MANILA, Philippines – Senator Joel Villanueva on Monday, July 29, refiled the bill that seeks to end contractualization in the country, even after the President vetoed its approved version last week.
Villanueva said that Senate Bill Number 806 he filed Monday is "exactly" the same version of the measure that the President thumbed down.
"Babalik tayo sa Grade 1 (We go back to Grade 1)…This is exactly the same measure that was certified as priority and urgent by the President," Villanueva told reporters.
The bill bans "labor-only contracting." It exists when:
- The job contractor merely supplies, recruits, and supplies workers to a contractee.
- The workers supplied to a contractee perform tasks/activities that are listed by the industry to be directly related to the core business of the contractee.
- The contractee has direct control and supervision over the workers supplied by the contractor.
The bill also classifies workers under 4 employment types:
- regular
- probationary
- project
- seasonal
Project and seasonal workers have the same rights as regular employees. These benefits include the payment of minimum wage and social protection benefits.
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On Friday, July 26, President Rodrigo Duterte vetoed the 17th Congress-approved Security of Tenure (SOT) Bill. Duterte said that labor-only contracting "should be prohibited" but "legitimate job-contracting should still be allowed."
Durterte's stance echoed the line of major business chambers that opposed the bill.
Villanueva, who had sponsored the Senate version of the SOT, said that the veto is "baseless" and only reflects the "growing problem of misinformation and confusion in the government."
Senate President Vicente Sotto III earlier said that the SOT bill will be included in the priority measures, once it's refiled.
Senators had expressed dismay with the veto, as the President had certified it "urgent" in September 2018. – Rappler.com
