Labor groups join opposition to open skies with US

The country’s big and small labor organizations have vigorously opposed the open skies agreement with the United States scheduled for implementation in October this year, warning the government that the accord will displace workers in the aviation industry and those in other sectors.

Meeting in a Quezon City restaurant recently, the groups passed a resolution expressing their objection to open skies and appealing to President Arroyo to stop the implementation of the RP-US Air Transport Agreement (ATA).

Among the labor groups that signed the resolution are the National Confederation of Labor (NCL), National Labor Union (NLU), Association of Democratic Labor Organizations (ADLO), Asia Pacific Workers Solidarity Link (APWSL), Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP), Alyansa ng Malayang Obrero, Philippine Airlines Employes Association, Miascor Labor Union, Associated Marine Officers’ and Seamen’s Union of the Philippines, Kapatiran ng mga Kristiyanong Manggagawa, National Alliance of Federated Labor Unions and Siglo.

They said they would join the Labor Day rally to dramatize their opposition to open skies as well as trade liberalization.

They stressed that other countries are against open skies because of its detrimental effects on their aviation industries and economies.

The workers said the RP-US ATA signed in 1982 lacks reciprocity as it greatly favors the American carriers. While US airlines can mount flights to the Philippines without limitation on frequencies and destinations and the size of their aircraft, Philippine carriers can fly only to nine entry points in the US with 16 possible destinations. These Philippine Labor groups...From C-1

carriers, however, are not allowed to pick up passengers from either the entry point or the destination.

The agreement, according to the workers, also violates Republic Act 2232 which states that the country should have its own national air carrier and be given all the rights and privileges necessary to ensure fair and equal opportunities to compete profitably with other airlines for international trade.

"Because of the peculiar geographic location of the Philippines, it is vital to its security and defense that the country has its own national carrier," they added.

The workers said there is no justification to allow open skies since of the 12 million airline seat allocation per year, only 6.2 million seats are being utilized.

"If we allow unlimited flights by foreign carriers to the Philippines, these foreign airlines will only siphon whatever foreign exchange earnings the country is generating from the industry," they pointed out.