Family feud over bus firm displaces workers

BACOLOD CITY , Philippines — The family feud over the control of the Vallacar Transit Inc. (VTI), a bus company operating in  the Visayas and Mindanao, has affected 217 workers of Ceres Mart after its 13 branches in several terminals were shut down.

To cushion the impact, Ceres Mart human resource officer Neil Derek Hibionada said their employer Emily Yanson would give separation pay to affected employees.

On Friday, Hibionada met with the employees and assured them the situation is temporary.

He said the employees would be rehired once the management finds another location for them to sell their products. 

Hibionada said the workers were not involved in the ongoing corporate struggle among the members of the Yanson family, owner of the Yanson Group of Bus Companies,  a conglomerate that operates the VTI.

Annelie Sina-on, Ceres Mart operations manager, cited the safety of the employees as among the reasons for closing the stores.

Sina-on said the employees were harrassed during the struggle for the control of the company among the Yanson siblings.

Family matriarch Olivia Yanson ordered Ceres Mart ejected from the Ceres North Terminal in Barangay Bata in this city.

Olivia said her daughter Emily failed to pay rent since the terminal opened in 2015. 

Emily was among the four siblings who ousted their younger brother Leo Rey as president of VTI.

The others were Roy, Ricardo Jr. and Celina.

Leo Rey recently regained his post following the election of a new set of board of directors.

In a statement, the employees said they sympathized with all the members of the Yanson family.

They said they should not be caught in the “crossfire” as Ceres Mart is an independent company selling treats and groceries to the riding public.