House OKs bill on discounts, waived fees for indigent job seekers

 

MANILA, Philippines — A bill seeking to help indigent job seekers by placing discounts or totally waiving fees of certain pre-employment documents for government agencies has been approved by the House of Representatives on third and final reading.

 House Bill (HB) No. 8008 was approved during Monday’s session with 270 lawmakers voting in the affirmative, and none voting against or abstaining.

Under the said proposal, workers who will be identified as indigents — or someone “who is seeking gainful employment and has no visible means of income or whose income falls below the official poverty threshold, as identified by the National Economic and Development Authority” can avail 20 percent discounts on the following documentary requirements:

• barangay clearance from job-seeker’s residence
• National Bureau of Investigation (NBI) clearance
  National Police Clearance from the Philippine National Police (PNP)
• Medical certificate for local employment from any government hospital licensed by the Department of Health (DOH)
• Medical certificate for foreign employment from any DOH-accredited medical facility for overseas workers and seafarers
• Certificate of marriage from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA)
• Certificate of live birth from the PSA
• National Certificate and Certificate of Competency (COC) from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA)
• Certificate of Civil Service Eligibility from the Civil Service Commission (CSC)
• Other documentary requirements issued by the government that may be required by employers from indigent job seekers, as determined and approved by the Inter-Agency Coordinating and Monitoring Committee established in Section 6 of this Act

Furthermore, the fees for the following documents are waived for the bill’s beneficiaries:

• Tax Identification Number from the Bureau of Internal Revenue
• Transcript of Records, Transfer Credentials, Authenticated Copy of Diploma, and Certificate of Good Moral Character from the State Universities and Colleges, and Local Universities and Colleges of the job seeker

“It is the policy of the State to promote a just and dynamic order that will ensure the prosperity and independence of the nation and free the people from poverty through policies that provide adequate social services, promote full employment, a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all,” the bill read.

“To this end, the State shall provide indigent job seekers a twenty percent (20%) discount in the payment of fees and charges or waived fees for certain certificates and clearances issued by government agencies,” it added.

According to the bill, the PSA would be in-charge of validating the list of households under the Department of Social Welfare and Development’s Listahan..  Also, a job seeker whose household is enrolled under the seven-year period of the conditional cash transfer program or the Pantawid Pamilyang Pilipino Program (4Ps) will automatically benefit from the proposal — if enacted.

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