Lepanto Workers’ Woes Not Yet Over

The problems of the Lepanto Employees Union (LEU) regarding their unpaid Social Security System (SSS) premiums, PAG-IBIG contributions and salary loan payments are not yet over. The LEU, which is affiliated with the National Federation of Labor Unions (NAFLU) and the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU or May First Movement) found out that the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) did not remit the contributions and payments of 1,683 workers despite regular deductions from their monthly wages.

BY ALDWIN QUITASOL
Northern Dispatch
Posted by Bulatlat

BAGUIO CITY – The problems of Lepanto Employees Union (LEU) regarding their unpaid Social Security System (SSS) premiums, PAG-IBIG contributions and salary loan payments are not yet over. The LEU, which is affiliated with the National Federation of Labor Unions (NAFLU) and the Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU or May First Movement) found out that the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) did not remit the contributions and payments of 1,683 workers despite regular deductions from their monthly wages.

LEU president Christopher Bautista, in a letter to the managers of SSS and PAG-IBIG branches in Baguio City, asked for an investigation on the said matter. He said that the law provides that employers should submit premiums deducted from their employees’ salaries, but his members complain that Lepanto did not remit deducted payments.

The union requested the two offices to provide certificates to verify the remittance or non-remittances of premiums from Lepanto management.

Lepanto mineworkers had gone on strike some six months ago due to a deadlock in their collective bargaining agreement (CBA).  Other issues raised by the union include the non-remittance of SSS and PAG-IBIG contributions and loan payments. The strike ended after more than three months with the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the union and the management, in which the management agreed to resolve the issues regarding the workers’ benefits.

On the other hand, LEU officers expressed concerns that the company has not paid the long-overdue P11 million-worth of back wages of workers who went on strike, as agreed upon in the MOA. Bautista said that the response of management is that they are still looking for funds to pay the workers.

LEU secretary Alejandro Sulang added that management is not releasing the union dues collected from their members.

“Ti kayat mi koma a ket maiiggeman mi diay pondo mi a naggapu met lang iti pinagrigatan mi tapno adda ti maaramid mi a proyekto para ti union mi” (We want to hold our funds, funds that came from our hard labor, so we can proceed with our union projects) said Sulang.

Bautista further said that whenever they need finances, they have to write a letter of request to the management and specify the amount and their purpose.

KMU-Cordillera regional coordinator Lorico “Ka Jun” Espejo criticized the Lepanto management for holding the funds of the union.  He stressed that the management has no right to control the workers’ funds. He added that it is the management’s obligation to collect union dues and remit it to the union, unless there is a court order preventing them from doing so. Nordis/Posted by Bulatlat

© 2006 Bulatlat ■  Alipato Publications

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