THE Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has assumed jurisdiction over a labor dispute between the Manggagawa ng Komunikasyon ng Pilipinas (MKP) and Manuel V. Pangilinan-led telco giant PLDT Inc.
The department, in a Dec. 2 order, also prohibited both parties “from conducting a strike, lockout or any concerted activities,” PLDT told the stock exchange on Tuesday.
The telco said the DOLE had stepped in following the expiration of a seven-day strike ban.
MKP, representing 3,800 PLDT employees, is deadlocked with PLDT management over a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA). Strike vote results were submitted to the National Conciliation and Mediation Board on Nov. 25.
“PLDT remains committed to concluding the CBA negotiations with MKP fairly and swiftly,” the telco said.
“In the meantime, we assure the public that PLDT shall continue to deliver the best possible service to our subscribers,” it added.
MKP said last Nov. 26 that the dispute with PLDT was at an impasse as the telco “explicitly stated that it cannot match what it provided in the past CBA.”
Pete Pinlac, MKP secretary general, told a press conference that under the previous CBA, P10,700 in wage hikes spread out over three years had been agreed upon, but PLDT was now only offering an increase of just P6,400.
He warned that MKP would stage a nationwide strike this month as a last resort.
In another development, PLDT on Monday also said that its board had declared a cash dividend in the amount of roughly P2.44 million for the quarter ending Jan. 15, 2025, payable on Jan. 15, 2025 to stockholders on record as of Dec. 17, 2024.
The cash dividend will come out of unaudited retained earnings as of end-June 2024.
PLDT shares on Tuesday closed up by P18, or 1.34 percent, to P1,360 each even as the benchmark Philippine Stock Exchange index slipped by 0.13 percent.
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