Many PAL workers opt for retirement package

MANILA, Philippines – Many Philippine Airlines (PAL) employees are willing to avail themselves of the retirement package being offered by the airline company and would rather not join the impending strike.

PAL president Jaime Bautista said about 20 percent of the 2,600 employees to be affected by the planned spinoff have expressed their intention to accept the retirement package.

“Since Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz came out with the ruling allowing PAL’s restructuring, about 400 to 500 employees have come to us and inquired about the retirement package and we to have told them to just submit their letter of intent if they want to avail of the package,” Bautista disclosed.

According to Bautista, the high number of employees who expressed their intention to accept the retirement offer belied the allegations of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) that the management has been forcing the workers to accept the package.

Although many employees would like to avail themselves of the retirement package, Bautista said PAL could not yet implement the planned spinoff because they have yet to formulate the guidelines for the program implementation.

Bautista added that PAL management also needs to ready about P2 billion for the payment of the retirement package of employees hopefully early next year.

“Before the implementation of the program, we also want to discuss with the affected employees the guidelines so there could be a smooth turnover,” Bautista pointed out.

But PALEA members announced that they are pushing with their planned strike within the week to protest PAL management’s alleged unfair labor practices, including harassment of employees to force them to accept the retirement package.

Last week, more than 80 percent of PALEA members nationwide voted in favor of a strike.

Bautista, however, expressed confidence that only a limited number of PAL employees would join if the planned strike pushes through.

Most PAL employees would not join the planned strike simply to avoid the possibility of losing their mandated benefits as well as chances of getting rehired if the work stoppage would be declared illegal.

“A wildcat strike or a slowdown of operations are considered strike which can be declared as illegal and eventually used as a legal ground to terminate the employees,” Bautista explained.

“They would not be able to get their benefits if proven that their strike is illegal. That is why many of employees would rather not join the work stoppage even if they voted in favor of the strike. Voting in favor of strike and actual participation are different issues,” he added.

Bautista assured that contingency measures are already in place if the employees go on strike.

He said PAL could easily get service providers to replace the striking employees so they don’t expect the work stoppage to paralyze the airline is operations. –Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)