47 civil society organisations, trade unions, and groups are appalled by the union busting action/s by C&F Manufacturing Philipines Corporation, which is now terminating the workers, just after their union, Tinig ng mga Manggagawa sa C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corporation or the Voice of the Workers in C&F Mfg. Phils. Corp., was officially registered.
Joint Media Statement
C&F Group company Must Stop Union Busting and Respect Workers and Trade Union Rights; 63 Union Members and workers laid off after just days Union Registered
We, 47 undersigned civil society organisations, trade unions, and groups are appalled by the union busting action/s by C &F Manufacturing Philipines Corporation, which is now terminating the workers, just after their union, Tinig ng mga Manggagawa sa C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corporation or the Voice of the Workers in C&F Mfg. Phils. Corp., was officially registered.
On May 26, 2016, the workers registered their union with Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). The very next day, on May 27, the company abruptly offered a Voluntary Separation Program (VSP). The union obtained its Certificate of Registration on May 30, 2016.
On June 6, 2016, the Union filed with DOLE a Petition for Certification Election (PCE) in order to determine the representation of the workers in the collective bargaining. Thereafter, on the very same day, the company management informed DOLE-Cavite Provincial Office that they are subjecting to “retrenchment” or lay-off some 98 regular workers of the company, wherein more than 63 of these workers are union officers and/or union members.
In the evening of June 6, the night-shift workers learned about their mass lay-off through the posted “announcement” of the management in the bulletin board. On the next day, June 7, 2016 the day-shift workers were blocked at the guard house and were no longer allowed to enter the premises of the company.
On June 9, 2016, 3 days later, the company hired 55 new workers, who were agency-supplied contractual workers from Terumi, AED, and E Pipol. Before this, the company used 50 agency-supplied contractual workers already working in the company and supplied by Terumi.
Justly, if the company no longer needed so many workers, they should have kept their 98 regular workers, who had been working for 3 to 12 years, and simply reduced the number of agency-supplied contractual workers. But, this company got rid of its 98 regular employees and are replacing them with new agency-supplied contractual workers.
Based on the facts provided by the Union, this is a clear union busting, and also an attempt to remove regular employees and replace them with workers on precarious work arrangements.
C & F Manufacturing Phils. Corporation is a supplier to IT/electronics companies such as APC Schneider Electric, IBM, and EMC Corporation. Its CEO and President is Mr. John Flaherty of C& F Group, is based at C & F Tooling Ltd., Cashla, Athenry, Co Galway, Ireland. Website: www.cftooling.ie. C & F Tooling Ltd. have companies in Ireland, Germany, Czech Republic, UK, USA, and the Philippines.
The C&F Group, in a document signed by John Flaherty in his capacity as Group Managing Director and CEO dated 5/1/2016 states that they ‘…have adopted the Electronic Industry Code of Conduct (EICC) as the operating Code of Conduct within the C&F Group…’.
Further in a letter published in the United Nations Global Compact website, it is stated: – “..C&F Group reaffirms its support of the Ten Principles of The United Nations Global Compact in areas of Human Rights, Labour, Environment and Anti-Corruption. In addition, The C&F Group has adopted The EICC-SER code as the Groups Code of Practise.’ (https://www.unglobalcompact.org/participation/report/cop/create-and-submit/active/15521)
There have also been other complaints from the workers, which include ‘forced’ work on Sunday and public holidays and excessively long working hours.
As such, it is verily believed that C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group are in breach of the EICC Code, and also the UN Global Compact.
The actions of the company, possibly with the intention of union busting, and avoidance of employer obligations, is a violation of worker and trade union rights.
Therefore, we:
1) Call on C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group to immediately reinstate the said 98 regular worekrs and union members and/or employees;
2) Call on C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group to recognize and respect the rights of workers to organize, form union, and to collectively bargain;
3) Call on C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group to abort precarious employment and labour policy and practices, and ensure that all its employees are regular employees;
4) Call on the Electronic Industry Citizenship Coalition (EICC), a coalition of electronics companies committed to supporting the rights and wellbeing of workers and communities worldwide affected by the global electronics supply chain to ensure that C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group comply with the EICC Code, and respect workers and trade union rights;
5) Call on UN Global Compact, being a corporate sustainability initiative that ensures companies to align strategies and operations with universal principles on human rights and labour, to ensure that C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group respect workers and trade union rights; and
6) Call on the government of Philippines to speedily act on the violation of workers and trade union rights by C&F Manufacturing Phils. Corp. and/or the C&F Group, and ensure justice be served.
For and on behalf of the 47 groups:
- National Union of Flight Attendants Malaysia (NUFAM), Malaysia
- Labour Studies and Action Centre / Centro de Reflexión y Acción Laboral (CEREAL), Mexico
- WEED – World Economy, Ecology & Development, Germany
- North South Initiative
- All Arakan Students’ and Youths’ Congress(AASYC), Thai-Burma Border
- HAK Association of Timor-Leste
- Maquila Solidarity Network (Canada)
- Citizen of the Earth, Taiwan
- International Campaign for Responsible Technology, San Jose, California
- Association of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters-HRDP, Burma
- Sawit Watch (Indonesia)
- National Union of Transport Equipment & Allied Industries Workers (NUTEAIW), Malaysia
- Alternative ASEAN Network on Burma (ALTSEAN-Burma)
- MAP Foundation, Thailand
- Safety and Rights Society, Bangladesh
- Kalikasan Peoples Network for the Environment, Philippines
- Metalworkers Alliance in the Philippines (MWAP)
- Collectif Ethique sur l’étiquette, France
- Basel Action Network
- Center for Alliance of Labor and Human Rights (CENTRAL), Cambodia
- Fair | Campagna Abiti Puliti, Italy
- Clean Clothes Campaign, The Netherlands
- Radanar Ayar Rural Development Association, Myanmar
- Coalición de Ex trabajadoras (es) y trabajadoras (es) de la Industria Electrónica Nacional (CETIEN), Mexico
- Cooperation Committee of Trade Unions (CCTU) Myanmar
- GoodElectronics Thailand (GET)
- Paper Union of Malaysia
- Committee for Asian Women
- International Labor Rights Forum, Washington, D.C.
- WH4C (Workers Hub For Change), Malaysia
- MADPET(Malaysians Against Death Penalty and Torture)
- Solidarity of Cavite Workers, Cavite, Philippines
- Hye Sung Workers Union, Cavite, Philippines
- Daeduck Employees Union –Independent (DEU-Ind.), Cavite. Philippines
- Nagkakaisang Manggagawa ng Keyrin Electronics (NMKE), Cavite, Philippines
- Eagle Ridge Employees Union (EREU), Cavite, Philippines
- Samahan ng mga Manggagawa sa Eagle Ridge (SMER), Cavite, Philippines
- Batangas Port Workers and Stevedores Labor Union (BPSLU), Batangas City, Philippines
- Electronic Industry Employees Union (EIEU) Southern Region, Peninsular Malaysia
- Electronic Industry Employees Union(EIEU) Northern Region, Peninsular Malaysia
- PROHAM – Society for the Promotion of Human Rights, Malaysia
- Parti Rakyat Malaysia
- GoodElectronics Network, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- CWI (Committe For Workers International) Malaysia
- Association of domestic workers, homeworkers and maquila (ATRAHDOM)., Guatemala
- Workers Assistance Center, Inc. , Philippines
- Pagkakaisa ng mga Manggagawa sa Nakashima Philippines Corporation (PAMANA-Ind.), Cavite, Philippines
