The Story Behind Subic-made ships of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Phils., Inc.
Author: Hanjin Workers A Briefing Paper: The Story Behind Subic-made ships of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Phils., Inc. Since June 2008, Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Phils., Inc. manufactured and delivered twenty four vessels, 14 of which is worth $850 million. For the last two years, Hanjin remains the top exporter in Subic Freeport Zone by earning a total amount of $ 372.74 Million freight on board (FOB)[1]. With an initial investment of $721 Million, the South Korean conglomerate started operating in May 2006. It was the largest foreign direct investment (FDI) in the Philippines that inked a 50-year lease agreement with then President Arroyo. Hanjin started out with a 15,000 workforce it now employs 21, 000 Filipino workers. Now, the company targets to sell about $700 Million worth of vessels by 2010, $935 Million in 2011, and $1.28 Billion in 2012. Taking into account the generous benefits bundled with the deal like the ten year tax holiday in less than four years the company will be earning back its $ 1.8 Billion investment in no time. It is for this reason that Hanjin quality assurance director Yoonha Kim commended the Filipino workers for ‘learning fast in shipbuilding’. What then is the state of its 21,000 diligent Filipino shipbuilders? Recurrence of Accidents and Maltreatment SAMAHAN (Samahan ng mga Manggagawa sa Hanjin Shipyard) in its documentation observed in the early week of March 2011 an alarming frequency in fatal accidents occurring at the Subic site. In a span of almost five months, four workers died out of twenty-seven (27) grave accidents that occurred at the shipyard. These accident victims were either confined in the hospital or incapacitated just as the case of Ronaldo Alvarez who was caught between two metal panel boards that painfully twisted his lower torso turning his lower body invalid. He underwent three major operations including blood transfusions. Whereas, less serious accidents such as minor skin wounds or abrasions, skin irritation, swollen and irritated eyes from over-exposure to welding fumes and metal fillings and a loss of a limb or two occur with alarming frequency. Every day, the long line of workers awaiting treatment from the nurses on duty at the small clinic has become a living testimony to how dangerous shipyard work is. On the contrary, from March 28 to June 11, the association documented six (6) cases of maltreatment of Filipino workers by Korean superiors. Maltreatment ranges from choking, kicking, being hit on the head with solid metal flashlight (Maglite) or being hit by an industrial scissor (used for cutting iron sheets). Questionable Safety In the Workplace The poor safety record of the light-industrial Zone and Freeport came to light in 2008 with a string of accidents and deaths. Congress and Senate Labor Committee took steps to conduct an inquiry into the matter. In the first quarter of 2009, the number of deaths reached twenty four (24) while according to the Occupational Health and Safety section of the Labor Department reported 5,000 accidents with 40 deaths. Workers were encouraged to expose how their Korean superiors handle them like yelling, swearing, knocking their heads, kicking and hitting them with hard objects in order to “extract obedience.” Food is another perennial problem as it was often stale or maggot laden. It was also pointed out that one of the reasons of the accidents is the widespread use of subcontractors. In an ocular visit conducted by Senator Jinggoy Estrada on the shipyard the following recommendations were cited:
At first SAMAHAN’s registration was rejected but eventually granted last March 2010. Once more, the management appealed and the DOLE Region III immediately revoked the association’s registration. Through the efforts of supportive Church groups like Urban Missionaries (UM-AMRSP) and the National Secretariat on Social Action, Justice and Peace (CBCP-NASSA JP), the SAMAHAN certificate is reinstated by the Office of National Director of DOLE-BLR last September 2010. The alarming return of fatalities and serious injuries from preventable accidents and maltreatment by Korean superiors (with deliberateness unheard of in prior incidents) as well as unclean or sometimes stale and maggot-laden food at the canteen; the workers wrote several letters to the management included in this letter is the demand to reinstate the sixty-nine (69) illegally dismissed union and SAMAHAN members. The workers rejoiced when the management without answering the association’s letter for a dialogue; started to fix their food, provide uniforms and safety gadgets such as: safety shoes, and goggles, gas mask and helmet to some employees. Yet, in two days time the workers are back to the old cycle: stale food, poor quality equipment and worn-out uniforms; followed by four consecutive accidents that resulted in the death of two workers last April 8 to 15, 2011. In a bid to show their growing concern and alarm that the shipyard will once again be their graveyard the workers held lunch break noise barrage on the eve of May 1 and on May 26 they wrote a follow-up letter to the management. The demands of the group are simple: create a committee between the Hanjin management and the workers representative from SAMAHAN to jointly resolve the following:
### Contact Persons: Alfie Alipio-President(SAMAHAN)0930 1870 800 Joey Gonzales-Secretary- 0907 8320 094[email protected] Precy Dellomes (MAKABAYAN)0905 3652 391 Email: [email protected] Ernesto Arellano (President) (NUBCW–BWI) – 0922 8355 685 and Tess Borgonios – 0917 8256 954 [email protected]
0 Comments
Subic, Zambales - “Shipbuilding is a high risk job; laxity on safety measures turns a shipyard into a gravely dangerous zone” this is the statement of Alfie Alipio, President of Samahan ng mga Manggagawa sa Hanjin Shipyard (SAMAHAN) in response to the accident that occurred yesterday at the Subic Shipyard or PHILSECO a shipbreaker company after a portion of a scaffold collapsed claiming the lives of five Pinoy workers while injuring six others.
“This horrible accident puts into the limelight the struggle for workplace safety of the Filipino workers in HANJIN’s Subic shipyard,” said Precy Dagooc, secretary general of labor center Manggagawa para sa Kalayaan ng Bayan (MAKABAYAN). Adding that, “if this accidents could happen in a company (PHILSECO) that strictly implements health and safety rules how much more in HANJIN a South Korean shipbuilding giant whose laxity on health and safety implementation caused for the death of 4 workers out of 28 serious accidents in the last five months. It can be recalled that last October 4, 2011 the Commission on Human Rights called for a dialogue with the management of Hanjin Heavy Industries and Construction Phils. Inc. (HHICPI), the Task Force Hanjin headed by the Region III labor department, SAMAHAN and the Church Labor Conference. The initial dialogue exposed a wide gap in health and safety implementation, the labor department’s leniency in compelling HANJIN to comply in Philippine and internationally recognized labor laws such as the right to workplace safety, right to self-organization and collective bargaining agreement. “The rise of work-related deaths and the lack of financial support to the families of the victims is also a growing concern,” noted Alipio, “last May 27 another worker Aries Ariel Aquillo died from multi organ malfunction his family only received a Php 2, 000 donation from the HAnjin management.” MAKABAYAN alongside the Church Labor Conference demands onto P.Noy to bring justice to the Filipinos, uphold human dignity and save the lives of the 21,000 shipbuilders; HANJIN must comply to Philippine labor laws. ### |
Categories
All
|