Dear Friends and supporters of TMPCWA,
Most militant and warmest greetings to all the friends and supporters
of TMPCWA!
We apologize for not sending any updates on our struggle for more than
six months. After all of our intensified campaign and broad support of
other international organization to protest the new Certification
Election (CE), Toyota Philippines Management was pressured to sit down
on
a negotiation with TMPCWA. There are series of meeting happened,
starting
August held in Japan.
Toyota Management requested that the negotiation must not disclose to
others specially the international supporters of TMPCWA. We don’t have
any choice but to agree to that request, to show that the TMPCWA is in
good faith and ready to sit for any negotiation with the Toyota
Management.
On December 12, 2005 negotiation, we pushed the management of
Toyota Philippines to resolve the issue of reinstatement of 233
illegally
dismissed workers and to give their concrete answer on the next
meeting.
On December 17, 2005 the DOLE Secretary, issued its decision to conduct
the CE. And the Department of Labor and Employment railroaded the
Hearing
on February 1, 2006 and finalized the schedule of the election on
February
16. 2006, then the company had a meeting with TMPCWA after the setting
of
the election.
While in the meeting with some international organizations last
February
3, 2006 , the two proposals from the management was opened; first is
the
compensation with additional payment and the training program, and the
other is the training for automobile mechanics and the company will
provide new work to send the dismissed workers to their dealers and
sales
offices or to work abroad.
Moreover in the negotiation with Toyota management on February 4, 2005,
Nobuharu Tabata, the former President of TMPC, brought up the package
compensation and not the last discussed reinstatement. Included in the
proposals are the illegally dismissed members of TMPCWA will provide
six
months training to become automobile mechanic, but first they must pass
the examination to acquire the training program. Toyota will shoulder
the
expenses for the training program.
But before availing these proposals, the illegally dismissed members of
TMPCWA must sign into an agreement that they must admit and accept that
their dismissal is valid. Mr. Tabata strongly said that this is the
last chance of negotiation to be accepted by TMPCWA and strongly said
that
they will never withdraw this proposal.
The proposal is very far from the ILO recommendation. Our members are
very disappointed and dissatisfied to the offer and all are united to
continue the struggle and not to continue the negotiations if the
management pushes their position. All they want are reinstatement they
did
not violated any provision of the law in the land. We noticed that the
management is not sincere in negotiating with us and only fooling the
TMPCWA. We felt that they only used the negotiation to pacify us
on our organizing and actions.
While they are negotiating with us, Toyota management implements their
desperate grand design to destroy our union thru their sponsored union
TMPCLO. They seek the immediate setting of Certification Election in
connivance with the Department of Labor and Employment-DOLE.
Last February 6, 2006, TMPCWA staged a picket protest at the office of
Department of Labor and Employment ( National Capital Region, DOLE)
NCR, to protest the unjust memorandum of Mediator-Arbiter Simonette
Calabocal and Hearing Officer Lourdes Ching. Both officers of DOLE, in
the
influence of Toyota management, immediately decided and finalized the
date, rules, mechanics, and official list of voters for Certification
Election last February 1, 2006 pre-election conference held at their
office.
The CE was set on February 16, 2006. Despite the fact that we filed at
their office a motion to extend the date of the PEC because of our
appeal to the Court of Appeals, (Motion for Reconsideration with
Petition
for Temporary Restraining Order), waiting for the resolution of CA. The
DOLE Med-Arbiter and Hearing officer unitedly put the 233 illegally
dismissed member of TMPCWA as challenge voters while allowing the level
5-8 employee (Supervisory level according to Supreme Court Ruling) to
vote
as rank and file.
During our militant protest on February 6, 2006, DOLE-NCR Director
Ricardo Martinez permitted our leaders to enter his office and hold a
dialogue with him. During the dialogue, we demanded to the Director to
revise the unjust and rail-road rulings of the Med-Arbiter and asked
him to
call another pre election conference hearing. He promised us that he
will take the necessary action. Our protest action cause the delayed of
posting of the list of voters in Toyota plant.
In the morning of February 8 2006, we came back to the office of
DOLE-NCR to check if there were changes on Med-Arbiter Calabocal ruling
and to meet again the Director. But during that time, no other officers
wanted to assist us, according to their staff, other officers of the
DOLE,
doesn¡Çt like to be involve in the very controversial case of Toyota.
It
took us until the afternoon when we received the new memorandum of
Med-Arbiter Calabocal thru her staff. She changed her first decision.
She
allowed our dismissed members to vote legitimately and she put the
votes
of all level 5 to 8 on challenge. We consider these changes as a
success of our militant action.
One day later Med-Arbiter Calabocal suddenly change her Order to
another
amended Order that the Dismissed members of TMPCWA is allowed to vote
but
segregated again and it will counted after finishing the case pending
in
the Supreme Court. This is a very clear absurd action of the DOLE.
TMPCWA
knew that Toyota has something to do with it.
Inside Toyota plant, the officers of the management led union TMPCLO,
Supervisory union president Angel Dimalanta, Toyota management agent,
Francisco Mero and some managers and department heads continuously
harassing our union members, psywar and forced those not member of
TMPCWA
workers to vote for TMPCLO. They are spending all time and resources of
Toyota to campaign for TMPCLO. But our leaders and members inside are
solid to their stand that only TMPCWA are the genuine union for all
rank
and file workers of Toyota that struggling for the interest of all
workers.
We are now on mass campaign fighting against Toyota, TMPCLO, TMPCSU
and their agents, head to head reaching out all workers and office
staff employees to organize, influence them and vote for TMPCWA.
On February 10, 2006, we stage another picket protest at the
office of DOLE-NCR and we demanded to stop the proceeding of
certification
election. In accordance with law, TMPCWA are existing and certified.
But
the Regional Director of the DOLE, OIC of the Med-Arbiters and the
hearing
officers Lourdes Ching are hiding to us an there were no employees dare
to
assist TMPCWA saying that they do not want to be involved in such
controversial case of Toyota.
We are calling the attention of all our friends and support
organizations, local and international, to support our untiring
struggle
against TOYOTA.
RAIN PROTEST LETTER TO THE DEPARTMENT OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT, TOYOTA
PHILIPPINES AND TOYOTA MOTOR CORPORATION JAPAN, AND CONDEMN, OPPOSE AND
EXPOSE ALL THE DIRTY TACTICS AGAINST TMPCWA.
WE ALSO NEED HELP TO ALL OF YOU TO SEND STATEMENT OF SUPPORT AND
CALLING THE RANK AND FILE WORKERS TO VOTE FOR TMPCWA IN THE FEBRUARY
16,
2006 CERTIFICATION ELECTION.
LONG LIVE THE WORKING CLASS!
ED G. CUBELO
President - TMPCWA,BR>February 13, 2006
For more information please visit the newly created website for TMPCWA.
Visit http://www.tmpcwa.org
The following is the sample letters and addresses.
Pls do not forget to send the cc: copy for TMPCWA
Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA)
Emails: tmpcwa edsamail.com.ph / tmpcwa1998 yahoo.com
(1) SAMPLE LETTER to the Department of Labor and Employment;
Secretary Patricia Sto. Tomas
The Department of Labor and Employment,BR>Republic of the Philippine.
Dear Madam Secretary,
We strongly protest to you against your determination to force the
conduct of a new certification election for another union of rank and
file
employees at the Philippine Toyota.
Your determination means to set the Philippine Toyota free from
whatever responsibility for its 6 years long refusal of collective
bargaining.
Your determination means to totally nullify the decision of the Supreme
Court of the Philippines and the ILO that have admitted the right of
collective bargaining in favor of the Toyota Motor Philippines
Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA) as the sole and exclusive
bargaining
agent. Your determination violates the rules of DOLE to the effect that
no
new certification election shall be allowed where the labor and the
management are in a dispute. The new election is so illegal that it is
now
going to be conducted based on a list of employees that includes
supervisory employees as the voters.
We, therefore, strongly request you to withdraw your determination for
the new certification election at once, and also request that the
Philippine Government requires the Philippine Toyota to have a
collective
bargaining negotiation with TMPCWA immediately.
[Date]
[Name / Organization]
cc: Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA):
Emails: tmpcwa edsamail.com.ph / tmpcwa1998 yahoo.com
Send it to the following Email addresses
1. Patricia Sto. Tomas
Secretary of Department of Labor and Employment
E-mail osec dole.gov.ph,BR>Fax:632-527-3494
2. Ricardo Martinez Sr.
Regional Director
E-mail: Dolencr planning yahoo.com
Telephone: 632-400-6242
Fax:632-400-6242
(2) SAMPLE LETTER to Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation
Mr. Hiroshi Ito,BR>President
Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation
Dear Mr. President,
We strongly protest to you against your determination to force the
conduct of a new certification election for another union of rank and
file
employees at the Philippine Toyota. We also strongly protest to you
against the refusal of collective bargaining that has been done by the
Philippine Toyota for almost 6 years until today.
The new certification election you are now forcing to conduct while
continuing to refuse the collective bargaining as long as 6 years is
utterly unacceptable to all workers throughout the world. All
responsibilities for any and all disputes that have resulted from the
refusal of
collective bargaining by the Philippine Toyota are to be borne by the
Philippine Toyota. Also, it is the Philippine Toyota who is to be held
liable for the dismissal of 233 union member employees and the criminal
charge against 26 union officers.
We, therefore, strongly require that the Philippine Toyota immediately
comply with the decision of the Supreme Court of the Philippines and
accordingly sit at a negotiation table with the Toyota Motor
Philippines
Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA) for collective bargaining
without any delay. We also require that the Philippine Toyota respect
for
the spirit of the recommendation of ILO and accordingly withdraw the
dismissal of 233 TMPCWA member employees and withdraw the criminal
charge
against 26 TMPCWA officers.
[Date]
[Name / Organization]
cc: Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA):
Emails: tmpcwa edsamail.com.ph / tmpcwa1998 yahoo.com
Send it to the following Email addresses
1. Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation
Email: david.go toyota.com.p
Fax:632-843-1421
(3) SAMPLE LETTER to Toyota Motor Corporation
Mr. Watanabe Katsuaki
President
Toyota Motor Corporation
Dear Mr. President,
Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation belongs to, and is one of the
overseas
subsidiaries of, Toyota Motor Corporation, a multinational enterprise.
We
believe Toyota Motor Corporation is fully responsible for all unfair
labor
practices committed by Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation, such as
refusal of collective bargaining.
It is clear that Toyota Motor Corporation instructed, approved or
ratified such unfair labor
practices committed by Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation, and is
also deeply
involved at present in enforcing the illegal certification
election in Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation. Toyota Motor
Corporation
can never be exempted from its responsibility for all whatever have
been done at Toyota
Motor Philippines Corporation as such.
Such acts are against the labor standards provided by ILO. They are
also violating the
Philippine law and its spirit, including the decision rendered by the
Supreme Court.
Toyota Motor Corporation, a multinational company, openly says to the
public that it
respects each country’s law and its spirit, which, however, is a flat
lie.
Workers and citizens all over the world will never tolerate any such
Toyota’s unfair labor
practice. The world’s workers and citizens are, and will continue to
be,
impeaching Toyota Motor Corporation therefore so long as it holds such
attitude. We
strongly require that Toyota Motor Corporation instruct Toyota Motor
Philippines
Corporation to sit at the bargaining table with Toyota Motor
Philippines Corporation
Workers Association without any delay, and withdraw its dismissal of
233 employees.
[Date]
[Name / Organization]
cc: Toyota Motor Philippines Corporation Workers Association (TMPCWA)
Emails: tmpcwa edsamail.com.ph / tmpcwa1998 yahoo.com
Send it to the following Email addresses
1. Toyota Motor Corporation-Japan
Email: kazunobu_muromachi mail.toyota.co.jp
Fax:81-565-23-1230