The La Tondeña strike was a protest action that happened in October 1975, notable for being the first major strike to be held after

Ferdinand Marcos Ferdinand Emmanuel Edralin Marcos Sr. ( , , ; September 11, 1917 – September 28, 1989) was a Filipino politician, lawyer, dictator, and kleptocrat who was the 10th president of the Philippines from 1965 to 1986. He ruled under martial ...

' 1972 declaration of martial law in the Philippines. It is also considered as one of the first major open acts of resistance against the Marcos dictatorship and an important turning point for the period. The strike began on October 24 when 500 workers, organizing themselves as the Kaisahan ng Malayang Manggagawa ng La Tondeña Inc. (Union of Free Workers of La Tondeña), Hess, Steve (Mar 2, 2013) Authoritarian Landscapes: Popular Mobilization and the Institutional Sources of Resilience in Nondemocracies. Springer Science & Business Media. stopped work and barricaded themselves in the facilities of La Tondeña, then the largest distillery in Asia. Their demands included the elevation of casual workers to permanent status, maternity leave for female workers, and an end to illegal firings. It ended 44 hours later when Marcos' forces cracked down on the protesters, including various Catholic religious workers who had decided to support the protester's cause. The strike was originally possible under the rules of Martial Law because La Tondeña was not considered a critical industry, so Marcos eventually responded by proclaiming a decree that outlawed all strikes across all industries. As stories of the La Tondeña strike spread, the event became a symbol of resistance. Labor rights activist

Edgar Jopson Edgardo Gil Mirasol Jopson, more popularly known as Edgar Jopson or Edjop (September 1, 1948 – September 21, 1982), was a labor rights activist and active member of the Communist Party of the Philippines (CPP) during the reign of former Presid ...

played a key role in organizing the protest, among other things coining the protest phrase "Sobra na! Tama na! Welga na!" (lit. It's too much already! Enough! Time to strike!). The slogan would become a popular catchphrase used by the labor protest movement until the ousting of Ferdinand Marcos during the

1986 People Power revolution The People Power Revolution, also known as the EDSA Revolution or the February Revolution, was a series of popular Demonstration (people), demonstrations in the Philippines, mostly in Metro Manila, from February 22 to 25, 1986. There was a ...

more than a decade later.Pimentel, Benjamin (1991) Rebolusyon!: A Generation of Struggle in the Philippines. NYU Press. Another organizer of the strike was labor leader Eliseo "Elsie" Estares, who was later recognized by Kilusang Mayo Uno with a Gawad Lingkod Obrero for his heroism and contributions to the labor movement. The strike received support from the religious sector, and was backed by such leaders as Father

Joe Dizon Jose Pacturayan Dizon (September 29, 1948 – November 4, 2013), better known as Father Joe Dizon (often written as Fr. Joe Dizon), was an activist priest in the Philippines who fought against the dictatorship of then President Ferdinand Marcos. ...

and Sister Mary John Mananzan.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tondeña 1975 in the Philippines History of Manila Presidency of Ferdinand Marcos 1975 labor disputes and strikes Labor disputes in the Philippines

See also

References