TRUCK DRIVERS of ARR trucking services have gone on strike following management’s failure to grant them their minimum wage request and other benefits. Elmer D. Blancaflor, president of the Iloilo ARR Enterprises Labor Organization (IARRELO), said the group started their strike on Aug. 16 with 13 of the 18 members joining. “We proposed that the management grant us with the minimum wage which is part of the economic provision of the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). But until now they have yet to respond to our request,” Mr. Blancaflor said. The group also filed charges against the management for illegal dismissal, unfair labor practice and union busting before the National Labor Relations Commission, an attached quasi-judicial agency of the Department of Labor and Employment. While the CBA negotiation is ongoing, Mr. Blancaflor said he and the union secretary were dismissed for supposed redundancy. Their respective assigned truck units were also transferred to another province where ARR Trucking also operates. The Partido Manggagawa has expressed support for the union. — Louine Hope U. Conserva

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