Labor group wants new rule on contractual workers junked

MANILA, Philippines – Militant labor group Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) wants the new labor regulation for the provision of additional benefits for contractual workers junked, saying the new rule merely regulates contractualization and does not abolish it.

Labor Secretary Rosalinda Baldoz said that starting Dec. 5, contractual employees would be entitled to benefits provided under the labor code such as 13th month pay, overtime pay and retirement benefits.

Contractual employees would also be entitled to contributions to the Social Security System, Pag-IBIG and PhilHealth. They will also have the right to self-organize and negotiate a collective bargaining agreement.

Baldoz also said that under the new regulation, the government would “promote job generation, professionalize contracting and subcontracting arrangements.”

KMU chairman Elmer Labog said the contractualization scheme should be junked and not merely “fine-tuned.”

Labog said the new department order of the Labor department is “like laws in American history that merely regulate the owning and selling of black slaves, not the abolition of slavery.”

“As long as contractualization is rendered legal by Labor DOs (department orders) as authorized by the Labor Code, capitalists are sure to find ways to boost profits by exploiting contractuals,” he said.

Contractual employees are also called contractuals, helpers, casuals, trainees, apprentices, piece raters or project hires. They do the work of regular workers for a limited time period.

In a related development, Baldoz yesterday ordered the early release of 13th month pay to workers to enable them to buy necessities for the coming holidays.

She said employees who have worked for at least a month during the calendar year should be paid their 13th month pay not later than Dec. 24.

She said even contractual workers are entitled to receive 13th month pay. Contractual workers and even those who are resigned and terminated should be paid in proportion to the time period they worked during the year.

The 13th month pay should not be less than one-twelfth of the total basic salary of an employee within a calendar year.

This is computed as all the earnings paid to an employee for services rendered. It does not include allowances and monetary benefits that are not part of the basic salary such as the cash equivalent of unused vacation and sick leave credits, overtime pay, night shift differential pay, and cost of living allowance.

Baldoz encouraged workers to report violations to the Bureau of Working Conditions of the Department of Labor and Employment at telephone number 527-3000 local 301 and 307. –Mayen Jaymalin (The Philippine Star)