PAL fires al striking pilots<\/p>\n
MANILA (AP): Philippine Airlines announced yesterday it was
\nfiring all striking pilots who had defied a return to work order,
\nplunging the financially-troubled airline into one of its biggest
\nlabor crises.<\/p>\n
The pilots continued a strike and staged a protest march
\nyesterday, defying airline threats of dismissal unless they
\nreturn to work.<\/p>\n
The strike began last Friday, forcing international and
\ndomestic flight cancellations and stranding hundreds of
\npassengers.<\/p>\n
\"Some pilots were able to beat the deadline but those who
\nremained defiant were, in accordance with law and jurisprudence,
\ndeclared as having lost their jobs with the airline,\" PAL said in
\na statement.<\/p>\n
An airline official refused to say how many pilots chose to
\nreturn to work but the pilots' union said it remained backed up
\nby all of its 620 members.<\/p>\n
Calling the strike illegal, the airline fired 29 officers of
\nthe Airline Pilots Association of the Philippines Saturday and
\nwarned remaining members would also be dismissed if they didn't
\nreturn to work by noon of yesterday.<\/p>\n
Instead of returning to work, the pilots marched around a PAL
\ncompound in metropolitan Manila's suburban Paranaque city,
\nbrandishing placards that read \"Give labor its due\" and \"All is
\nnot well in PAL.\"<\/p>\n
The strikers staged a countdown and yelled, \"jobless!\" at noon
\nyesterday.<\/p>\n
Union spokesman Florendo Umali said the dismissal of the union
\nofficers was illegal and warned they would go on with the strike
\nindefinitely until their demands are met.<\/p>\n
The union is protesting a new management policy of retiring
\npilots who have reached 20 years of service or flown 20,000
\nhours, regardless of age. This policy puts about 200 pilots in
\ndanger of being \"retired,\" Umali said.<\/p>\n
PAL called the strike illegal because the Department of Labor
\nhas assumed jurisdiction over the labor dispute. Labor department
\nofficials were determining whether the strike was illegal or not,
\nand trying to mediate.<\/p>\n
PAL scheduled five international flights out of Manila,
\nincluding three bound for Hong Kong, one for Singapore and
\nanother for Los Angeles and 14 domestic flights.<\/p>\n
Over the past four years, the airline has incurred annual
\nlosses ranging from 451.4 million pesos (US$11.3 million) to 2.5
\nbillion pesos.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/pal-fires-al-striking-pilots-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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