There have been continued PR attacks against ABS-CBN as part of a family dispute over the company’s future.
The latest PR article purports to be motivated by a concern about employee welfare by discussing the retirement fund.
Records show that one of our directors proposed shutting down ABS-CBN without so much as discussing how it would meet its obligations to its people. Records also show that the majority of the directors strongly argued for continued financial support for ABS-CBN rather than liquidation to address the welfare of the company’s employees and retirees, as well as its other stakeholders.
Contrary to what the article claims, the largest decline in ABS-CBN’s pension fund was due to payouts to close to 6,000 employees who were retrenched as a result of the franchise loss. This is proof of ABS-CBN’s commitment to fully meet all its obligations to its employees.
From ABS-CBN’s perspective, we acknowledge that, following the loss of our franchise in 2020, we have experienced challenging financial years but have shown steady, consistent improvement. Our Board of Directors and the rest of the Lopez family have commended the company’s progress and emphasized its existence as important to the country.
These continued public PR attacks against ABS-CBN are a disservice to the employees who have fought so hard to keep ABS-CBN alive, and to the public that has supported ABS-CBN throughout all its trials.
There are repeated lies that 68 individuals “received preferred treatment” in the payout of their retirement benefits, designed to sow intrigue among employees. These have been clearly explained to the full ABS-CBN board and to its Compensation Committee. The majority of these individuals are retirees who have received only partial or no retirement benefits, despite already retiring. They have agreed to voluntarily wait until ABS-CBN’s financial position improves before receiving full payment. They did not get preferential treatment. In fact, they deferred receipt of payment so that the thousands of employees who were separated from the company received their separation pay in full.
The remaining unpaid retirement obligation issue was raised with the ABS-CBN board late last November. Repeated allegations that a P2 billion capital infusion would be used to pay out retirement benefits are also false. This has been refuted by all the Board of Directors members except one.
These public PR attacks on ABS-CBN’s pension fund, its business performance, and its leadership prove that the individual/s behind these releases do not have the best interests of the company at heart.
ABS-CBN has been fortunate to have been founded by Kapitan Geny Lopez. We were blessed to have spent time under his leadership and that of his son, Gabby. That leadership continues today through our Chairman, Mark Lopez. Each generation has remained true to the values and mission of our founder. It was Kapitan Geny who said, “Our reason for being is and always will be to be in the Service of the Filipino.”
In Kapitan Geny’s own words: “Profit alone is not enough reason to go into business. But if we serve our people, then I think that our growth and success will follow. If we take care of our people, they will take care of us. That’s the kind of culture a company should have.”
The series of press releases claims that many of the decisions around ABS-CBN are not in line with proper stewardship or good investment. We leave it to the public to decide whether those actions remain true to the family’s espoused values.
This is a family dispute and should remain so. We also believe it should not be fought in public. However, ABS-CBN will not shy away from defending itself and any untruths leveled against it.
