DOLE regional office serves compliance order to Kentex sub-contractor; directs P8.3 million payment to 99 workers
Labor and Employment Secretary Rosalinda Dimapilis-Baldoz yesterday announced that the DOLE Regional Office No. 3, headed by Regional Director Ana Dione, yesterday served a compliance order to CJC Manpower Services, the subcontractor of rubber footwear manufacturer Kentex Manufacturing Corporation, directing the company to pay its 99 workers P8.3 million in unpaid benefits.
“Finally, our regional office in San Fernando, Pampanga had served the compliance order to CJC after its joint assessment team had found out that the sub-contractor owes 99 workers of Kentex Manufacturing Corporation a total of P8.3 million in unpaid benefits, a million pesos higher than the region’s initial estimate. The team had also discovered other blatant labor violations,” said Baldoz.
Citing a report of Regional Director Dione, Secretary Baldoz said the DOLE discovered that CJC Manpower Services is engaging in the prohibited activity of “labor-only contracting,” hence, jointly and severally liable with its principal, Kentex Manufacturing Corporation, in the amount of P8,389,655.70 representing the computed monetary deficiencies owed the 99 workers.
The compliance order was anchored on the provision of Article 106, Chapter lll Book lll of the Labor Code and Department Order No.18-A, and was served at the CJC Manpower Services offices at the 2nd Floor Rural Bank Building in Barangay Calvario Meycauayan, Bulacan. Earlier, or on 18 May, the regional office, to warn other applicants, employers and companies, also served a cease and decist order on CJC prohibiting it from recruiting, supplying and/or deploying workers to companies and employers.
Director Dione said in her report that “unlawful labor practices by CJC had been further unearthed by the DOLE assessment team. These include underpayment of minimum wages, non-payment of COLA, non-payment of 13th month pay for the year 2014, non-payment of holiday pay and special holiday premium, illegal deduction of cash bond of P100.00 per week, and non-membership of workers and non-remittance of premiums to the SSS, Philhealth, and Pag-Ibig Fund despite deductions on pay”.
“The joint assessment team also found out that CJC Manpower Services is not registered under Department Order No. 18-A in Region 3. It also found out that there was no written service agreement between Kentex Manufacturing Corporation and CJC Manpower Services. There was also no employment contract between CJC Manpower Services and workers deployed at Kentex Manufacturing Corporation. The workers are also not enlisted as members of SSS, PhilHealth, and Pag-Ibig,” Baldoz observed.
Other CJC violations discovered were the non-submission of annual work accident/illness exposure date report, non-submission of annual medical report, absence of company policy and program on Anti-Sexual Harassment, Drug Free Workplace, Tuberculosis, Hepatitis B; and HIV-AIDS.
CJC Manpower Services, according to Director Dione, was not registered under Rule 1020 (1) of the Occupational Safety and Health Standards, which mandates every employer to register his/her business with the DOLE regional office, or DOLE authorized representative having jurisdiction thereof to form part of a databank of all covered establishments.
The assessment team substantiated that workers deployed at Kentex Manufacturing Corporation only receive P202.00 per day from CJC Manpower Services, which claimed that Kentex paid an additional P230.00 per day to the workers. However, there was no payroll presented to support said claim.
Among other findings that were substantiated: (1) SSS remittances made by CJC was last made only on 8 April 2015, and this was for January 2015 premiums covering 19 workers, none of whom were employed at Kentex Manufacturing Corporation; (2) Pag-Ibig contribution was last remitted by CJC on 6 May 2015 for February 2015 contributions covering 13 workers, but only four (4) of them were deployed at Kentex Manufacturing Corporation; and (3) remittance for PhilHealth was made by CJC on 25 March 2015 for February premiums covering six (6) workers, only three (3) of whom deployed at Kentex Manufacturing Corporation.
Relative to this, Baldoz also announced that DOLE NCR Regional Director Avila is set to issue this week a compliance order to Kentex, ordering the company to pay an initial P2.5 million to another 76 displaced workers.
“The DOLE National Capital Region is very carefully drafting the compliance order which will also address the issues raised by Kentex in its affidavit submitted on 1 June 2015. Its computation shows the company owes the 76 workers P2,456,108.21 in unpaid monetary benefits. I emphasize this is only an initial computation based on affidavits that the workers have submitted,” said Baldoz, who also said the DOLE NCR is ready to release, within the week and the next, its livelihood assistance to the fire victims as long as they are ready to join a DOLE team in the purchase of their livelihood kits.
“Initially, we can release P620,000 to 62 beneficiaries,” Baldoz said.
Source: www.dole.gov.ph
