NATIONAL labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno condemned today the arrest of the president of the Metro Manila chapter of one of its federations this morning as workers and police forces clashed anew in relation to the labor dispute in Pentagon Steel Corporation in Barangay Apolonio Samson, Quezon City.
Camilo Cuares, president of the Alliance of Nationalist and Genuine Labor Organizations (ANGLO)-Metro Manila, was arrested after workers resisted the entry of more than 50 scabs into the company’s premises.
Pentagon workers have erected a picketline to protest the illegal retrenchment of 150 workers by the company after workers opposed the management’s attempts to have them sign a waiver prohibiting them from holding protests.
After the National Labor Relations Commission issued a 60-day temporary injunction order against the picketline last May 31, there has been an almost a daily skirmish between the workers and their supporters on the one hand and hired goons and the Philippine National Police on the other.
“We condemn the illegal arrest of our federation leader as well as the intensifying violence being inflicted on the workers of Pentagon Steel Corporation. It is revolting to see how the Pentagon management, led by Mariano Chan, continues to repress workers and enjoy the government’s support,” said Elmer “Bong” Labog, KMU chairperson.
“The plight of the Pentagon workers clearly illustrates how capitalists react when workers decide to stand up for their rights and how the Aquino government backs up capitalists and not the workers. The Pentagon workers’ struggle is a struggle of the Filipino working class,” said Henry Huecas, ANGLO president.
The labor leaders called on the Filipino workers and other sectors of society to show support for the workers of the nail and iron rod factory.
“Capitalists have always employed massive retrenchment to prevent workers from fighting for their rights. These retrenchments constitute a violation of workers’ right to unionize and collectively bargain,” Labog said.
“The workers of Pentagon deserve the support of all Filipino workers and all sectors of our society. They are fighting a brutal capitalist in the person of Chan, anti-union Human Resources head in the person of Pablito Alcover, and an anti-worker government headed by Noynoy Aquino,” Huecas said.
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