6K Workers Get P1B in Settled Disputes

The labor department has sustained a stable industrial climate by resolving cases involving P956,983,178.04 in collective bargaining benefits and other monetary claims covering 6,095 workers from January to June 2019.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said the labor disputes were settled using alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms that ensure integrity, efficiency, and fairness and bereft of the long legal proceedings in labor row resolution.

“Alternative dispute resolution is our strategy in ensuring speedy delivery of labor justice. DOLE stands firm on sustaining industrial peace through the fast settlement of labor disputes,” he said.

Officer-in-Charge Maria Teresita Cancio of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) reported that 1,892 requests for assistance (RFAs) on Single Entry Approach (SEnA) were settled resulting to P140,156,665.69 monetary benefit to 2,799 workers.

Also, 8 cases out of 12 handled cases on actual strikes/lockout were settled and resulted to P3,524,508 benefits to 86 workers, the NCMB Officer-in-Charge added.

Meanwhile, 82 cases on the notices of strike/lockout (NS/L) were settled with monetary benefits amounting to P227,418,761 to 2,337 workers.

She added that the decrease in work-disruptive industrial dispute resulted to 1,151,716 man-days saved.

On the preventive meditation (PM), Cancio said the NCMB resolved 241 cases of the 300 handled cases resulting to P15,635,929 monetary benefits to 685 workers.

On the voluntary arbitration (VA), NCMB handled 672 cases and disposed 185 VA cases resulting to P570,247,314.35 monetary benefits to 188 workers.

The labor secretary meanwhile underscored the importance of Labor Management Cooperations (LMCs) and Grievance Machineries (GM) in companies that helped in resolving disputes through its promotion of good labor-management relations.

Bello said 3,415 companies with LMCs and 3,674 companies with active GMs did not report any cases of actual strike/lockout, notice of strike/lockout, and preventive meditation during the period. (DOLE PR)