Church, labor groups give pointers on ending ‘endo’

A NETWORK of labor and church groups has offered a 10-point proposal to the new labor secretary to end the contractualization of workers, one of President Duterte’s campaign promises.

The Church-Labor Conference (CLC) submitted its recommendations during a dialogue on Friday with new officials of the Department of Labor and Employment led by Secretary Silvestre Bello III.

Contractualization or “endo” is the practice of employers keeping workers continuously under contract by renewing these before six months are up, the period required by law for a worker to be given permanent status with accompanying benefits by a company.

The CLC, part of the Technical Executive Committee of the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council, is co-headed by Partido Manggagawa chair Renato Magtubo and Manila Auxillary Bishop Broderick Pabillo.

Among the CLC’s suggestions were:

Holding of nationwide labor consultations in the private and public sector to thresh out employers’ schemes, generate proposals and establish means to encourage workers’ participation in stopping contractualization;

Ensuring that Duterte certifies anti-contractualization bills to be filed in Congress to strengthen workers’ security of tenure;

Conducting a massive and sustained information and education campaign for workers and employers on present labor laws and regulations pertaining to labor contracting and regularization;

Sustaining inspections of all labor contractors and service providers, as well as factories, to determine their compliance with labor laws and the filing of cases against violators;

Formulating policies and guidelines to speed up resolution of cases under DOLE’s quasijudicial bodies on violations of labor laws;

Resolving pending cases and labor disputes related to contractualization;

Establishing a separate mechanism composed of union representatives, the DOLE and the Civil Service Commission to assess and address rampant use of contractual or other forms of nonregular employment in the public sector;

Training and deputizing labor leaders to become part of the DOLE pool of inspectors; and

Institutionalizing the role of tripartite formations in the country as DOLE’s partner in fulfilling Duterte’s promise to stop contractualization.

“The practices of unscrupulous employers that directly violate or circumvent labor laws and regulations pertaining to labor contracting and regularization of employment are arguably the gravest threat to our workers’ right to security of tenure,” the group said in a statement.

The practice violates workers’ constitutional rights to freedom of association, collective bargaining, concerted action and a living wage, it added.