Some thirty labor leaders, representing 14 national and enterprise-level unions, urge employers and government to institute and accelerate productivity improvements, equitable profit and gain sharing schemes, and compliance with and respect for core labor standards.
The call comes with union commitment to pursue social dialogue and constructive industrial relations in their respective workplaces.
The call is a result of the TUCP-led five-day national workshop on “Productivity, Constructive Industrial Relations, and Labor Management Cooperation,” held on 23-27 July 2013 at Bayview Park Hotel in Manila, in collaboration with the Japan International Labor Foundation and the Workers Development Foundation, Inc. (WDFI) and Japan Productivity Center (JPC).
The workshop aimed to help unions appreciate current labor market and employment realities and developments in corporate social responsibility practices; promotion of decent work principles and compliance with core labor standards of the International Labor Organization; enhancement of productivity programs through “5S” (Seiri, Seiton, Seiso, Seiketsu and Shitsuke)
and kaizen; social dialogue and collective bargaining.
It also looked at the strategic roles of trade unions in the implementation of union-led productivity activities and in achieving equitable share of workers from the gains of production and productivity.
JILAF Executive Director Hisashige Danno shared important insights and experiences of Japanese trade unions related to the workshop theme. He discussed the Japanese concept “shunto” (spring offensive) and described their successes in achieving wage increases and gain sharing at the industry and national levels.
JPC Adviser Yasuhiko Inoue provided technical inputs on the 5S, kaizen, and in defining and measuring productivity through internationally accepted standards and principles. He guided the participants in the practical application of 5S through a field visit at the wheel chair manufacturing, medicine packaging section, and wood work production areas of Tahanang Walang Hagdanaan in Cainta, Rizal.
“We seriously take unions’ role in productivity improvements, including in increasing their understanding and competency to implement productivity activities,” says former Senator and TUCP-ITUC President Ernesto F. Herrera.
“It cannot be said that unions are mere rabble rousers,” says Herrera.
“Unions and workers are indispensable players in creating wealth, in sustaining employment, and in ensuring viability of business and companies. Our contributions to the economy and national development are huge. We expect fair return for our efforts,” says Herrera.
Participants in the workshop developed individual work plans on integrating productivity improvements in their respective companies. This includes negotiating for workers’ fair share in profits and gains in collective bargaining agreements, further capacity-building for unions in improving and measuring productivity, and workers’ participation in policy dialogues and decision making.
The Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) –the largest trade union confederation in the country –is an affiliate of the Brussels-based International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) and its Singapore-based Asia Pacific (ITUC AP) regional organization.
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