Security for Media Workers, Retirement Benefits Now! : NABU-SENTRO Statement on the Retirement Benefits of IBC 13’s Retirees

Workers deserve dignified retirement, especially those that have tirelessly worked for their career and family. No worker should spend their senior years worrying about their financial security, even after decades as part of the labor force. Yet, despite the contribution and sacrifices by employees for economic prosperity, many are unable to receive the benefits of their labor. Too many retirees have had their retirement benefits withheld and denied at the hands of irresponsible employers – both in the private and public sectors.

The National Alliance of Broadcast Unions – Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (NABU-SENTRO) strongly condemns the fact that 131 retired IBC 13 employees have yet to receive their retirement benefits for their service from 1982-2019. We echo the request of the IBC management for the government to commit 346 million pesos for the company’s retirees.

To continue to delay the payment of the retirement benefits is an unacceptable injustice to our media workers. Many have already died before receiving the benefits of their work. Many more are struggling today, especially with the continuous impact of the Covid-19 pandemic. We cannot sit idly by as former media workers, whose jobs had them bring injustices to light, are suffering in silence.

NABU-SENTRO calls on all lawmakers to incorporate the retirement benefits of the IBC 13 retirees to the 2022 national budget. Both chambers of Congress must ensure that the 346 million pesos needed by the retired media workers is inserted into the final budget. Our legislators should no longer tolerate the plight of these workers, especially when they have the power to correct this injustice.

Justice for IBC retirees! Retirement Benefits now!

Sentro laments politicians’ continued disregard of workers’ welfare

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SENTRO believes that working people are not puppets to be used by oligarchs for their political interests. We are human beings with our own issues, concerns and collective aspirations for our families and country.

We will not be deceived by the false promises being offered us by the likes of Defensor, Marcoleta and Remulla regarding turning over ABSCBN’s operations to workers. We see this as nothing but a ploy aimed at sowing division among progressives and supporters of ABSCBN.

While our social vision dreams of a sociey governed and self-managed by working people, we have no illusions that this will come about through the benevolence of the ruling elite. How can we believe the words of the same people resonsible for robbing 11,000 ABSCBN workers of their jobs and the continous disregard for the welfare of the ordinary people we have been living through for decades?

If these politicians are indeed sincere in their proposal for worker’s management of ABS-CBN, then why did they wait for its closure and the massive public backlash that followed to present the idea?

Labor had already proposed a systematic solution to longstanding labor issues in ABSCBN and the broader broadcast industry through a pro-worker franchise. Such a franchise would have included explicit provisions that protect worker’s rights and guarantee two seats in the board of directors – already these are steps towards preparing workers for self-management. Why didn’t the three representatives propose their current suggestion during the hearings where it would have directed the flow of the franchise committee’s discussion?

SENTRO, together with the National Alliance of Broadcast Unions (NABU), and the ABSCBN rank-and-file employee’s union (ABSCBNRFEU) refuse to be made pawns by oligarchic interests. We will continue to demand the reopening of ABSCBN within the broader context of our fight for press freedom and worker’s wefare against tyranny, authoritarianism, and oligarchy.

Worker’s Statement on the Legislative Franchise Committee Vote: Solidarity with ABS-CBN, Continue the Fight!

The Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO), together with the National Alliance of Broadcast Unions (NABU), and the rest of the nation stand together with our fellow Filipinos in the ABS-CBN Rank and File Union (ABSCBNRFEU), as well as all of the workers, reporters, and talents that tirelessly continue to work in service of the Filipino despite the immense struggle that they face today.

The working people behind ABS-CBN’s operations deserve nothing but our utmost gratitude for the decades of service that they have given to the nation. ABS-CBN is responsible for the countless hours of entertainment and the provision of valuable news and information that we have come to rely upon. ABS-CBN’s programs and coverage of current events have become a staple of our everyday lives. The media company, for better or for worse, truly is an important part of the Filipino community. It is saddening that the House of Representatives has decided to repay this act of service with a disgusting display of indifference and opportunism by voting to shutdown ABS-CBN in the midst of a global pandemic.

We will never forget this historic betrayal by the members of the House of Representatives. Rather than voting for the interests of the Filipino people and the welfare of over 11,000 workers as well as their families, the Representatives of the lower house have chosen to serve their political interests. It is unforgivable for us that the legitimate hurt felt by broadcast workers demonstrated in the franchise committee hearings was used to justify the wholesale attack on the jobs of thousands of ABS-CBN workers. Instead of working on genuine solutions for problematic labor practices in ABS-CBN and across the broadcast industry, the representatives that voted today did so for their own personal benefit, in accordance with the wishes of Malacañang.

While ABS-CBN’s personnel stand to hurt the most with the corporation’s indefinite shutdown, the damage does not end here. For the millions of Filipinos that have come to rely on the media corporation, the shutdown means the loss of access to decades of entertainment and reliable information. Many restaurants and businesses that have sprawled around the numerous offices of ABS-CBN, catering to its huge workforce nationwide and forming complex social networks with one another, also face the prospect of bankruptcy in this moment of national uncertainty. In this context, ABS-CBN’s shutdown is also a huge personal blow to many of our communities across the country.

For SENTRO-NABU-ABSCBNRFEU, it is unthinkable to simply let ABS-CBN go dark without a fight. We call on all Filipinos to repay the service of the corporation and it’s thousands of workers with our solidarity. Let us hold those responsible for this attack on everyday Filipinos accountable for their actions. We urge all those that are sad, angry, and frustrated with the decision to speak up in our homes, offices, communities, organizations, and in the streets in protest. Let us keep our resistance alive. Let us show those in power that we will not let them act with impunity. Keep ABS-CBN and its workers in our prayers and actions, as we continue to confront the shadow of tyranny that relentlessly tries to intimidate us into silence.

Labor Group Bats for Pro-Worker Franchise for ABS-CBN

In today’s committee hearing of the House of Representatives on the ABS-CBN franchise renewal, the Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) pressed for the passage a pro-worker franchise for the beleaguered company.

“We stand in solidarity with the more than 11,000 employees, talents, and technical personnel whose livelihood and employment are put at risk by the non-renewal of ABS-CBN’s media franchise,” Benjamin Alvero, SENTRO Campaign Officer, said during the hearing.

“We believe that worker’s welfare should be placed at the center of the discussions on the franchise. To have around eleven thousand workers facing uncertainty in employment in the midst of a global pandemic is immoral, inhumane, and plainly wrong,” Alvero said. “Worker’s security, especially during this moment, should not be risked in addressing perceived problems our legislators have with ABS-CBN,” he added.

Specifically, SENTRO proposed that the franchise bill should contain specific provisions that would “guarantee respect for workers’ and trade union rights, including the workers’ rights to self-organization, collective bargaining and negotiations, and peaceful concerted activities, including the right to strike in accordance with law.” It also calls for guarantees that “workers are entitled to full employment, equality of opportunities, security of tenure, humane conditions of work, and a just share in the grantee’s fruits of operation.”

It its submission, SENTRO also calls for a provision that would grant workers’ representation in the company’s board of directors.

SENTRO said in its statement that, “inserting these provisions to the legislative franchise is ultimately beneficial to ABS-CBN.” After all, the company itself admitted that it is not perfect and that it is committed to “assure the public that we strive to maintain the highest level of integrity as we work to deliver services that many Filipinos believe to be important and meaningful” (Philippine Daily Inquirer, 2020).

At least 300 workers of ABS-CBN are members of the ABS-CBN Rank-and-File Union (ABSCBNRFEU), which is an affiliate of the National Alliance of Broadcast Unions (NABU), which is in turn a member of the the Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO).

Broadcast Workers ask: Mr Cayetano, what have the workers of ABS-CBN ever done to you?

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The National Alliance of Broadcast Unions (NABU-SENTRO-UNI) asks Speaker Cayetano a simple question, “Ano ba’ng nagawa sa kaniya ng mga manggagawa ng ABS-CBN?” (what have the workers of ABS-CBN done to him?).

The House speaker’s recent withdrawal of the provisional franchise has once again thrust around 11,000 workers to uncertainty. While the speaker has cited plenty of reasons to justify the decision, we workers respond simply by asking the Honorable Congressman: Why are ABS-CBN workers being punished for the supposed mistakes by the company or other legal complications arising from the current discussion on the franchise?

We would like to remind the members of Congress that the delayed renewal of ABS-CBN’s franchise and the looming mass lay-off of thousands of its workers is playing out in the context of a global pandemic. Where will the affected workers and their families go? Will government be able to provide for the needs of these people that will soon lose their financial security?

The very real anxiety of these workers over the prolonged indecision on the franchise is immoral and inhuman. No one should be afraid of losing their jobs, especially during a national crisis.

Regardless of who holds the helm in the media entity, the security of its workers should not be up for debate. It is unfortunate that under the current situation, ABS-CBN’s workers are de facto being held hostage by Congress’ inaction on the franchise renewal.

NABU-SENTRO-UNI calls on Speaker Cayetano, the House leadership, and all lawmakers to assure the employment of the thousands affected by committing to a reasonable timeframe for ABS-CBN’s franchise renewal. In addition, we reiterate the call for the inclusion of explicitly pro-worker provisions in the franchise to uphold worker’s rights in the company.

ABS-CBN’s workers are responsible for the delivery of news, services, and entertainment to millions of our countrymen. To abandon them in this moment of national uncertainty is an insult to their humanity and a profound disservice by our government.

The National Alliance of Broadcast Unions is an affiliate of Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) and the UNI Global Union (UNI).