Fewer, shorter strikes in 2009 than 2008 – NCMB

CEBU, Philippines – The number of notices of strike filed before the National Conciliation and Mediation Board from January to August this year is lesser compared to the same period last year, data from the NCMB show.

Records from NCMB showed the office has docketed only 208 notices of strike have been filed from January to August 31, 2009, which is 21 percent lower than the 263 notices filed by various labor groups in the same period in 2008.

Department of Labor and Employment Secretary Marianito Roque also said that aside from the decline in the number of notices, the number of labor disputes that ended in strikes have also reportedly gone down.

Roque said the data is “a testament to the stability of the country’s labor relations climate.”

Roque said the notices of strike filed this year involved 44,436 workers, comparably fewer than last year’s 48,651.

Likewise, preventive mediation cases also declined by 11 percent- from 368 cases last year to 329 this year.

NCMB recorded four strikes from January to August this year that lasted an average of three days each. Five strikes were recorded in the same period last year. Roque said NCMB has been exerting effort to settle the strikes and prevent further disruptions of activities at the industrial front.

Roque further said NCMB’s proactive programs on workplace relations enhancement and workplace dispute resolution mechanisms have played a great part in the reduction of labor disputes. — Mitchelle L. Palaubsanon/JMO/FREEMAN NEWS)