Harassment of union involved in Coca-Cola dispute

On 2 November 2021, persons claiming to be members of the Quezon City Police Department went to the national office of Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa (SENTRO) in Manila to supposedly investigate a labour dispute involving its affiliate, the Federation and Cooperation of Cola, Beverage, and Allied Industry Unions (FCCU). The FCCU is engaged in a labour dispute at Coca-Cola Philippines over deadlocked wage bargaining and a national campaign for the reinstatement of unfairly terminated union leaders.
In a statement, SENTRO said the persons concerned had no legal documents officially identifying them, authorising them to be there, or stating the purpose of their visit. They repeatedly asked for information regarding SENTRO’s office, the other unions present there, and their activities.
The so-called police officers also went to the premises of the Trade Union Confederation of the Philippines (TUCP) compound in Quezon City. They inquired about the NAGKAISA Labour Coalition, of which SENTRO is a part.
SENTRO noted that the only effect of their action was to harass trade unionists, and it called on the leader of the Philippines national police to end the intimidation of trade unions and meet with union leaders to engage in meaningful dialogue on how to uphold the right to freedom of association.