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By Anthony Vargas, Reporter
THE Department of Labor and Employment reported
on Wednesday a very high percentage in resolving and handling
strikes and lockout notices during the first five months of the
year.
The National Conciliation and Mediation Board,
an agency under the Labor department, recorded a 99.05-percent
success rate in resolving strikes and lockouts.
This means that of the 211 notices of lockouts
and strikes filed before the conciliation from January to the end of
May this year, 208 did not materialize into actual strikes.
Labor Secretary Marianito Roque in a statement
said the disposition rate of these notices is 77 percent, which is
higher than the 70 percent recorded last year.
The labor secretary also reported that the
settlement rate for the said period was also higher by about five
percent or 67 percent, as compared to 62 percent recorded for the
same period last year.
The labor chief pointed out that the
conciliation board facilitated the settlement of P146 million in
collective bargaining agreement packages during the said period,
benefiting 3,327 workers. Separation benefits amounting to P63
million were also provided to 1,914 workers.
A total of P86.3 million in monetary benefits
from the settlement of collective bargaining negotiations benefited
852 workers, while separation packages amounting to P205.7 million
benefited 9,387 workers.
The labor chief also said that an average of 39
days were needed to settle a strike or lockout notice, with 48
strikes or lockout notices still being the subjects of ongoing
conciliation as of the end of May.
The labor chief also said that the Free Legal
Aid and Voluntary Arbitration Services program continues to be a
viable option for dispute settlement by individual complainants.
He said that since January, request for the
arbitration service reached 181 cases involving 703 workers, with 17
cases still pending as of the end of May.
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