Gov’t workers hit order on negotiations moratorium

Unionized workers in the public sector have called on President Arroyo to withdraw her recent pronouncement on moratorium on collective negotiation agreements, saying it is "violative and oppressive to the lowly workers."

In a memorandum to her Cabinet on March 19, Mrs. Arroyo declared a moratorium on collective negotiations and payments on collective negotiation agreement until all the issues are resolved and a policy proclaimed.

"The memo is illegal, invalid and a form of interference on the fundamental aspect of the freedom of association," Emako Mercedita Naldoza, national chairperson of the Confederation of Independent Unions in the Public Sector, said.

She added that "unions must have the opportunity to exercise its right without being unduly hampered by legal restrictions, more so, by a mere memorandum."

The group said that trade union rights like collective bargaining or negotiation must be preserved in order to carry on the labor movement’s fundamental and permanent mission which is economic and social advancement of workers. – Nestor Etolle, Mayen Jaymalin