a deadlock. This concerns unfair labor practice so it’s an NLRC case. But the effect is the same, they cannot hold a strike while the case is being heard,” she clarified.
Rivera earlier said the “only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.”
PALEA members and supporters yesterday held a rally at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 as a “dress rehearsal” for the work stoppage yesterday when the strike ban imposed by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) ended.
“This mass action is an expression of the unity of the labor movement in the common fight for regular jobs and against the government’s policy of contractualization. This is also a dress rehearsal for the nationwide strike,” Rivera said yesterday, unaware of Baldoz’s last minute move.
He reiterated that while PAL stands to earn $1.6 billion in profit this year, “it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA.”
“PAL’s workers have already sacrificed with a 12-year CBA suspension that has resulted in the stagnation of wages, benefits and working conditions,” said Rivera.
Baldoz sides with FASAP
On another labor-related issue at the flag carrier, Baldoz affirmed her previous decision favoring the demand of the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (FASAP) that PAL raise their retirement age.
Baldoz said PAL had failed to show “new evidence” that would warrant a reversal of her Dec. 23, 2010 decision, raising the retirement age of cabin crew from 40 to 60.
In her ruling, Baldoz agreed with FASAP that the 40-year-old retirement age set by PAL “constitutes a clear discrimination of their right to equal work opportunity.”
The labor chief had also junked PAL’s “no motherhood” rule, where flight attendants were required to take prolonged leave without pay during pregnancy.
Under the resolution, female flight attendants are entitled to two pregnancy leaves for a maximum of seven months for each leave, to be credited in computing the length of service for retirement, 13th month pay, Christmas bonus, rice allowance, and trip passes.
They are also given maternity leaves for a maximum of four deliveries and these should be credited in computing the length of service for retirement, 13th month pay, Christmas bonus, rice allowance, and trip passes.
FASAP president Roberto Anduiza thanked Baldoz for upholding the rights of PAL flight attendants.
“The struggle to address age and gender discrimination in Philippine Airlines has been a life long battle for FASAP, and this decision helps greatly to correct the injustice against the female flight attendants,” Anduiza said.
Updated April 02, 2011 12:00 AM
By Sheila Crisostomo
MANILA, Philippines - Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz yesterday stopped the Philippine Airlines Employees’ Association (PALEA) from holding a nationwide strike.
“I transferred the case to the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC). It’s for the commission now to decide,” Baldoz said in a telephone interview.
The stoppage of the projected strike came on the heels of PALEA’s decision to go on a nationwide strike to demand the start of negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) with management.
“PALEA is 100 percent ready for a strike that will paralyze the operations of Philippine Airlines (PAL) that, in cahoots with the Aquino government, wants to deny workers the right to regular jobs and a CBA,” said PALEA president Gerry Rivera.
The Labor chief was expected to assume “jurisdiction” of the case but she said that she could not exercise this option since the CBA dispute did not end in deadlock.
“It was not a deadlock. This concerns unfair labor practice so it’s an NLRC case. But the effect is the same, they cannot hold a strike while the case is being heard,” she clarified.
Rivera earlier said the “only thing that can prevent a strike is for PAL to heed the demand to stop outsourcing and open CBA negotiations without preconditions.”
PALEA members and supporters yesterday held a rally at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport Terminal 2 as a “dress rehearsal” for the work stoppage yesterday when the strike ban imposed by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) ended.
“This mass action is an expression of the unity of the labor movement in the common fight for regular jobs and against the government’s policy of contractualization. This is also a dress rehearsal for the nationwide strike,” Rivera said yesterday, unaware of Baldoz’s last minute move.
He reiterated that while PAL stands to earn $1.6 billion in profit this year, “it refuses to share the fruits of production with its employees via a CBA.”
“PAL’s workers have already sacrificed with a 12-year CBA suspension that has resulted in the stagnation of wages, benefits and working conditions,” said Rivera.
Baldoz sides with FASAP
On another labor-related issue at the flag carrier, Baldoz affirmed her previous decision favoring the demand of the Flight Attendants and Stewards Association of the Philippines (FASAP) that PAL raise their retirement age.
Baldoz said PAL had failed to show “new evidence” that would warrant a reversal of her Dec. 23, 2010 decision, raising the retirement age of cabin crew from 40 to 60.
In her ruling, Baldoz agreed with FASAP that the 40-year-old retirement age set by PAL “constitutes a clear discrimination of their right to equal work opportunity.”
The labor chief had also junked PAL’s “no motherhood” rule, where flight attendants were required to take prolonged leave without pay during pregnancy.
Under the resolution, female flight attendants are entitled to two pregnancy leaves for a maximum of seven months for each leave, to be credited in computing the length of service for retirement, 13th month pay, Christmas bonus, rice allowance, and trip passes.
They are also given maternity leaves for a maximum of four deliveries and these should be credited in computing the length of service for retirement, 13th month pay, Christmas bonus, rice allowance, and trip passes.
FASAP president Roberto Anduiza thanked Baldoz for upholding the rights of PAL flight attendants.
“The struggle to address age and gender discrimination in Philippine Airlines has been a life long battle for FASAP, and this decision helps greatly to correct the injustice against the female flight attendants,” Anduiza said.
Friday, April 1, 2011
Philippine Airlines returns to India after 57 years
Business Mirror
Companies
By Recto Mercene
April 1-2, 2011
Companies
By Recto Mercene
April 1-2, 2011
NEW DELHI—Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) inaugurated its regular service here on Wednesday, linking the country with the Indian capital of New Delhi. The non-stop flight took six -and-a-half hours and touched down at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 2:30 am with more than 200 passengers onboard.
Key government and PAL officials, led by airline chairman Lucio C. Tan, were welcomed by India’s tourism officials, businessmen, investors, travel and tourism officials.
Vivienne K. Tan, PAL executive vice president for commercial group, said the launch of the Manila-New Delhi route “is in step with the government’s program to perk up the economy by bringing in more tourists and serves as a vital air link between [the] two countries.”
Jaime Bautista, president and chief executivesaid: “PAL is flying to an India that’s a destination in its own right. [The] country has emerged in recent years as one of the world’s economic powerhouses. The booming economy has spawned a high-spending middle-class of 350 million consumers and is growing by 20 million every year, for whom travel is a major aspiration. In 2009, about 8 million Indians traveled abroad, of which 2 million went to Southeast Asia.
Bautista, however, pointed out that only 32,817 Indians visited the Philippines, far behind the figures in Singapore (726,000), Thailand (611,983), Malaysia (589,838), and Indonesia (150,000).
He said PAL will aim to accelerate this traffic stream by making available over 188,000 airline seats a year for Indian travelers. He added that these travelers now enjoy the convenience of having their travel time greatly reduced from the previous 10 to 30 hours via a third-country connection to just six and a half hours with direct PAL flights.
“Our new service also aims to increase Filipino visitors to India. The Indian government has made our job much easier when it adopted, earlier this year, a visa-on-arrival policy for Filipinos,” Bautista said.
PAL’s new service is also expected to boost business travel between the two countries, particularly in the rapidly growing information technology sector.
PAL is allocating 188,000 seats a year on the Indian route, in keeping with the provisions of the 2005 Philippine-Indian air services agreement that also allows PAL to fly seven times a week from any point in the Philippines to Mumbai, Calcutta and Chennai (formerly Madras).
PAL’s return to India coincides with the carrier’s 70th anniversary and underscores the storied past of Asia’s first airline.
The flag carrier first flew to the subcontinent on May 3, 1947 when it stopped in Calcutta on a pioneering DC-4 service from Manila to Rome, Madrid and London, making PAL the first Southeast Asian airline to fly to Europe.
The stopover in Calcutta was essential because the propeller-powered DC-4 had limited range. The journey from the Far East to Europe took two days and frequent stops were necessary.
Despite the distance, the Manila-Calcutta and vice-versa legs of PAL’s flights to Europe were quite popular. India and the Philippines were young, newly independent republics then and there was much interaction between the two nations.
In 1954, the Philippine government ordered the suspension of PAL’s long-range services, including the one to Europe, as an austerity measure in the midst of an economic recession. Unfortunately, this had the unintended effect of cutting off the Calcutta connection.
When PAL resumed European flights in 1969, the new DC-8 jets made technical stops in South Asia unnecessary. Regrettably, the link to India was never restored—until today.
Philippines is a hot destination for Indian companies engaged in business process outsourcing, with the country now hosting more than 20 Indian BPO firms, including such industry giants as Accenture, Infosys, Aegis, Genpact, Wipro and Tata Consultancy Services.
PAL starts regular flights to India
The Philippine Star
By Rudy Santos
April 1, 2011, 12:00 AM
By Rudy Santos
April 1, 2011, 12:00 AM
NEW DELHI – Flag carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) inaugurated its regular service here last Wednesday, linking the country with India’s capital, by flying non-stop in six and a half hours and touching down at the Indira Gandhi International Airport at 2:30 a.m. with more than 200 passengers onboard.
Key government and PAL officials, led by PAL chairman Lucio C. Tan were welcomed by India’s tourism officials, businessmen, investors, travel and tourism officials.
Vivienne K. Tan, PAL executive vice president-commercial group, said the launch of the Manila-New Delhi route “is in step with the government’s program to perk up the economy by bringing in more tourists and serves as a vital air link between our two countries.”
Jaime Bautista, PAL president and CEO, said: “PAL is flying to an India that… has emerged in recent years as one of the world’s economic powerhouses, with GDP growth of close to nine percent this financial year. India’s $1.4-trillion economy is now the third largest in Asia and 11th largest in the world.”
He said the booming economy has spawned a high-spending middle class of 350 million consumers that’s growing by 20 million people every year, for whom travel is a major aspiration. In 2009, about eight million Indians traveled abroad and two million of them headed to Southeast Asia.
However, Bautista noted that only a trickle, 32,817 Indians, visited the Philippines, far behind corresponding figures for Singapore (726,000), Thailand (611,983), Malaysia (589,838) and Indonesia (150,000).
He said PAL will aim to accelerate this traffic stream by making available over 188,000 airline seats a year for Indian travelers to and from the Philippines. He added that these travelers now enjoy the convenience of having their travel time greatly reduced from the previous 10 to 30 hours via a third-country connection to just six and a half hours with direct PAL flights.
PAL flew to Calcutta 57 years ago for refueling stop on the way to Rome, Paris and London using a propeller-driven DC-4. The whole trip took 30 hours.
To complement the direct Delhi-Manila service three times weekly, Bautista said PAL has added another three weekly flights routed via Bangkok. This gives the traveler a wider choice of itineraries for the three cities covered by the PAL service.
“Going the other way, our new service also aims to increase Filipino visitors to India. The Indian government has made our job much easier when it adopted, earlier this year, a visa-on-arrival policy for Filipinos.”
With all of the incentives now in place – visa-on-arrival, combined with PAL’s six flights weekly and greater promotional efforts in the Philippine market – expect a boom in Filipino visitor arrivals in India, Bautista added.
As bonus, he said that PAL’s new service is also expected to boost business travel between the two countries, particularly in the rapidly growing information technology sector.
PAL is allocating 188,000 seats a year on the Indian route, in keeping with the provisions of the 2005 RP-Indian air services agreement that also allows PAL to fly seven times a week from any point in the Philippines to Mumbai, Calcutta and Chennai (formerly Madras).
PAL’s return to India coincides with the carrier’s 70th anniversary and underscores the storied past of Asia’s first airline.
The flag carrier first flew to the subcontinent on May 3, 1947 when it stopped in the cities of Calcutta and Karachi on a pioneering DC-4 service from Manila to Rome, Madrid and London, making PAL the first Southeast Asian airline to fly to Europe.
PAL union workers vow to bring outsourcing plan to SC
By Philip Tubeza
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:56:00 03/31/2011
Filed Under: Air Transport, Labour dispute, Government offices & agencies
MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) vowed to challenge before the Supreme Court Malacanang’s decision to uphold the outsourcing plan at the national flag carrier.PALEA president Gerry Rivera made the statement on Wednesday as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) tried to patch up for the second straight day the labor row between union and management that could lead to a strike as early as Saturday.
“The ruling of the Office of the President (OP) is not yet final and executory. We can still appeal that before the courts. I think the last arbiter would be the Supreme Court,” Rivera said in an interview.
He said even PAL management—before Malacanang released its decision allowing the outsourcing of 2,600 jobs—said that it would go to the courts if the Palace ruled against them.
“We just received the OP decision this Monday and we are now studying it to prepare an appeal before the court of Appeals or the High Court,” Rivera said.
The union leader also insisted that management has been refusing to negotiate for a new collecting bargaining agreement (CBA) with PALEA—the reason why the union has threatened to go on strike as early as this weekend.
Rivera explained that while PAL submitted its CBA counter-proposal on Monday, it included the ‘precondition” that the CBA should cover only those who would not be affected by its outsourcing plan.
“So, who will be left? I myself will be affected by the outsourcing plan. So, they are still refusing to negotiate. Our position is the CBA negotiation should be treated independently from other issues,” Rivera said.
“The CBA is a right of workers and the obligation of management so there should be no preconditions except for those that we agreed to,” he said.
“But they’re imposing this precondition…What if it takes the courts five years to rule on the (outsourcing) issue, does that mean we won’t have a CBA for the next five years? That is unacceptable,” he added.
Rivera said the DoLE officials suggested during the first conciliation hearing on Tuesday at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) that this precondition of PAL be removed but the issue remained unresolved.
Another mediation hearing was held Wednesday afternoon at the NCMB but Rivera said PAL president Jaime Bautista was not present because he left for New Delhi on Tuesday night with PAL owner Lucio Tan.
“With the (PAL) president absent, I don’t know if those present on their side have the authority to negotiate and seal agreements,” said Rivera, who also did not attend Wednesday’s hearing and sent only PALEA representatives and lawyers to the hearing.
PALEA last week held a strike vote and majority of its members agreed to go on strike due to the “refusal” of PAL management to negotiate a new CBA.
Rivera said that they submitted the results to DoLE last Friday, which meant that upon the end of the seven-day “strike ban” this Friday, PALEA would legally be able to on strike.
However, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz could assume jurisdiction over the labor case since a labor strike at the flag carrier could affect national interests. Such a move would ban any strike from breaking out at PAL.
“We’ll cross the bridge when we get there,” Rivera said, when asked what PALEA would do if Baldoz made such a move.
Philippine Daily Inquirer
First Posted 01:56:00 03/31/2011
Filed Under: Air Transport, Labour dispute, Government offices & agencies
MANILA, Philippines—The Philippine Airlines Employees Association (PALEA) vowed to challenge before the Supreme Court Malacanang’s decision to uphold the outsourcing plan at the national flag carrier.PALEA president Gerry Rivera made the statement on Wednesday as the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) tried to patch up for the second straight day the labor row between union and management that could lead to a strike as early as Saturday.
“The ruling of the Office of the President (OP) is not yet final and executory. We can still appeal that before the courts. I think the last arbiter would be the Supreme Court,” Rivera said in an interview.
He said even PAL management—before Malacanang released its decision allowing the outsourcing of 2,600 jobs—said that it would go to the courts if the Palace ruled against them.
“We just received the OP decision this Monday and we are now studying it to prepare an appeal before the court of Appeals or the High Court,” Rivera said.
The union leader also insisted that management has been refusing to negotiate for a new collecting bargaining agreement (CBA) with PALEA—the reason why the union has threatened to go on strike as early as this weekend.
Rivera explained that while PAL submitted its CBA counter-proposal on Monday, it included the ‘precondition” that the CBA should cover only those who would not be affected by its outsourcing plan.
“So, who will be left? I myself will be affected by the outsourcing plan. So, they are still refusing to negotiate. Our position is the CBA negotiation should be treated independently from other issues,” Rivera said.
“The CBA is a right of workers and the obligation of management so there should be no preconditions except for those that we agreed to,” he said.
“But they’re imposing this precondition…What if it takes the courts five years to rule on the (outsourcing) issue, does that mean we won’t have a CBA for the next five years? That is unacceptable,” he added.
Rivera said the DoLE officials suggested during the first conciliation hearing on Tuesday at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) that this precondition of PAL be removed but the issue remained unresolved.
Another mediation hearing was held Wednesday afternoon at the NCMB but Rivera said PAL president Jaime Bautista was not present because he left for New Delhi on Tuesday night with PAL owner Lucio Tan.
“With the (PAL) president absent, I don’t know if those present on their side have the authority to negotiate and seal agreements,” said Rivera, who also did not attend Wednesday’s hearing and sent only PALEA representatives and lawyers to the hearing.
PALEA last week held a strike vote and majority of its members agreed to go on strike due to the “refusal” of PAL management to negotiate a new CBA.
Rivera said that they submitted the results to DoLE last Friday, which meant that upon the end of the seven-day “strike ban” this Friday, PALEA would legally be able to on strike.
However, Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz could assume jurisdiction over the labor case since a labor strike at the flag carrier could affect national interests. Such a move would ban any strike from breaking out at PAL.
“We’ll cross the bridge when we get there,” Rivera said, when asked what PALEA would do if Baldoz made such a move.
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