Govt stops PAL strike

THE Labor Department has assumed jurisdiction over the outsourcing dispute within Philippine Airlines, stopping the labor union from striking and ordering its management to “refrain from committing any act that might exacerbate the situation.”

Labor Secretary Marianito Roque also summoned representatives of the airline and the PAL Employees Association to appear Friday before Undersecretary for Labor Relations Rosalinda Baldoz for a new round of dispute resolution.

Roque’s April 23 order directed PAL to hold off the planned outsourcing of in-flight catering, call center reservations and cargo handling services.

The airline’s union filed a notice of strike in late January to protest the flag carrier’s plan to outsource around 3,500 jobs.

But airline president Jaime Bautista said the carrier needed to trim its 7,000-plus workforce to around 4,000 by the end of the year to survive.

The call-center contract with ePLDT Ventus, which started taking calls from the airline’s customers on March 16, was not covered by the Labor secretary’s April 23 order, Bautista said.

Union president Gerardo Rivera said his group was not open to any agreement with the carrier other than retaining their employment under its management.

“We have no choice but to fight back,” Rivera said in a telephone interview.

An airline official said the carrier had already chosen LSG Sky Chefs, a Lufthansa subsidiary, to provide catering services, and Sky Logistics for ground and cargo-handling services starting June 1.

The airline said outsourcing the three non-core services would save up to $1 billion in operating costs.

The carrier reported a net loss of $40.2 million in the first nine months of the fiscal year ended in December from a net loss of $330.2 million a year earlier.

Revenues rose 15 percent to $1.08 billion, but expenses, at $1.1 billion, squeezed the cash flow, threatening debt payments to foreign creditors.

The airline carried 7.02 million passengers during the period, up 7.3 percent from 6.54 million. –Jeremiah F. de Guzman with Vito Barcelo, Manila Standard Today