MANILA, Philippines — After more than three months, the labor dispute surrounding the closure of the biggest garments factory at the Cavite economic zone was finally settled. This after a  massive fire hit the factory of the House Technology Industries (HTI) last week (February 1), the management and the workers union of Faremo International Inc. signed an agreement at the Cavite ecozone administration office to end their differences on labor issues.

Rene Magtubo, Chairperson of Partido Manggagawa (PM) said “The deal provides for the rehiring of the workers if the factory reopens, a substantial financial assistance on top of the separation pay and the grant of several sewing machines for a livelihood project of the displaced employees. It was a resounding win for the workers.”

PM assisted the Faremo workers in their months-long picket line inside the Cavite ecozone when the company decided to laid off almost 1,000 of its workers last October 2016 (of which majority of them are women). The factory’s reasoning for the closed down was allegedly due to lack of orders. However, one of its customers, a major global garments brand, admitted that orders were increased not

However, one of the factories regular customers, a major global garments brand disclosed that Faremo orders were increasing and not decreasing as per the Factory claimed. The revelation emboldened the resistance of the workers and bolstered the accusation of the union and that the closure was intended to bust the union and break the collective bargaining agreement (CBA) that were previously concluded.

 “Illegal closure is a weapon of last resort by employers in their union busting bag of tricks. Faremo is not the first and probably not the last. Last May, the Cavite ecozone electronics firm Seung Yeun Technology Industries Corp. filed for shutdown when its workers unionized but is still operating under a new name. The same modus operandi was done by the Mactan ecozone factory Blaze Manufacturing Corp. in 2011 to bust the two unions of its regular and contractual workers. We have reported these violations to the International Labor Organization Direct Contact Mission (DCM) that is in the Philippines at the moment,” Magtubo explained.

The ILO DCM is a follow-up to the High-Level Mission conducted in 2009 to investigate the Philippine government’s violations of Conventions 87 and 98 on freedom of association and the right to collective bargaining. The ILO DCM conducted a briefing last Friday (10 February) afternoon in Manila.

“We owe this victory to the determination to fight for our members and the solidarity of fellow trade unions and international labor rights advocates. We also thank our management for granting the demands of the union and even Labor Undersecretary Joel Maglungsod whose office patiently mediated the dispute until it was resolved,” Jessel Autida, president of the Faremo labor union, said.

Autida, revealed that the union will continue to exist as an organization for mutual aid and protection and to manage the garments production that they will undertake as a livelihood project.

“We are asking the Department of Labor and Employment to help us in our garments making project. This is one way to sustain the livelihood of former Faremo employees and other displaced garments workers in the Cavite ecozone,” Autida added.

And as part of the settlement agreement,  the union dismantled its picket-line outside the Faremo factory and withdrawn its pending cases at the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) and the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC). CPM