Talks for new CBA in Angeles school deadlocked

ANGELES CITY—Talks for a new collective bargaining agreement (CBA) between the union and management of the Holy Angel University (HAU), one of the biggest private schools in Central Luzon, have reached a deadlock.

The main issue that has stalled the negotiations is the refusal of the HAU management to account for and disclose the amount of money it has collected from tuition increases, a large chunk of which is due to workers, said Edmond Maniago, president of the HAU Teachers and Employees Union (HAUTEU). It has 385 members out of some 900 school personnel.

Edna Marriza Santos, assistant to the HAU president and chair of the management panel in the CBA talks, said management cannot accept the proposal “for the end-of-year recomputation of figures with regard to the amount of incremental proceeds from tuition increase and the distribution of the 70 percent of proceeds to our employees’ salaries and benefits.”

“It invokes its prerogative to handle its business operations and processes according to its best judgment and guided by the prescription of law. In doing so and in good faith, it also exercises its prerogative to keep university records of such nature in utmost confidentiality,” Santos said.

The conflict arose early on in the term of businessman Manuel Pangilinan as chair of the HAU board of trustees.

Maniago said the Commission on Higher Education (CHEd) has mandated that 70 percent of tuition increase “shall be used for the payment of increase in salaries, wages, allowance and other benefits of  teaching, nonteaching and other staff.”

The 20 percent, it said, “shall go to the improvement or modernization of buildings, equipment, libraries, laboratories, gymnasium and similar facility and to the payment of other costs of operations.” The remaining 10 percent goes to profit.

The HAU raised tuition for school years 2010-2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013, CHEd documents showed. It also filed certificates complying with the 70-20-10 percent proceeds.

“It won’t show us a recomputation of the incremental proceeds of 70 percent of tuition increase,” Veronica Pangilinan, HAUTEU spokesperson, said.

Santos, however, said the incremental proceeds were shown and discussed in September last year.

Economic provisions in the CBA will be based on the incremental proceeds, Pangilinan said, adding the union is opposing proposed criteria that may affect the security of tenure of its members. Tonette Orejas, Inquirer Central Luzon