Labor strikes down 30% in first half

Labor strikes and lockouts declined by 30 percent to 176 in the first half of the year from 253 in the same period last year, the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) said on Friday. In a report to the Department of Labor and Employment, the NCMB said it received less notices of strike/lockout in the first semester of the year, as the strike prevention rate rose slightly to 97 percent from last year's 96 percent. The NCMB also said P114 million in collective bargaining packages were awarded to 1,300 workers nationwide with the resolution or settlement of labor disputes during the first semester of the year "The number of workers involved in this year's notices of strike/lockout was also conspicuously lower, 37,139 compared to almost 45,000 workers involved in last year's strike notices," the NCMB report added. Some 430 companies have been spared from facing any labor disputes following the skillful efforts in mediation and conciliation methods. Of the figure, 176 were notices of strike and lockouts while the remaining 254 were mediation cases covering the first six months of the year. - GMANews.TV