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Lepanto workers’ woe not yet over

BAGUIO CITY (Feb. 9) — The problems of the Lepanto Employees Union-National Federation of Labor Unions-Kilusang Mayo Uno (LEU-NAFLU-KMU) on their unpaid Social Security System (SSS) premiums, PAG-IBIG contributions and salary loan payments are not yet over. LEU-NAFLU-KMU found out that the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) did not remit the said contributions and payments of 1,683 workers despite regular deductions from their monthly wages.

LEU President Christopher Bautista in his letter to the managers of Baguio City branches of the SSS and PAG-IBIG asked an investigation on the said matter. He said that it is in the law that employers should submit premiums deducted from their employees’ salaries, but his members complain that Lepanto did not remit deducted payments.

The union requested the two offices to provide certificates to verify the remittance or non-remittances of premiums from Lepanto management.

Barely 6 months ago had Lepanto mineworkers gone on strike due to a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) deadlock including non-remittance of SSS and PAG-IBIG contributions and loan payments. The strike ended after more than three months with the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between the union and the management where the management agreed to resolve the workers’ benefits.

On the other hand, LEU officers expressed concerns on the long overdue P11 million-worth back wages of workers who went on strike, as agreed upon in the MOA. Bautista said the management has been saying that they are still looking for funds to pay the workers.

LEU secretary Alejandro Sulang added that the management is not releasing the union dues collected from their members.

“Ti kayat mi koma a ket maiiggeman mi diay pondo mi a naggapu met lang iti pinagrigatan mi tapno adda ti maaramid mi a proyekto para ti union mi,” (We want to hold our funds, funds that came from our hard labor, so we can proceed with our union projects) said Sulang.

Bautista further said that whenever they need finances, they have to write a letter of request to the management and specify the amount and their purpose.

KMU-Cordillera regional coordinator Lorico “Ka Jun” Espejo criticized the Lepanto management for holding the funds of the union. He stressed that the management has no right to do such thing, to control the workers’ money. He added that it is the management’s obligation to collect union dues and submit it to the respective union, unless there is a court order. # Aldwin Quitasol for NORDIS

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