PLDT decries DOLE ‘clarificatory order’
Telecommunications giant PLDT Inc. is disputing a clarificatory order issued by the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) for the telco to regularize contractual workers.
The DOLE order its labor contractors with was “irregularly issued, thousands of workers losing procedurally inappropriate, jobs. based on selective and/or “If this is the conclusion biased information, and of the Clarificatory Order vague,” the telco said in a or this Honorable Office, regulatory filing submitted then with due respect it is by senior vice president and wrong. PLDT has not taken corporate secretary Lourdes any act to ‘frustrate or tend Rausa-Chan. to frustrate’ this Honorable
On July 11, the Labor Office’s regularization department issued a orders,” PLDT said in a clarificatory order stating that manifestation submitted to an earlier order on April 24, the department.
2018 to regularize more than The telco said it 7,000 employees and more was taking “logical, than 30 PLDT contractors to reasonable, and necessary cease and desist from doing step in response to those labor contracting was “not regularization orders.” subject to any condition.” PLDT noted the
The department clarificatory order was issued warned PLDT that “any act without giving the company or condition imposed that a chance to be properly heard frustrates or tends to frustrate as required by due process of the order to regularize is law. contumacious and shall be “The Labor Secretary dealt with in accordance with released the order law.” immediately after he met
The clarificatory order with representatives of was issued on the heels of a the PLDT labor union, PLDT statement saying that the Manggagawa sa stopping its sub-contracting Komunikasyon sa Pilipinas activities will shut down (MKP) on July 11, 2018. As it stated in an earlier Manifestation to the Office of the Labor Secretary on July 16, 2018, PLDT did not receive a notice calling it to such a meeting,” the telco said.
“Regretfully, because the Clarificatory Order was issued immediately after this meeting with the MKP, it cannot escape the impression that the Order is based entirely on a factual position advocated by the MKP which is … inaccurate and misleading. In all candor, these circumstances also increase PLDT’s concern that it will not receive a fair hearing on this matter before this Honorable Office."
PLDT denied that it laid off employees that were the subjects of the ordered to regularize the telco’s workers.
The telco said it did not require affected workers to “apply” for employment, contrary labor groups claimed.
“Unfortunately, PLDT has not been even asked by the Labor Secretary to explain its Intake Process,” it said.
“The Intake Process starts with the identification of the individual worker to determine first and foremost that he is on the regularization list enumerated by this Honorable Office, and second, to ascertain that the person presenting himself or herself as such is indeed the same person on the regularization list.”
The process requires workers to provide relevant information such as social security, PhilHealth, PagIBIG and tax identification number details in line with data privacy law.
PLDT claimed that allegations regarding the intake process come from parties who have not take part in it or have a vested interest adverse to PLDT and therefore cannot serve as a reliable basis to conclude that the process should be stopped by the Labor department.
“Any order finding PLDT liable for alleged ‘contumacious’ actions, if based on such defective evidence or factual bases, ‘is regretfully an unjust judgment’,” the telco further claimed.
PLDT said it reserves the right to take legal steps in assailing the clarificatory order.
(GMA News Online)