Lack of Pilots forces PAL to cancel flights

**Monseratto** · September 28th, 2011 09:31 AM

Mag reresume ulit yung sitdown strike ng PALEA today. Almost a hundred international flights are cancelled. Only a dozen flights will proceed. What PALEA is betting on would be Malacanang's interferance "in the nation's interest", para ma status quo yung employment nila. Hangang end of the month na lang yung 2,000 of the 2,600 PALEA kasi.

Wildcat strike paralyzes PAL operations - The Philippine Star » News » Headlines

Wildcat strike paralyzes PAL operations
By Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)
Updated September 28, 2011 12:00 AM

MANILA, Philippines - Philippine Airlines (PAL) suspended all flights yesterday after airline employees went on strike to protest the impending termination of 2,600 workers.

PAL spokesperson Cielo Villaluna said the company’s management cancelled the flights after members of the PAL Employees Association (PALEA) refused to work.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz immediately sent a team to initiate a conciliation meeting and resolve the labor dispute.

“We have to call the conciliation meeting so we can come out with a possible agreement between PAL management and the union members and be able to immediately normalize the airline operations,” Baldoz said.

Up to 172 PAL domestic and international flights were reportedly affected.

Airport security guards with the help of members of the Philippine National Police Aviation Security Group (PNP-ASG) pulled out one by one members of the PALEA who were holding a sitdown strike and refused to vacate their post at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 2.

The PALEA members were given up to 4:30 p.m. to leave their post by PAL and security officials but the workers continued with the protest action and instead held hands as a sign of unity.

PAL officials said the employees of the new service providers would take over the posts vacated by the PALEA members and normal operations are expected to resume today at NAIA Terminal 2

**Ry_Tower** · September 28th, 2011 09:37 AM

^ kung nalulugi talaga PAL, they should realize this is indeed coming.

**shadow** · September 28th, 2011 10:36 AM

Originally Posted by kotiko

It seems like it's hard to trust PAL nowadays!

it's not the fault of the management...mga unprofessional mga PALEA members.

now yun mga sumali sa strike eh considered as official leave na until end of the month. hehehe napaaga tuloy sila. saka anong intervention ng malacanang eh ok na nga sa malacanang yun outsourcing na gagawin ng PAL eh. mga kup*l lang talaga mga PALEA members, lahat ng big corporations outsource na nga eh para makatipid at wala pa silang sakit ng ulo sa pag manage ng mga tao.

iba talaga utak ng mga matatanda na. tuwang-tuwa tayo dahil big business ang BPO/outsourcing dito sa atin pero pag locla company ang gumawa galit na galit. baka mga anak nga mga hinayupak na mga yan eh sa BPO rin nag work. pwe! bulok talaga. kaya mga multinational company sa China na lang, and ngayon talo na rin tayo ng Vietnam dahil hinde pwede mga union-union doon saka wala mga leftist.

ayaw na lang mag trabaho eh.

**uls** · September 28th, 2011 10:45 AM

those union people don't care about the company

since they're gonna lose their jobs soon, they wanna see the company shut down

their objective now is to harm the company

toxic talaga sila

**Ry_Tower** · September 28th, 2011 11:02 AM

Sa halip na pahirapan pa sarili, mabuti pa tanggapin na lang nila yung work sa outsourcing. Tutal ma-priority naman sila. Mabuti na may trabaho kesa wala.

**shadow** · September 28th, 2011 11:07 AM

andoon nanaman sila ngayon nag rally, huwag na pigilan mga yan, hanggang mamatay sila kaka rally.

**Monseratto** · September 28th, 2011 05:11 PM

PALEA members are joined by othe militant labor groups are trying to march towards T2. They are blocked by MMDA and police force. Tensions are very high...

PAL says some flights had to be canceled because some ground equipment were damaged during yesterday's strike. PALEA: We did not do it.

PALEA won't recognize any goverment decisions if it does not favor them.

Aquino orders legal action vs PAL union over work stoppage | Inquirer News

Aquino orders legal action vs PAL union over work stoppage
By Christian V. Esguerra
Philippine Daily Inquirer
2:30 pm | Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

Tokyo—A dismayed President Benigno Aquino III has ordered Palace lawyers to check whether Philippine Airlines employees could be charged in connection with the cancellation of flights triggered by their work stoppage amid heavy rains Tuesday.

The President said he initially considered the move by the PAL Employees’ Association (Palea) as a form of “economic sabotage,” but later decided to allow his legal team to look more closely into the work stoppage.

“I thought about that this morning,” he told members of the Philippine media delegation over coffee at the Imperial Hotel late Tuesday night.

Mr. Aquino said he had been informed about a previous meeting in which Palea was reported as saying its members had “no plans to embark on such an activity.” He said the group should have issued a 24-hour notice that its members would not go to work.

“They didn’t do any of those things and there was even a typhoon,” the President said.

Quoting a provision in the Civil Aviation Authority Act of 2008, he said the employees could be “penalized with imprisonment ranging from one year to three years or a fine of not less than P50,000, but not exceeding P500,000 or more as determined by the court.”

Considered as “acts leading to the disruption of airport services,” he noted, was the refusal of an employee to “perform tasks such as personally manning checking counters, to check in passengers.”

“Our lawyers are still checking how clear the violations are,” he said.

**Ry_Tower** · September 28th, 2011 06:34 PM

Originally Posted by Monseratto

PALEA members are joined by othe militant labor groups are trying to march towards T2. They are blocked by MMDA and police force. Tensions are very high...

PALEA won't recognize any goverment decisions if it does not favor them.

Aquino orders legal action vs PAL union over work stoppage | Inquirer News

Kasuhan na ng magkaalaman!

**jansky** · September 28th, 2011 06:56 PM

yung mga matatanggal may makukuha din di ba like retirement.. ?
i heard ung mga nasa salary bracket na 20k pag nalipa sila sa agency magiging 10k na lang

**Monseratto** · September 28th, 2011 07:26 PM

Will those who joined the strike, then charged with abandoning their work; be considered resigned and won't get their benefits? Di lang na daw 2,000 PALEA ang matatangal.Included are PALEA members not affected by the spinoff but joined the strike in sympathy. 14,000 passengers were affected and PNoy sounds very pissed.

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/business/...minally-liable

The President, who was in Japan for a working visit, said he had been informed that PALEA stated "no plans to embark on such activity" in a meeting prior to the work stoppage. He said it was agreed that PALEA would give a 24-hour notice before staging a strike.

"They didn't do any of those things -- at may bagyo," he said.