NLRC issues TRO against Zagu strike

MANILA, Philippines –  The National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC) has issued a temporary restraining order (TRO) against the strike at Zagu Food Corporation, directing the labor union not to block the gates of the pearl shake maker.

The NLRC issued the TRO on Wednesday, June 26, granting the petition of Zagu management against the strike of the Organization of Zagu Workers-Solidarity of Unions in the Philippines for Empowerment and Reforms (Organiza-Super).

The NLRC ordered the striking workers not to block the gates of the firm, which has hampered Zagu operations since the strike began on June 6, and also to allow employees not part of the strike to enter the company premises.

“The foregoing is without prejudice to respondent’s right to peaceful picketing,” the NLRC added in its resolution.

The TRO would be in effect for 20 days, as soon as Zagu posts a P100,000-cash bond.

Organiza-Super went on strike starting June 6, ahead of Zagu’s 20th anniversary. The workers blocked the entrance and exit gates of the firm, in a bid to demand management to hear their concerns.

Bukluran ng Manggagawa labor organizer Rafael La Viña said that the TRO would “defeat the strike’s purpose.” 

Organiza-Super president Shirley Fulgencio encouraged her fellow workers to continue with the strike as they deal with the “new challenge presented by the TRO.”

“We managed to hold on to the first wave of protest last June 6, perhaps this would be easy for us. Let us show the NLRC that no worker surrenders easily or accepts being trodden down, until the end,” Fulgencio said.

The union went on strike after the union and management failed to reach an agreement during 5 months of negotiation facilitated by the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) – Rappler.com

Enrico Berdos is a Rappler intern. He is a journalism student from the University of the Philippines-Diliman.