Carmen Copper, workers’ union sign 2-year CBA

The management and the rank-and-file employees of the Cebu-based Carmen Copper Corporation (CCC) yesterday signed a two-year Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA).

CCC promised a P91 increase in the daily wage and more benefits for members of the Carmen Copper Workers Labor Organization (CCWLO).

CCWLO President William Ligutan said P25 of the amount will be incorporated into the workers' wages effective October 1 this year.

The remaining amount was already included in the current wages of the union members since yesterday.

“Lipay kaayo mi apan with the (Tax Reform for Acceleration and Inclusion) TRAIN law nga nakapataas sa presyo sa palaliton, mobalance out ra gihapon. Pero maayo na kaayo ni nga gihatag nga increase sa Carmen Copper,” he said.

Also, the agreement stipulates the giving of production incentives and an increase in the signing bonus, as well as the ‘no labor dispute' clause.

In 2015, the mining company and labor union signed a five-year CBA, which is in effect from January 2015 to 2020.

It stipulates the renewal of CBA once every three years.

Mia Carmela Cuenco, Carmen Copper's Assistant Vice President for Human Resource Administration, said it only took two meetings for the management and union to agree with the renewed CBA.

Rose Oxinio of the Department of Labor and Employment - National Conciliation and Mediation Board (DOLE-NCMB) said it was the “fastest” negotiation so far, citing that other companies and unions would often reach five to six meeting before coming up with a consensus.

Roy Deveratura, who is the interim OIC of Carmen Copper, said the agreement signing is a proof that the management cares for the welfare of its employees amid the pressure and challenges being faced by the mining industry.

“We go beyond compliance as a company that practices responsible mining,” he said.

Both the management and CCWLO said the company incurred losses in the past two years, but it did not hinder CCC to implement wage hike.

To strengthen the harmonious relationship between management and labor, Ligutan said, both must coordinate and consult with each other.

Of CCC's 2,444 employees, 59 percent or 1,442 are union members whom are miners and equipment operators.

In November 2017, CCC won DOLE's nationwide search for the “Outstanding Grievance Machinery for Industrial Peace,” a mechanism which resolves grievances in the workplace.

Ligutan said the company won a national recognition for having harmonious labor and management relations.

He said this harmonious relationship with the management made it possible to settle conflicts on the table or at the plant level.

“We are able to inculcate discipline among our members and reduce abuses while we continue to look after their well-being,” said Ligutan.

Back in the early 1990s, reports claim there were labor troubles that caused a rift between the labor force and the management. It was still managed by then by Atlas Consolidated Mining and Development Corporation and was hailed as the third largest copper mine in the world.

With other factors at play, the operations in the mining pits were indefinitely suspended beginning in 1994 and began operations again a decade after under Carmen Copper.