Overtime boycott and work slowdown as illegal strike

A pharmaceutical company had one labor union representing all its rank-and-file employees. When their Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) was set to expire in a few months, two union officers approached the Vice President (VP) of the Human Resources Department, inquiring about the future duration of their CBA. The VP informed them that it would be best to discuss all this during their formal negotiations. A month later, the labor officers approached the VP once again only to receive the same response. After another month, the officers requested for a meeting to discuss the duration and effectivity of the CBA. During the meeting, the officers asked if the company was amenable to making the new CBA effective for two (2) years. But, the VP only responded that the matter was still premature and that the company could not make a decision at the moment.

The very next day, all the rank-and-file employees of the company refused to follow their regular two-shift work schedule and started an overtime boycott. After working their first shift, employees would stop working and even “left their workplace without sealing the containers and securing the raw materials they were working on.” When the VP asked the employees why they refused to work, the employees told him to ask the union officers. A meeting was convened but the overtime boycott continued because the officers informed the VP that they would only return to work if their demands were met. In addition to the overtime boycott, the employees engaged in a work slowdown campaign.