Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, January 6) – Petron Corporation on Monday slammed the recent strike of its workers’ union at its refinery in Bataan, denying accusations it did not comply with a collective bargaining agreement signed last year.
“During the CBA negotiations, the company met their demands, and both management and union reached an agreement that protect the jobs of employees while allowing the company to stay competitive in these challenging times,” said Petron in a statement.
Members of the Bataan Refiners Union of the Philippines working at the Petron Bataan Refinery staged a protest over the weekend due to alleged threats to employees and poor working conditions.
“Ilang ulit na kami pinahirapan, tinakot at umabot sa punto tinanggal ang aming mga kasama. At ngayon unti unti inaalis ang aming position sa planta,” said the union president, Gerald Medina, in a social media post Saturday.
[Translation: We had been given a difficult time repeatedly, intimidated up to the point that some of our colleagues lost their jobs. Now they are slowly removing our positions in the refinery]
Petron noted that workers at the refinery are guaranteed salary increases.
“Specifically, our rank-and-file employees at the refinery get an average compensation of over P100,000.00 per month including overtime, allowances, and non-cash benefits,” said the company.
Petron added that it is open to any discussions with the union to settle the issues between them.
“We remain hopeful that the new issues they are raising can be settled soon,” said Petron. “We remain open to them and welcome the opportunity to sit down and talk.”
