120 workers coming home from Subic?

By KIT BAGAIPO - Bohol Chronicles
Some 120 Boholanos recruited as welders at the Hanjin Shipyard in Subic are complaining of unjust pay and are planning to walk out of their jobs to return home.

Twenty-one of the said workers have already returned here yesterday, a week after they were sent to Subic through the Bohol Employment and Placement Office (BEPO).

The BEPO office recruited 152 skilled Boholano workers for Hanjin Heavy Industries Ltd. which set up one of the country's biggest dry docks at the Subic Bay Freeport Redondo Bay.

One of the recruits, working as a machine shop operator, spoke with the Chronicle by condition of anonymity, disclosing that the 120 welders were not informed by the BEPO of deductions on their P150 per day salary.

According to the source, welders have to undergo one month training at the shipyard at a daily rate of P150 which includes food allowance.

While under trainee, they were allegedly promised free board and lodging by Hanjin when they applied for employment at BEPO.

However, when the welders started work last Monday, their daily pay were deducted P65 for food, P35 for their board and lodging.

The Boholano workers will spend P25 for transportation going to the shipyard, thus leaving only P25 daily for the welders, the source said.

With such a measly daily net pay, most of the welders are opting to return home.

However, many of them could not afford the fare from Subic to the province.

The source bared they were assured by BEPO their daily allowance as trainees will be net of food, board and lodging expenses.

A check made by the Chronicle at the BEPO office revealed that the 152 skilled workers sent to Subic last week were the first of several batches that will be employed at the Hanjin shipyard.

Another set of skilled workers involving welders, electricians and machine shop operators will be deployed next month.

Hanjin is investing some $1.6 billion in Subic. When fully operational, the shipyard is said to hire 15,000 workers.


TRAINING STILL
The Boholano workers are still under training (outside the shipyard) for a month or two as designed in their employment program.

This was the explanation made by Romy Tagaan, head of the Bohol Employment and Placement Office (BEMO) when contacted yesterday for comments.

Hanjin authorities, during their recruitment told the workers here that the training for ship building is worth P100,000, but the workers will not be charged but will be given an allowance of P150 per day.

Tagaan said that the workers were informed before their departure that the P150 include their good, board and lodging.

After the training they will receive the P235 minimum wage in Subic. Five-month probationary will come next before they be hired as regular workers with P320 daily wage or P9,000 per month. Upon completion of training ad probationary period, they will be moved to the ship building site.

The recruitment of Boholano workers is the only one outside Luzon after representations were made by Gov. Erico Aumentado with Hanjin officials to boost the employment program of the provincial government.