‘Regularization order exists only on paper’ – Tanduay workers

MANILA – Tanduay workers vow to continue with their strike at the Cabuyao plant in Laguna as their main call for regularization, which prompted their struggle, remains unanswered to this day.

Now on their 45th day at the picketline, the association leading the strike, TUDLA or Tanggulang Ugnayan Daluyang Lakas ng Anakpawis sa Tanduay Distillers Inc., has already received the Labor Department decision on their case a week ago, but the favorable response to their demand “still exists only on paper” as of today July 1.

Last June 26, a month and 10 days into their strike, Tanduay workers cheered when they received the decision from the Department of Labor and Employment (DoLE) Region IV-A. Stated in the 20-page decision was the Labor Department’s order to regularize as Tanduay’s own employees 103 workers supplied to Tanduay by Global Pro and HD service cooperatives.

The decision also ordered the said service cooperative and Tanduay “to observe compliance with provisions of Department Order No. 18-A, particularly, on the labor services being farmed out or outsourced by the principal.” This refers to the Labor Department’s findings that there is an illegal labor-only contracting happening in Tanduay. TUDLA said 397 workers are affected – they have become permanent contractual employees receiving lower than minimum pay, less benefits and no job security or democratic rights at Tanduay despite having worked there for up to 11 years continuously.

Tanduay Distillers Inc reported an unaudited profit of P101 million ($2.2 million) by end 2014. Its disclosure to the Securities and Exchange Commission as of Dec 2013 said it has a total of 1,296 full-time employees, of which 1,045 are contractuals.  It has three bottling plants in the country located in Cabuyao, Laguna, Bacolod City in Negros, and El Salvador in Misamis Oriental.

Tanduay dominates the rhum market in the Philippines, supplying up to 99 percent of rhum being sold in the country. Urging boycott of Tanduay products Ansi Are, president of TUD LA, welcomed the Labor Department decision, calling it “a concrete victory of workers’ collective action” and an inspiration for all contractual workers trying to organize associations and unions. But he warned, too, that the decision is “divisive,” as it expects them to give up the fight when only 103 or just a fourth of all contractual workers in Tanduay’s Cabuyao plant are ordered for regularization.

Tanduay has nearly 400 contractuals in its Cabuyao plant. Based on previous Bulatlat.com interviews with workers there, the rhum factory terminated its longtime regular workers when it moved production from Manila to Laguna since late 2000’s. This followed the entry in Tanduay of business tycoon Lucio Tan, the second richest billionaire in the Philippines as ranked by Forbes magazine.

In Laguna, the bulk or 90 percent of Tanduay’s work-force come from third-party service cooperatives doing labor-only contracting, an illegal act in the country. Just one in every ten workers in Tanduay is regular. (Bulatlat.com)