Incoming Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello says the Duterte administration is determined to resolve the issue of contractualization of workers. (Ace R. Morandante/davaotoday.com)
DAVAO CITY — The national labor center Kilusang Mayo Uno marched to the Labor Department’s office in Intramuros, Manila Monday, June 27 to express support for the incoming Duterte administration’s promise of putting an end to contractualization.
“Contractualization must end. It is a bane that violates workers’ every basic right. We are calling on the administration of incoming President Rodrigo Duterte to ban all forms of contractualization,” Elmer Labog, KMU chairperson, said.
Labog said Duterte can immediately issue an executive order regularizing workers who have been contractuals for more than six months as mandated by the Article 280 of the Labor Code.
“He should also revoke DOLE Department Order No. 18-A Series of 2011 that legalized contractualization and led to the spike in the number of contractuals under the Aquino administration,” Labog said.
As a long-term measure, Labog suggested that Duterte implement a total ban on contractualization by amending the Labor Code of 1974 with the objective of junking Article 106 and removing its distinction between the illegal Labor-Only Contracting and the legal Job Contracting.
“By differentiating Labor-Only Contracting and Job Contracting, the Labor Code itself, particularly its Article 106, legalizes contractualization,” he said.
“To totally put an end to contractualization, it must be amended and replaced with provisions that strengthen workers’ rights to security of tenure and criminalizing all forms of contractual employment,” said Labog.
Labog added that Duterte can prioritize the passing of the Regular Employment Bill, which was filed in the 16th Congress by Anakpawis Partylist and Gabriela Women’s Party to penalize capitalists who implement contractualization.
In a press conference here last week, incoming Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello said ending contractualization is mandated by the law. “You have to implement the law,” he said.
However, Bello said other forms of contractualization like workers who are seasonal or project-base is allowed by the law so long as the work is not directly related to the main business of the employer.
He said the government should monitor how many times did the employee re-applied for the same job. (davaotoday.com)
