Laborers protest working condition inside Hanjin

Some 300 workers from Hanjin Shipyard protested against unfair labor practice and maltreatment of workers inside the shipyard on Sunday.

The protest action in Subic was the end of a series of actions against Hanjin Shipyard

The workers also trooped to the Korean Embassy and the Department of Labor and Employment in Manila before proceeding to Subic town in Zambales for their protest caravan.

The protest caravan did not manage to get close to the shipyard gate in Subic after it was blocked by members of the Zambales police.

"Hanjin management's non-compliance to safety standards has put our lives in danger, making its shipyard a graveyard for some of us," said Joey Gonzales, secretary general of Samahan ng mga Manggagawa sa Hanjin Shipyard (Samahan).

After negotiations failed to let the protester near the main gate of Hanjin, the CBCP -- represented by Bishop Broderick Pabillo -- held a mass along the national highway leading to Hanjin.

The protest was also participated in by members of the Partido ng Manggagawa, Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines, Manggagawa para sa Kalayaan ng Bayan (Makabayan), and representatives from the Korean Workers Union and Hanjin Korean Union.

Decline in Philippine unionism alarms labor leaders

By Margaux Ortiz Philippine Daily Inquirer

MANILA, Philippines -- Pervasive contractualization and casualization of employment have weakened unionism among workers in the country and have left workers vulnerable to union-busting company owners.

This is according to an official of the National Union of Workers in the Hotel, Restaurant and Allied Industries (NUWHRAI), who said that the prevalence of labor contractualization has been contributing to the significant reduction of legitimate labor organizations.

“Workers' engagement in intermittent and short-term employment affects, not only their ability to earn livelihood, but also their productivity and quality of work,” Daniel Edralin, NUWHRAI secretary general, said.

Edralin added that less unionism "rendered workers' right to security of tenure meaningless.”

Edralin explained that with severely depleted memberships, unions have been finding it difficult to repel the union-busting actions and schemes of their employers.

“Consequently, the number of legitimate labor organizations continues to decline,” he said.

Edralin added that there has been a decrease in establishments with collective bargaining agreements (CBAs).

He said that based on government data, the number of legitimate labor organizations presently number to 17,021, with a membership of 1,918,000.

“This is insignificant when one considers that we have 783,065 establishments with a total workforce of 33,695,000 in the Philippines today,” Edralin pointed out.

He added that of the 17,021 establishments with legitimate labor organizations, only 1,542 legitimate labor organizations were able to secure CBAs in 2007.

Edralin pointed out that this decreased from 1,670 in 2006.

“This insignificant number of CBAs benefited only 218,000 workers, a reduction from the 236,000 workers in 2006—both far below our total 33 million workforce,” he said.

Edralin disclosed that in the 1990s, around 550,000 workers were covered by these agreements.