Kawasaki Workers Are on Strike in the Philippines—And We Need Your Solidarity

Kawasaki is trying to bust our union.

Before negotiations stalled over wage demands in 2024, the Kawasaki United Labor Union (KULU) had represented workers at the Japanese motorcycle manufacturer’s Filipino operations for 57 years, winning good contracts for members, which kept wages strong and working conditions safe.

But for the last year, management has refused to bargain seriously, forcing us out on strike for the first time in our union’s history. We’ve now been on strike for over 100 days.

Management is now moving backwards in bargaining as part of their effort to break our union once and for all. They are threatening us with lawsuits and filing charges against union leadership for an “illegal strike” in an effort to intimidate us and to stop us from exercising our rights. They are even harassing striking workers on the picket line by cutting down tree branches to remove any shade that might protect people on the picket line from the sweltering, tropical heat.

We need your help.

Our struggle isn’t just about our factory. Kawasaki’s global footprint means that every union victory—or defeat—resonates across borders, including in the United States.

In 1984, Kawasaki busted a UAW organizing effort at their plant in Lincoln, Nebraska. That plant is still producing, and the 2,500 workers there still don’t have a union. The largest market for Kawasaki products is the United States. Your power to help us win this struggle is unmatched.

RETALIATION

Our union, KULU, is one of the last remaining independent unions in the Philippines. We represent 198 skilled workers striking at Kawasaki’s flagship plant in Muntinlupa City.

Since we walked out in May, we’ve held a peaceful picket line every day from 6 a.m. to 5 p.m., through rain, heat, and even earthquakes. Our strike has shut down service centers nationwide and ground motorcycle production to a halt.

Management has retaliated harshly. We’ve seen lockout threats, legal charges levied against our elected union leaders claiming our strike is illegal, and intimidation tactics, including blasting company hymns and removing shade from the picket line.

None of this has broken our unity.

NEGOTIATIONS BREAKDOWN

The breakdown in negotiations came one year into bargaining a new contract. We negotiated from our initial 12 percent wage increase starting point down to 10.5 percent, showing good faith on our side, but management’s best offer was 7 percent with some agreement on benefits. Bargaining shifted over to formal mediation through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and immediately the company walked back their 7 percent offer.

Their new “offer”? A 5 percent raise and just a handful of the requested benefits, including key protections like sick leave and transportation allowances.

Kawasaki pleads poverty, even though it raked in ₱35 billion ($611 million) in revenue last year and spent less than 1 percent of that on wages. Despite our strike, the company has refused to budge from their 5 percent wage proposal.

That’s when we turned to a measure of last resort: a strike. Many of us are second-generation unionists and consulted with our parents before authorizing a strike by a vote of 98 percent.

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“I admit, I was afraid at first to join the strike,” Rhodora, one of our union members, told me. “But then I saw the courage of veteran unionists and was inspired by the successes of past strikes from other unions. Hearing those stories showed me that the strike is for the future of all Kawasaki workers.”

As union board member Jhay R. Taruc put it: “When a living wage is denied, a strike is the workers’ last weapon.”

KAWASAKI CAN AFFORD IT

Let’s be clear: Kawasaki’s poverty plea is a lie.

Their plant in the Philippines produces 18,000 motorcycles a month. Executives are still enjoying retreats and bonuses while we’re told our demands are unreasonable.

Our average wage is just ₱37,000/month—approximately $650. Government data says a family of five in Metro Manila needs at least ₱42,000/month to survive. Even our original 11.5 percent raise would have amounted to just 0.9 percent of company revenues over three years.

This is not about affordability. This is about power. Kawasaki would rather risk factory shutdowns than allow a union victory. But with the support of the international labor movement, we have the potential to amplify our power so that even the loudest of the company’s hymns can’t muffle us.

AMPLIFYING WORKER POWER

Kawasaki is sensitive to its public image. Media coverage of the strike and social media outcry have already forced management to respond publicly. That tells us something: they are afraid of the strike damaging their public image.

After more than 100 days on strike, our strike fund is nearly depleted. Twenty-nine workers—under enormous economic pressure—have gone back to work. Most of us are still holding the line, but we’re struggling. We’ve relied on food donations and small acts of solidarity to survive. Other unions in the Philippines have stepped up—sending supplies, joining our picket line, and helping share our story.

We need that same show of solidarity from workers around the world. That’s where you come in.

Here’s how you can help:

• Share our LabourStart Petition. This petition will help show the company that the workers of the world stand with us. Nearly 3,300 workers from around the world have already signed in support.
• Donate to our strike fund. Every dollar goes toward helping workers stay on strike. We are hoping to raise US$700 per week to support our basic needs.
• Picket Kawasaki service centers in the U.S. and abroad. Show them that union-busting doesn’t stop at borders. Fill out our picket form and we’ll get you the information you need.
• Send a letter or video of solidarity to our striking workers. Our comrades on the picket line would love to see the workers of the world standing behind them. Please send letters or videos to rey.rasing[at]gmail[dot]com and ​​pmasentro2021[at]gmail[dot]com.

We build motorcycles. You buy them. If American workers and consumers speak out, alongside others across the world, Kawasaki will have to listen.

We’ve learned from the U.S. labor movement: from the UAW, the Teamsters, Starbucks workers, Amazon organizers, and many more. We’ve stood up in solidarity when telecom companies like Verizon and AT&T targeted American workers. We understand our struggles are deeply interconnected.

Now we ask you to fight with us. Our fight is your fight. And if we win, all workers win.

Richard Balberan is the president of the Kawasaki Union (KULU) in the Philippines.