HACIENDA LUISITA — Protesting laborers and farm workers here, joined by their respective families and reinforced by militant activists, have practically taken control over nearly all movements in this sprawling sugar estate owned by the family of former President Corazon Aquino.
Full story...
Luisita resumes milling operations as tension eases
HACIENDA LUISITA — Tension has somewhat eased in this 6,000-hectare sugar plantation, as the ranks of the protesters who locked up the refinery during the weekend have thinned out, allowing the Central Azucarera de Tarlac (CAT) to resume its milling operations noontime Monday.
Full story...
Truck attacks force Luisita mill closure anew
HACIENDA LUISITA — The “violent and destructive” actions being carried out by alleged “troublemakers” among the ranks of protesters here has forced Luzon’s biggest sugar mill to shutdown anew its operations Tuesday morning, after these were briefly resumed around noontime last Monday.
Full story...
7-month long Rabbit strike ends
TARLAC CITY — The almost seven-month long strike in one of the country’s oldest transport company finally came to an end, as the Philippine Rabbit Bus Lines (PRBL) commenced plying major routes from Metro Manila to Central and Northern Luzon again.
Subic allows FedEx to operate ecozone hub until 2013
TARLAC CITY — The Subic Bay Metropolitan Authority (SBMA) has recently decided to extend the lease contract of air courier giant, the Federal Express (FedEx), up to August 2010.
Int’l media watchdog: RP hostile for journalists
TARLAC CITY — Although the country has a “free and lively press,” the Philippines has been counted by the Paris-based international media watchdog as one of the places most hostile to journalists.
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The Tarlac Headlines News Central displays all the news of our latest issues.
Nov. 1 - 21, 2004
7-month long Rabbit strike ends
TARLAC CITY — The almost seven-month long strike in one of the country’s oldest transport company finally came to an end, as the Philippine Rabbit Bus Lines (PRBL) commenced plying major routes from Metro Manila to Central and Northern Luzon again.
Following a decision by the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) that the protest action carried out by a faction of the Philippine Rabbit Bus Employees Union (PRBEU) was “illegal,” the bus firm opened up last Friday with its vehicles once more ferrying commuters.
But of its fleet of more than 200 buses, management said that it was still in a “dry-run” operation, for which only about 50 percent of its vehicles went back on the road.
It was last April 3, this year’s first day of the Holy Week, when a faction of the PRBEU paralyzed the firm’s operations.
Aside from asserting that the management should recognize the faction’s leaders, especially their purported president, Alan Bagtong, as the workers “legitimate representatives” in bargaining agreement talks, the rallyists sought for, among others, the implementation of Wage Order No. 6; the remittance of social security premiums; the release of benefits to those who would avail of the firm’s compulsory retirement program; and, the granting of the 25 percent of the employees’ 13th month pay for 2003.
In the NLRC’s decision, the protesters’ demands were dismissed, as it noted that these were already “moot-and-academic” since the management was already carrying these out.
On the other hand, the firm has refused to act on the strikers’ demand that Bagtong and his group be recognized as the PRBL employees’ leaders, pointing out that this was an intra-union dispute and that the appropriate body that should resolve this should be the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
But in a recent development, the striking faction of the PRBEU released a copy of a memorandum-of-agreement that bore the signatures of Bagtong and Nicholo Nisce, the PRBL’s president and chief executive officer.
The said two-page “agreement,” written in Filipino, reiterated the workers’ strike demands, including a provision that the PRBL will not institute retaliatory measures against them, and that the firm will hold a monthly dialogue with faction leaders at least once a month “to ensure order and create a better relationship between the workers and management.”
Another provision in the supposed pact was that the PRBEU will hold an election for its officers that will be supervised by the DOLE, where management will not interfere, and that all of those who participated in the strike will be allowed by the firm to return to work, with their positions and benefits intact.
It was however learned that other management officials were unaware of the agreement supposedly entered into by Nisce, who is also a provincial board member here.
Nisce could not be contacted on his mobile phone until Tuesday.
For under the NLRC’s ruling, Bagtong and 12 other rally leaders were told to be subjected to dismissal proceedings for staging the “illegal strike.”
It was last Oct. 21 when the “agreement” was signed by Nisce and Bagtong.
Although the picketline here was already dismantled by the strikers, there were those who painted on walls, “Tuloy ang welga (The strike continues).” But most of the PRBL’s workers went on to report for work.
The PRBL, which was founded in this city by the Nisce and Paras families, is one of the country’s oldest bus companies, having been in operation for more than half a century now.
[back]
Luisita strikers to
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remittances built[Full story...]Protesters take control of Hacienda Luisita[Full story...]Luisita resumes milling operations as tension eases[Full story...]Truck attacks force Luisita mill closure anew[Full story...]Reds, Church group back Luisita protests[Full story...]Tarlac dads help in averting violence at Luisita[Full story...]Subic allows FedEx to operate ecozone hub until 2013[Full story...]
Int’l media watchdog: RP hostile for journalists[Full story...]
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