Cebu labor groups and student organizations stage a protest Monday, June 9, denouncing alleged union busting and calling for the reopening of a garment factory shut down for three months. | CDN Photo/ Suzaine Gallardo
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Labor groups and workers staged a protest outside the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) regional office in Cebu City on Monday morning, June 9.
They denounced what they described as “union busting” by a garment factory operating in the Mactan Economic Processing Zone (MEPZ).
The protest, held around 10 a.m., was led by the labor coalition Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO), alongside other Cebu-based workers’ groups and student organizations, in response to the continued non-recognition of a union formed earlier this year.
“We won the union last March 2024, but the management didn’t recognize it. Instead, they shut down the factory for three months. This is union busting,” said Audrey John Ampoon, SENTRO spokesperson.
Ampoon said the company’s refusal to acknowledge the union and its decision to halt operations shortly after the unionization were a form of retaliation meant to weaken worker solidarity and discourage future organizing.
READ: Another layoff in MEPZ: 300 workers axed
The demonstration comes amid growing concern over labor practices in the MEPZ, particularly in the garment sector that supplies major global brands.
Protesters are calling for the factory’s immediate reopening and for the management to formally engage in collective bargaining negotiations with the newly formed union.
Dennise Derige, one of the labor organizers and protest spokespersons, said the factory shutdown appeared to be a deliberate move by management to pressure workers into giving up their union.
He said that the issue went beyond job displacement, framing it as a broader attempt to suppress workers’ rights.
Labor groups said that over a hundred workers have been displaced following the sudden suspension of operations, many without access to alternative employment or clear communication from the management.
Moreover, Alan Esponga, vice chairperson of Partido Manggagawa for Cebu and Bohol, said that Monday’s protest was part of the Global Day of Action to support workers’ rights and expose systemic labor rights violations across the supply chains of international apparel companies.
“This rally is to show support to the workers who still haven’t received any collective bargaining agreement from the management,” Esponga said.
Student groups, including those under the banner of the International Labor Solidarity (SILS), also joined the protest to amplify calls for accountability.
They urged their educational institutions to reevaluate any affiliations or partnerships with global apparel brand Lululemon, which labor groups allege is connected to the factory in question.
The student groups are calling for “institutional divestment” from brands implicated in labor abuse and have demanded transparency in sourcing practices.
Meanwhile, organizers said they plan to file formal complaints and seek the agency’s intervention to mediate the dispute and investigate possible labor rights violations.