This story
was taken from Bulatlat, the Philippines's alternative weekly
newsmagazine (www.bulatlat.com, www.bulatlat.net, www.bulatlat.org).
Vol. V, No. 32, September 18-24, 2005
Thanksgiving, Tributes Exude
Hope for Miners’ Union
Mineworkers of the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) and their
families staged a cañao at the Union Hall on Sept. 10 and 11 as a
thanksgiving ritual for the gains of the three-month strike. Union members gave
their dismissed officers the highest tributes for sacrificing their jobs for the
good of the workers and their families.
BY Kim Quitasol MANKAYAN, Benguet —
Mineworkers of the Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) and their
families staged a cañao at the Union Hall here, on Sept. 10 and 11 as a
thanksgiving ritual for the gains of the three-month strike. Union members gave
their dismissed officers the highest tributes for sacrificing their jobs for the
good of the majority. (Cañao, part of indigenous culture, involves the
slaughtering of a pig and dance and is officiated by the mumbaki or
native spiritualist.) On Sept. 11, thanksgiving
rituals were performed simultaneously in four picket lines where the workers
officially dismantled the barricades. At around 4 p.m. the workers opened the
mill site gate, signifying the workers’ sincerity to end the strike. The mill site picket line
suffered the most violent dispersals from the hands of the Philippine National
Police (PNP) which however failed to break the picket. The police were unable to
escort the supply delivery vehicles into the mill site during the strike. A Memorandum of Agreement (MoA)
between the union and management was signed on Sept. 10 at the LEU hall,
resolving the three-month strike. The agreement, however, terminated 19 LEU
officers. The picket lines lifted,
the 1,600 striking workers went back to work Sept. 12. But the Lepanto Employees
Union (LEU) in a statement said they remain united in the fight for better wages
and benefits, says. LEU president Ninian Lang-agan
said the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) has yet to be inked and
negotiations would still push through. Unity “Our unity will be like a
woven buri hat that will protect us in our pursuit for our rights and
welfare,” he said in Ilokano. Lang-agan added that as long as the union exists,
the workers have a venue to fight for their rights and welfare. He explained that the
laid-off officers will still represent the workers in the CBA negotiations and
will assume the same positions until new officers are elected as recognized in
the MoA between the LEU and Lepanto representatives. Lang-agan explained that
the officers considered the hundreds of families who would be affected should
Lepanto Consolidated Mining Company (Lepanto) continue to terminate workers
because of the strike. On the other hand, the MoA
compelled Lepanto to reinstate all other dismissed workers and not to take any
retaliatory actions against those who joined the strike. The agreement also
instructed both parties to “take steps to promote industrial harmony” and for
the company to drop all pending complaints and cases related to the strike filed
against the workers. Lawyers Ronald Recidero and
Teddy Rigoroso signed the MoA in behalf of Lepanto. Signing for the LEU were
Lang-agan, and 18 other union officers, namely Julio Cawilan, secretary; Ronald
Maslian, auditor; William Apos, treasurer; Dante Balwog, assistant treasurer;
Haig Mangaoang, business manager and union board of directors Julio Papat,
Vicente Dilem, Raymund Papat, Richard Gacula, Jerry Macuroy, Eden Laolawi,
Rodrigo Ngeteg, Laurence Farrong, Francisco Dida, Domingo Olaget, Pedro Kiray,
Henry Foy-os and Cornelio Toacan. Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU)-Cordillera
Coordinator Lorico Espejo Jr. signed as a witness, assisted by lawyer Thomas
Bayugan. Northern Dispatch/Posted by Bulatlat © 2005 Bulatlat
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CBA
negotiation on-going
Northern Dispatch
Posted by Bulatlat