By Leslie Ann Aquino
The Department of Labor and Employment said its resolution on the regularization of 7,306 workers of the Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) is now final and executory.
A logo of Philippine Long Distance Telephone Company (PLDT) is seen in front of their building in Makati city, Metro Manila.
(REUTERS/Romeo Ranoco / MANILA BULLETIN)
This, after Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III denied the motion of PLDT regarding its resolution last January 10, 2018, directing the company and its contractors to grant their employees regular employment status and pay workers’ monetary benefits amounting to P 51.6 million.
According to the labor department, Bello dismissed PLDT and its 35 contractors’ appeal for "lack of merit" in a resolution signed, April 24.
DOLE reiterated its directive for contractors found to be labor-only contractors to "cease and desist" from further engaging in contracting activities including Activeone Health Inc, Aremay Enterprise, BBS-VPN Allied Services Corporation Philippines, Best Options Assistance, Inc., Comworks Inc.; Consolidated Management Resources; Curo Teknika, Inc., and Diar’s Assistance, Inc.
The labor department said the same directive applies to El Grande Messengerial Services, Inc., Fastel Services Inc., Goodline Staffers and Allied Services, Inc., Implicare International Management Resources Inc., Information Professionals, Inc., Iplus Intelligent Network, Inc., JFM Installation and Telecom Services, Inc., LBP Service Corporation, MD Tambungui Specialists Inc., MG Exeo Network Inc., Meralco Industrial Engineering Services Corporation, MIROF Resources Inc., Proserve Multi Resources Specialists Inc., Searchers and Staffers Corporation, Serveflex Inc., Sitefel Marketing, Software Laboratories, SPi CRM, Inc., Tejo Management Services, Inc., Transbio Incorporated, Trends and Technologies and Service Maintenance, Unison System Computer, Inc., Upsight Construction Inc., and We Support Inc.
"Regional Directors were ordered to initiate the appropriate proceedings against erring contractors based on the issued resolution," DOLE said in a statement.
"The officers of the said contractors are prohibited from operating a contracting business," it added.
The labor department, meantime, declared Customer Frontline Solutions Inc., Pro Tek Telecoms Support Inc., SL Temps; St. Clair Security and Investigation Inc., and Trigold Security & Investigation Agency Incorporated as legitimate contractors.
Also, some of the contractors who have already settled unpaid monetary claims to their employees include Digital Solution and Services, Inc., El Grande Messengerial Services, Inc., MG Exeo Network Inc., MIROF Resources Inc., Pointman Placement Specialist, and Searchers and Staffers Corporation.
It may be recalled that on July 3, 2017, and July 12, 2017, the DOLE National Capital Region has ordered PLDT and its contractors to regularize close to 8,000 contractual workers and settle P66 million in unpaid benefits after they were found to be engaged in labor-only contracting activities and violating general labor standards.