The former legislator responsible for a landmark amendment to the Labor Code has denied that the legislation he authored in 1989 legalized contractual work arrangements, saying those who blame him for the practice are ignorant of the law’s true intent.
Former Senator and now Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP) president Ernesto Herrera said in a press conference on the eve of Labor Day that Republic Act 6715 or the “Herrera Law” has improved workers’ welfare because it mandated the regularization of employees after six months of working in a company.
“Kalokohan ‘yung nagsasabi na [nagkaroon ng contractualization dahil] sa RA 6715. That person either does not know the law or he does not understand it at all. Ang batas na ‘yan ang nagbigay ng proteksyon sa manggawa. Dahil diyan, nagkaroon sila (workers) ng security of tenure,” he said.
Under Article 280 of RA 6715, the employment status of a worker engaged in activities necessary or desirable in the usual business or trade of the employer shall automatically become regular after six months, except if the worker’s employment has been fixed for a specific period of time.
But some labor groups, including Kilusang Mayo Uno (KMU) and the Ecumenical Institute for Labor Education and Research (EILER), have slammed the “Herrera Law” for supposedly paving the way for the contractual hiring of workers.
In a statement released last March, EILER executive director Anna Leah Escresa criticized RA 6715 for making Filipino workers vulnerable to exploitation and suppression for 25 years now, since Articles 106 to 109 of the law gave the Labor Secretary the power to issue orders that will promote hiring of contractual workers and other non-regular workers.
Unlike regular workers, contract laborers receive little or no benefits from the company and can be terminated anytime.
“The Herrera Law legalized the plague that is contractualization. What was initially a work arrangement for janitorial and other casual jobs became the normal labor arrangement that cuts across all economic sectors, from manufacturing to wholesale and retail trade up to business process outsourcing,” she said.
In a statement uploaded on its site, TUCP maintained that the practice of contractual labor has been in place since the implementation Presidential Decree 442 Labor Code Article 106, a Martial Law-era order supposedly used by DOLE to legalize the business practice of hiring contractual workers.
“DOLE Department Order No. 10 allowed contractualization. It cannot be blamed on Senator Herrera. TUCP vigorously objected to the Order through the prodding of Senator Herrera… Those who accuse Senator Herrera of being responsible for contractualization probably have not read, or worse does not understand the law, or relied on people who know no better,” it said.
Apart from granting employees security of tenure, RA 6715 also addressed the workers’ difficulty of joining labor organizations, Herrera said.
“The law did not cheapen labor. It even gave value to it…
Dati, maraming mangagagawa ang hindi makasali ng trade unions dahil hindi sila regular workers. Based on our study, it only takes a person a maximum of six months to learn how to do their job. The law says after that period, you should become a regular worker [eligible to join unions],” he said.
RA 6175 defines labor organizations as unions or associations of employees which exists in whole or in part for the purpose of collective bargaining or of dealing with employers concerning the terms and conditions of employment. – VS, GMA News
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