By Ferdinand Patinio/Philippine News Agency
MANILA – The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on Monday reported that close to PHP1 billion in benefits were provided to over 6,000 workers as a result of sustaining a stable industrial climate during the first half of 2019.
According to Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III, the labor disputes were settled using alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mechanisms that ensure integrity, efficiency, and fairness and bereft of the long legal proceedings in labor row resolution.
With this, he noted that a total of PHP956,983,178 in collective bargaining benefits and other monetary claims were awarded to 6,095 workers from January to June 2019.
“Alternative dispute resolution is our strategy in ensuring speedy delivery of labor justice. DOLE stands firm on sustaining industrial peace through the fast settlement of labor disputes,” he said in a statement.
At the same time, Bello underscored the importance of Labor Management Cooperations (LMCs) and Grievance Machineries (GM) in companies that helped in resolving disputes through its promotion of good labor-management relations.
The DOLE chief said that 3,415 companies with LMCs and 3,674 companies with active GMs did not report any cases of actual strike/lockout, notice of strike/lockout, and preventive meditation during the period.
Meanwhile, officer-in-charge Maria Teresita Cancio of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) revealed that 1,892 requests for assistance (RFAs) on Single Entry Approach (SEnA) were settled resulting in PHP140,156,665 monetary benefit to 2,799 workers.
She added that eight cases out of 12 handled cases on actual strikes/lockout were settled and resulted in PHP3,524,508 worth of benefits to 86 workers.
Also, 82 cases on the notices of strike/lockout (NS/L) were settled covering 2,337 workers with monetary benefits amounting to PHPP227,418,761.
The NCMB official added that the decrease in work-disruptive industrial dispute resulted in 1,151,716 man-days saved.
Cancio said they resolved 241 preventive mediation cases of the 300 handled cases resulting in monetary benefits worth PHP15,635,929 granted to 685 workers.
On voluntary arbitration, the NCMB handled 672 cases and disposed 185 cases involving 188 workers with financial benefits totaling to PHP570,247,314.
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