Protest to mark Labor Day in Cebu

A coalition of different labor groups in Cebu vowed to hold protest rally to mark the Labor Day on May 1.

Dennis Derige, one of the convenors of Nagkaisa!, said he is expecting between 4,000 to 5,000 workers to join the mass action at the regional office of the Department of Labor and Employment along General Maxilom Avenue.

Nagkaisa! is a coalition composed of the Associated Labor Unions-Trade Union Congress of the Philippines, the Partido ng Manggagawa, Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino, Kilusan-Makabayan, Alliance of Genuine Labor Organization, PS-Link, among others.

Derige said that the members of the coalition will come from different starting points and will converge at the DOLE-7 office.

“Adto mi sa DOLE mag- converge because ang DOLE ang maka- solve sa mga problema sa mga workers nga gi-atubang karon,” Derige said.

The labor sector had been dismayed over President Benigno Aquino III’s refusal to grant its demand.

The coalition continues to fight to eliminate all forms of labor contractualization starting with the campaign for the immediate passage of the Security of Tenure Bill, which was filed by the Trade Union Party of the Philippines Partylist.

The proposed bill aims to criminalize laboronly-contracting and seeks to strictly implement the rules and regulations pertaining to labor relations and standards, most especially on hiring and employment status of regular and non- regular workers.

The coalition has been demanding for the national government to prioritize the issues involving workers. —