Senate to review ‘endo’ bill
Credit to Author: Bernadette Tamayo| Date: Wed, 01 Jan 2020 17:07:40 +0000
SEN. Emmanuel Joel Villanueva is set to start the review of the “endo” (end of contract) bill that seeks an end to contractualization or the hiring of contractual workers once Congress resumes session on January 20.
The senator, chairman of the Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development said he would continue to pursue bills that protect and strengthen workers’ rights.
Congress adjourned on December 18 for a month-long holiday break.
The Senate and the House of Representatives passed the Security of Tenure bill on third reading during the 17th Congress but President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed it over some questionable provisions.
“We remain hopeful that both houses, especially the Senate, are still committed in helping the President fulfill his campaign promise in further protecting the rights of our ordinary workers,” Villanueva said.
He added that he would also investigate the “unusual influx of illegal foreign workers in the country, especially in the POGO (Philippine offshore gaming operation) and POGO-related industry.”
“More specifically, we want to investigate whether the benefits of the industry outweighs its direct and indirect adverse effects, such as rising criminality, threat of money laundering, increasing property prices, among others,” he said.
Villanueva believes that creating jobs will ensure the country’s continued prosperity.
“We commit to support measures that will initiate job creation so we can sustain our economic growth and lift our people from poverty,” the senator said.
He vowed to give priority to the passage of the bill expanding the use of the legal assistance fund to ensure that the fund will be at all times available to migrant workers and overseas Filipinos in distress.
He said the fund would be able to help abused and maltreated overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) seek justice “like our kababayan who died in the hands of her employer in Kuwait just before the New Year.”
“We feel that this urgent measure will be a fitting New Year’s gift to our hardworking OFWs who risk their lives and limbs just to give their families in the Philippines better lives,” Villanueva said.
“In recognition of the fact that the world of work is rapidly changing, we want to ensure that our laws are prepared for the 4th Industrial Revolution by prioritizing the alternative work arrangement bill and the freelancers protection bill,” he said.