UNIONISM

OUTLINE

LABOR UNION: Brief Historical Background Union Organizing & Why employees Join Unions Union Security and Legal Existence to Represent Why Employers and Management Averse to Unionism Collective Bargaining, Negotiation & CBA Administration Pertinent Philippine Laws (Art. 242-246; 250259) Grievance Handling and Dispute Settlement Compulsory Arbitration Versus Voluntary Arbitration

HISTORY

1899 Development of Workers Organizations The creation of the Bureau of Labor by the Philippine Assembly in 1901 made possible the formation of loosely organized trade unions.

In the Philippines, the first labor day was celebrated on May 1, 1903 by a demonstration of 100,000 workers led by the UODF.

Down with U.S. Imperialism.

Industrial Peace Act (RA 875), otherwise known as the Magna Carta of Labor, registered trade unions grew rapidly. Isabelo delos Reyes, a writer, established the Union Obrera Democratica Filipinas, the first organized labor union in the country on February 2, 1902

DEFINITIONS

Labor Organization Any union or association of employees which exists in whole or in part for the purpose of Collective Bargaining or for dealing with employers concerning terms and conditions or employment.

Legitimate Labor Organization Any labor organization duly registered with the Department.

Workers Association Any association of workers organized for the mutual aid and protection of its members or any legitimate purpose other than collective bargaining.

Legitimate Workers Association Any workers association which is duly registered with the Department

Take Note:

Not every labor organization is a union a workers association is not a union and not every union is a legitimate labor organization. Registration legitimate

WHY EMPLOYEES JOIN UNIONS?

Unfair Labor Practices Stability Compensation (Equity) Fringe Benefits Safety Advocacy/Representation

UNION SECURITY
Strong Trade Unionism: A Basic Policy Goal of the Labor Code Paragraphs (b) and (c) of Article 210 specifically declare that it is the policy of the State "to promote free trade unionism as an agent of democracy, social justice and development;" and "to rationalize and restructure the labor movement in order to eradicate inter-union and intraunion conflicts.

LABOR CODE

Among the features of the Labor Code which are designed to protect and strengthen the labor union are:
The

provisions on unfair labor practices, which protect the union from hostile acts of management. The recognition by the law of the inherent right of unions. The recognition of the validity of union security agreements. The recognition of the validity and enforcement of check-off arrangements.

 The

provision allowing the imposition of an agency fee. The adoption of the oneunion, one-industry concept. The specific provision on nonabridgment of the right to self organization on religious grounds.

LEGAL EXISTENCE TO RESPRESENT

LCP: Title IV Labor Organizations (Chapter 1) Registration and Cancellation

(Article

234-240) A federation, national union or industry or trade union center or an independent union shall acquire legal personality and shall be entitled to the rights and privileges granted by law to legitimate labor organizations upon issuance of the certificate of registration.

(Chapter 2) Rights and Conditions of Memberships

Art.

241

Collective Bargaining Units

Refers to the group of employees which the labor union will represent in dealing or bargaining with the employer.

CANCELLATION
Art.

239 CABO engaging in the cabo system is a cause for cancellation of unions registration. CABO acts like a labor-only-contractor. It gathers and supplies workers to an employer.

RIGHTS OF LEGITIMATE LABOR ORGANIZATION

LCP: Title IV Labor Organizations (Chapter3) Rights of Legitimate Labor Organization

Article

242 Rights of Labor Organization

(a) To act as the representative of its members for the purpose of collective bargaining; (b) To be certified as the exclusive representative of all the employees in an appropriate bargaining unit for purposes of collective bargaining; (c) To be furnished by the employer with its annual audited financial statements.

RIGHTS OFcontn.

(d) To own property, real or personal, for the use and benefit of the labor organization and its members; (e) To sue and be sued in its registered name; and (f) To undertake all other activities designed to benefit the organization and its members, including cooperative, housing, welfare and other projects not contrary to law. Article 242-A. Reportorial requirements.
(documents

required to be submitted by the legitimate labor organization concerned)

COVERAGE (Article 243-246)

Article 243. Coverage and employees right to selforganization. All persons employed in commercial, industrial and agricultural enterprises and in religious, charitable, medical, or educational institutions, whether operating for profit or not. Ambulant, intermittent and itinerant workers, self-employed people, rural workers and those without any definite employers may form labor organizations for their mutual aid and protection.

COVERAGE contn.

Article 244. Right of employees in the public service.

Employees

of government corporations established under the Corporation Code shall have the right to organize and to bargain collectively with their respective employers. All other employees in the civil service shall have the right to form associations for purposes not contrary to law.

COVERAGE contn.

Article 245. Ineligibility of managerial employees to join any labor organization; Right of Supervisory Employees. Managerial employees are not eligible to join, assist or form any labor organization. Supervisory employees shall not be eligible for membership in the collective bargaining unit of the rank-and-file employees but may join, assist or form separate collective bargaining units and/or legitimate labor organizations of their own.

COVERAGE contn.

Article 245-A. Effect of inclusion as members of employees outside the bargaining unit. Article 246. Non-abridgment of right to selforganization. It shall be unlawful for any person to restrain, coerce, discriminate against or unduly interfere with employees and workers in their exercise of the right to self-organization. Such right shall include the right to form, join, or assist labor organizations

WHY EMPLOYERS AND MANAGEMENT AVERSE TO UNIONISM?

Companies prefer to deal with employees directly because they are in more control dealing with individuals than collectively with trade unions.

Union busting A wide range of activities undertaken by employers, their proxies, and governments, which attempt to prevent the formation or expansion of trade unions.

COLLECTIVE BARGAINING, NEGOTIATION &CBA ADMINISTRATION

LCP: Title VII Collective Bargaining and Administration of Agreements

Article

250-256

Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) contract between legitimate labor union and the employer concerning wages, hours of work, and all other terms and conditions of employment in a bargaining unit.

LCP: Article 250 - 259

Procedure of Collective Bargaining Duty to bargain collectively in the Absence of CBA Meaning of duty to bargain collectively Duty to bargain collectively when there exists a collective bargaining agreement. Terms of a CBA Injunction Prohibited

Exclusive bargaining representation and workers participation in policy and decision making Representation Issue in Organized Establishments Petitions in Unorganized Establishments When an employer may file petition Employer as Bystander Appeal from certification election orders

GRIEVANCE HANDLING &DISPUTE SETTLEMENT

Article. 260. Grievance machinery and voluntary arbitration.

The

parties to a CBA shall include therein provisions that will ensure the mutual observance of its terms and conditions. They shall establish a machinery for the adjustment and resolution of grievances

Grievance any question by either the employer or the union regarding interpretation or application of the CBA or company personnel policies or any claim by either party that the other party is violating any provision of the CBA or company personnel policies.

TWO COMPONENTS OF GRIEVANCE MACHINERY

Grievances arising from the interpretation and implementation of CBA Grievances arising from the interpretation or enforcement of company personnel policies

All grievances submitted to the grievance machinery which are not settled within seven (7) calendar days from the date of its submission shall automatically be referred to voluntary arbitration (VA) prescribed in the CBA. If CBA does not provide VA or procedure for selection of VA, the NCMB shall designate the VA
National

Conciliation and Mediation Board

VOLUNTARY ARBITRATION

Arbitration is formally defined as a voluntary dispute resolution process in which one or more arbitrators, appointed in accordance with the agreement of the parties, or rules promulgated pursuant to law, resolve a dispute by rendering an award/decision. 2 PRIMARY FUNCTIONS:
to

orderly dispose of disputes to provide a foundation for stable labor-management relations

VOLUNTARY ARBITRATION: Jurisdiction

Article 261 The VA/s shall have original and exclusive jurisdiction to hear and decide all unresolved grievances arising from the interpretation or implementation of the Collective Bargaining Agreement and those arising from the interpretation or enforcement of company personnel policies referred to in the immediately preceding article.

The VA upon agreement of the parties, shall also hear and decide all other labor disputes including unfair labor practices and bargaining deadlocks.

COMPULSORY ARBITRATION

ARTICLE 220. The Commission* or any Labor Arbiter shall have the power to ask the assistance of other government officials and qualified private citizens to act as compulsory arbitrators on cases referred to them and to fix and assess the fees of such compulsory arbitrators.
*National Labor Relations Commission or any of its divisions

REFERENCES:

Oliveros, Benjie. May 1st, History of Struggle. Bulatlat.com. 2006 (N.A). A Brief History of the Unions . Retrieved from: http://www.amosup.org/about-us/ourhistory. August 26, 2011. Cruz, Vicente Jr. Union Security Clauses in the CBA and the Agency Provision of the Labor Code: Some Problems of Interpretation and Implementation . Philippine Law Journal. Volume 49. www.law.upd.edu.ph Philippine Labor Code

Resources for Entrepreneurs. Why Employees Join Unions?. Retrieved from http://www.gaebler.com/Why-Employees-Join-Unions.htm. on August 26, 2011. Torres, Quisumbing. Doing Business in the Philippines. 2009
Carvajal, Nancy. No strike as PAL arbitration starts. April 28, 2011. www. Inquirer.net