Some of the officers of the Bataan Refiners Union of the Philippines slapped with preventive suspension for 30 days or more for alleged illegal strike. The 24 suspended officers are from president, vice-president, secretary to Board of Directors. They are in the refinery from five to 16 years, according to BRUP president Gerald Medina. Photo by Ernie Esconde
BALANGA CITY — Petron Corp. on Monday night said it was open to sit down and talk with members and officers of the Bataan Refiners Union of the Philippines (BRUP) who went on strike at the Petron Bataan Refinery (PBR) in Limay town.
“Petron remains committed to building a stronger future and promoting the welfare and best interest of all its employees,” said a statement emailed by Kristine Palaganas of Petron’s main office and received at 9:30 p.m.
Petron said they were saddened by the decision of the officers of the PBR labor union to stage a strike when their collective bargaining agreement had already been signed on October 30, 2019 and the company met their demands.
“Both management and union reached an agreement that protects the jobs of employees while allowing the company to stay competitive in these challenging times,” the statement said.
“Apart from salaries and benefits including overtime pay, they also have guaranteed increases and bonuses that are way, way above what the oil industry, in particular, offers. Specifically, our rank-and-file employees at the refinery get an average compensation of over P100,000 per month including overtime pay, allowances and non-cash benefits,” Petron Corp. said.
“Still, while their actions are regrettable, we remain hopeful that the new issues they are raising can be settled soon,” the Petron statement added.
BRUP staged a strike Saturday and Sunday for alleged union-busting and the company’s non-compliance to the CBA provisions.
The strikers dispersed at almost 10 a.m. Sunday after Sec. Silvestre Bello III of the Department of Labor and Employment issued a return-towork order and assumed jurisdiction over the labor dispute.
Gerald Medina, BRUP president, said he and other 23 union officers from vice president, secretary, to board of directors were, however, barred from working Monday and instead slapped with 30 or more days of preventive suspension for the alleged illegal strike.
On Petron’s readiness to sit down and talk, Medina said the union has sent letters to the company asking for time to talk and discuss the issues but they have not received any invitation for dialogue.
He said that they signed the CBA last October 2019 to help their members, who were then to be terminated for reason of redundancy, receive bigger separation pay.
He said that the salary increase of P2,500 in their October 2019 CBA was low compared to P4,500 in their last agreement.
“Bilang tulong sa mga kasamahan namin na mawawalan ng trabaho, tinanggap na muna namin. Maliban dito, binawasan ng management ang overtime computation namin pero bilang tulong sa kumpanya, bukas-palad namin itong tinanggap,” Medina said.
He doubted the claim that rank and file employees get average compensation of over P100,000 per month, including overtime, allowances and noncash benefits.
The union leader said that some workers working with the refinery for more than 15 years might be receiving P100,000 a month. “Sagsag naman ito sa overtime. Ibig sabihin pinaghirapan nila.”
“Karamihan sa amin kahit pumasok ng seven days a week at 16 hours na duty, imposible na makuha P100K. Non-cash benefits na sinasabi nila hindi namin alam kung ano yon. Allowance namin hindi palagi dahil kung may OT lang yon,” Medina said.
