The Toyota Motors Philippines Corporation Workers Association on Sunday urged the new president of Toyota Motors Philippines (TMP), Hiro Okamoto, to understand the workers’ struggles and resolve their decades-long labor disputes with the company.
The challenge was made by the labor union after social media posted of Okamoto that went viral where tne newly-assigned TMP president was seen spending his first week in the Philippines commuting on bus, MRT, jeepney, UV express and tricycle to “see the daily struggles of Filipino commuters,” Jason Fajilagutan said during Sunday’s Balitaan sa Maynila press conference, held in a restaurant in Manila.
Aside from experiencing and understanding the plight of Filipino riding public and the poor state of our country’s mass public transport system, we challenge Okamoto to do ‘Genchi Genbutsu’ or to ‘go and see’ the current situation of the 237 TMP workers who were terminated by his company since 2001 and act upon the decades-long labor dispute with our union,” said Fajilagutan.
Fajilagutan revealed that 233 union leaders and members of the TMPCWA were terminated by the car manufacturing company on 2001 after then-Labor Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas submitted a collective bargaining agreement (CBA) proposal to the TMP management and wrote a letter requesting for a CBA negotiation.
The Union then staged a strike against the illegal dismissal of its workers on March 28, 2001.
Four more members of the union were terminated by the company on August 2010.
Meanwhile, Chairperson of Kilusang Mayo Uno – Metro Manila and president of the Toyota Motors Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA) Ed Cubelo has echoed the call.
Aside from experiencing and understanding the plight of Filipino riding public and the poor state of our country’s mass public transport system, we challenge Okamoto to do ‘Genchi Genbutsu’ or to ‘go and see’ the current situation of the 237 TMP workers who were terminated by his company since 2001 and act upon the decades-long labor dispute with our union,” said Cubelo.
We call on TMP President Hiro Okamoto to start his term as head of the company by doing what is right and just for the 237 workers of the company and their families who have long-been seeking for justice to the union busting scheme and illegal massive termination of workers which transpired for almost two decades now,” said Cubelo.
He added, “We challenge Okamoto to sit with us in a dialogue with the Labor Department to review our past labor dispute with the management and resolve it in the soonest possible time. The resolution of our labor issues will be a test of Okamoto’s genuine concern for Filipino workers and people.”
The TMPCWA, KMU Metro Manila and Defend Jobs Philippines also called on Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III to take on the opportunity to call for a dialogue between the illegally terminated workers and the new TMP management to resolve the issues and labor disputes in the company that transpired since 2001.