MANILA — Workers of NXP Semiconductors in Cabuyao, Laguna picketed yesterday the main gate of the Light Industry Science Park I to protest the allegedly illegal dismissal of 24 union officials and to call for the resumption of their collective bargaining negotiation. Around 300 workers from NXP, from other companies inside and outside the industrial…
NXP Semi-conductors, Inc. accused the workers of holding an ‘illegal strike’ because they refused to work on April 9, 17, 18 and May 1, all government-declared holidays.
“The management is harassing and threatening workers, telling them they held a concerted action — an illegal strike — when the workers only elected to respect the Philippine holiday. They’re just forcing us to work.”
Prior to the specter of a U.S. recession, the Arroyo government had been making much of the historically unprecedented but unsustainable appreciation of the peso. She’s been crediting it to her fiscal managers and “good economic fundamentals.” But Labog says these economic fundamentals cannot be good if they are hurting the very people who should…