Palace brushes off ‘insensitive’ tag on PAL labor row

Malacañang brushed off Saturday a Catholic bishop’s claims that its decision to uphold flag carrier Philippine Airlines’ outsourcing of non-core services means “insensitivity" to PAL employees. The Palace’s decision should not be taken as a measure of insensitivity, according to deputy presidential spokesperson Abigail Valte. “It’s a mater of what [evidence] was presented in the proceedings." Besides, she said the Office of the President merely affirmed a decision originally reached by the secretary of the Department of Labor and Employment. Manila Auxiliary Bishop Broderick Pabillo had scored the Palace for standing by an earlier ruling allowing the Asia’s oldest carrier to spin off its non-core businesses. “[Executive Secretary Paquito] Ochoa’s pronouncements dashed the hope of thousands of workers who had appealed to Malacañang to end the labor row by way of harmonizing the interests of both the workers and the PAL management," Pabillo said on a blog post. “Instead, [Ochoa’s] statement suggests the government’s insensitivity to the predicament of the workers," added Pabillo, who heads the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines National Secretariat for Social Action, Justice and Peace. Pabillo voiced solidarity with the members of the PAL Employees’ Association, especially the 2,600 workers who face unemployment. “At the same time, we express grave disappointment over the government’s manifest partiality towards PAL, whose recent financial report belies claims of ‘massive losses,’" he said. He added that with its decision, the Aquino administration “has done a grave disservice to the people." “The Church maintains its appeal for a just resolution of this case. Government decisions must be conducted within the prescriptions of labor’s primacy over capital — people first over profit," Pabillo said. “We continue praying that the government may finally find the wisdom to render pro-people decisions and provide opportunities for the workers and the management to work tirelessly for the common good," he added. Meanwhile, PALEA had said it plans to question the decision before the Court of Appeals. — JE, GMA News