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ZAMBOANGA REPORT

 

Basilan Province: Some General Notes

Basilan is one and a half hour boat ride from Zamboanga City. Transportation cost from the city is P3.00 for ordinary class and B4.95 for first class.

Basilan's population is 18,0000, 40% of whom are Christians. In the seven towns of the province, only one, Isabela, is under a Christian mayor. The rest are Muslims and more often are relatives of rebels. All the mayors are appointed by the President. Curfew is still imposed at 12:00 midnight up to 4:00 a.m. People have reached a point of resignation to the peace and order situation in the province.

There are five groups of armed men roving the area: 1) Wanted men, 2) robbers (tulisan), 3) copra battalion, 4) MNLF (Muslim National Liberation Front) and 5) the Military.

The military has always been alert. Basilan was always under continuous attack by the rebels as there is a great military concentra­tion in the area. In Isabela alone, there are three battalions of the army. This is however far less than the ten battalions deployed at the outset of Martial Law.

To counteract the rebels, the military use the carrot-and-stick trick. A ‘balikbayan’ (meaning one who capitulates) is accorded the following privileges: 1) P5.000 loan 2) a motorcycle, 3) a sack of rice and canned goods monthly, and 4) retention of guns. Most of these people, however, late become 'balikbukid' (meaning one who returns to the rebels' side).

The military conducts punitive actions against the MNLF, Muslims and Christians who co–exist with each other. The people resent the military's intrussion on their daily life. Searches of houses, bags, persons’ belongings are not infrequent. Anywhere and anytime the military can call a person to produce his/her residence certificate.

 

A Glimpse at the American Rubber Company

The American Rubber Company is located at Baluno, Isabela. The Company which is managed by B.F. Goodrich, occupies 1,300 hectares of land. Everyday about 15,000 to 16,000 liters of latex enter the milling machines.

The workers of American Rubber Corporation number about 300 and most of then are tappers and the rest are either drivers

 

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or factory workers. Here are some observa­tions on the similar fate from which they all suffer.

1) The agricultural workers receive an average wage of P12.50 per day. This in­cludes the minimum wage of P7.00, salary adjustments, company merits and premiums. The industrial milling workers receive P11.50 which includes their minimum wage of P9.00. The company's accountant receive P1,800 a month; the production manager, P2,000 and the resident manager gets a salary of P28,000. The resident manager is a Dutch. One is staggered by the incredible gap in the wage structure!

2) The workers work 6 hours a day, from 6:00 a.m. to 12:00 noon from Monday to Saturday. They are allowed 15-day vacation and 15-day sick leave with pay in a year.

3) For violation of company policies, they are reprimanded, suspended, dismissed on fired depending on the nature of the of­fence. Some of the violations are: a) ex­cessive bark consumption, b) absence with­out leave, c) unfinished work assignment, d) making wounds on the rubber trees.

An example was the case of Victor Alboro who was suspended for 5 years and was only reinstated recently with only one year back-wages paid.

4) Most of the families live in quadruplex provided by the company. The roofs are galvanized iron and the wall, logs, and the flooring is wood. The company provides light and water.

5) The average children's allowance is P7.00. This means a daily consumption of 2 ½ kgs. of corn grits which cost them P4.40. The viand per meal costs them P2.00. Almost nothing is left for educa­tion, clothing and medicine.

6) An elementary school is at the rear of the barrio (village). For high school and college education, the children have to travel every day to Isabela.

7) Likewise, there is a company clinic with a doctor who comes three times a week.

8) The former union president, Cornelio Tumambos, with his family of 7 children | lives in one of the rooms of the 47 quadruplex.

9) The workers still use the legal means of negotiating with the company. So far there has not been any union strike since 1957.

 

A Visit to Zamboanga City

Three of us arrived at Zamboanga on the morning of the 6th of November to learn about the situation in the city. We visited a place called Magoti. It is a kind of a re­fugee camp of 200 families who mostly are evacuees from depressed areas. A govern­ment project, it provides housing and food for the inhabitants. Majority of the people in the place are Muslims. The living condi­tions are deplorable. Two families share a house with only one bedroom.

From Magoti we went to Sihaya Integrated Project. It is also a government resettlement project and the inhabitants are mostly re­fugees from other areas. People pay the government by installment until the full amount of the house is fully paid. Most of the people residing in this project are low-paid workers.

Due to some security reason the visit to International Copra Factory could not be made. However we were able to meet with the president of the workers' union who gave us some insights into the plight of the workers in the factory. There are about 300 workers who get P12.00 maximum wage a day. Housing conditions are very poor: no sanitary facilities. The wages cannot provide even the necessities for the family. Another visit we made was to Zamboanga Plywood Factory about 15 kms. from the city. It is a big plant with 60% foreign and 40% local investments. The workers suffer the same condition as the others we saw in the different factories we visited earlier.

As we lived and stayed with some families, we knew how it was for them to subsist in such conditions. We can see that the Philippine workers like their Asian fellow workers are the victims of their socio-eco-

 

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nomic system. As we talked and discussed with them, we could see a ray of hope in that they were aware of their objective conditions. For us this was a bright sign that the struggle to change the prevailing system has begun.

 

Zambales Base Metals, Incorporated — Mine Area

The mining is located south-west of the Zamboanga mountain range, western part of Mindanao and 28 kms. from Zamboanga City. The area is covered by various plants and tall trees and the topography is from 600 to 1,063 m. above sea level. Some por­tions of the area are left for logging opera­tions.

The mine has prediction deposit quarry of about 800 to 900 tons per day with 7-8% grade; but the Mill Plant produces 70 to 80 tons per day with 50% grade. The mining is capitalized by a Chinese national, never­theless, the Japanese have also invested in it. There are about 400 workers and most of the production supplies the de­mands in Japanese markets.

There is a local labor union whose officers are elected by the members. But the union seems to be very weak because the members are generally passive. Even meetings are hardly held due to lack of response from the members. The main interest is centered on salary issue — the only issue to which members enthusiastically  respond. The labor unions' basic principle in negotiat­ing with the management is through collec­tive bargaining agreement (CBA).

 

A Case of Negotiations

On 5 January 1976, the Union submitted its proposal for a 25% wage increase at base rates effective 1 January 1976 to the Com­pany for collective bargaining agreement. The first session ended up on a deadlock; the second session in March 24 suffered the same fate. During the third session of negotiation, the Company declared that the financial position of the company did not warrant a general wage increase but that it could grant merit increase, on a case to case basis.

The 4th session was held 01 August 17 and here the Company issued it counter-proposal of a general wage increase of P.25 effective August 1, 1976 and P.25 effective May 1, 1977.

The Union refused the counter-proposal. From that negotiation, nothing has moved because the Company refuses to enter into negotiations.

Meanwhile on September 1, 1976, the Company granted a unilateral increase of P.50 to 149 workers (selective and classified) and again on February 1, 1977, the Company granted another unilateral ton – increase to 69 workers ranging from P1.00 to P5.00 per day.

The case simply shows the Company's bad faith and unfair attitude towards labor. Their unilateral action of giving wage increase to selective employees undermine the existence of the labor union.

The Mindanao Federation Labor which conducted a study on the workers and their families' conditions reported that malnutrition is most severe among children (75%) followed by workers (58%) and the least severe was among the workers' wives (47%).

The study further revealed that the Company's capital on December 31, 1976 was P30,093.116.00 and the total assets were at P62,050,706.000 which stood a growth indicated by the sales shown below:

 

Year                                   Gross Sales

1974                          P       5, 626, 268. 55

1975                                   15, 692, 644. 00

1976                                   29, 625, 483. 00

 

The total wage proposed by the Union for 1976, was about P388,760.00, which the Company could very well absorb.

The report further stated that the Company is comparatively small based on its production of 70-80 tons per day with a concentrate grade of 7-8%. The equipment of the Company are also old –  fashioned.  The average wage for rank and file employees is P11.00 which is lower compared to Zambawood Manufacturing which is P13.06, with Zambawood logging which is P17.41. But compare-

 

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ed to Marcopper, a copper mining firm operating in Sta. Cruz Marinduque, which is P8.35, it is higher.

The case study of this mining company re­veals that the workers salaries are low in comparison with a good number of other mining workers. It also shows that unjust relationships obtaining between the manage­ment and the labor union by the way the Company undermines the bargaining position of the Union. This opens an alternative to the workers to be more aware of their rights and the need for them to be more aware of the important role of a labor union.

 

Group Members:

R. Criamo, Safeer Alam and F. Allolerung