550 labor cases filed

DAVAO CITY – The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) in Davao Region recorded 550 labor complaints filed in their office from January to October this year. Data obtained from the NLRC-Davao showed that of the 550 labor complaints, 118 are new cases filed in October while 422 are pending cases. There were 21 of the 550 labor cases transferred to other legal offices that left 529 cases handled by the commission as of October 2018. Of the 529 labor cases, 56 were settled, 20 had been decided, and 16 others had ordered. There were 92 laborers involved in the case. The commission also noted that 80 percent of the cases earlier disposed favored the laborers while the 20 percent were in favor of the management. The NLRC-Davao also recorded 44 cases of labor complaints from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs), 323 from SingleEntry Approach (Sena) and 84 registered unions. Most of the complaints that the commission received are illegal termination coupled with underpayment of salaries and non-payment in other labor standard services, among others. NLRC-Davao information officer Gloria Baui said they have yet to complete their accomplishment report for the year 2018. The NLRC, a quasi-judicial agency attached to the Department of Labor and Employment, is mandated to arbitrate labor and management disputes involving both local and overseas workers through compulsory arbitration and alternative modes of dispute resolution. (Ivy C. Tejano)