The partylist group Partido Manggagawa (PM) dared presidential candidates
to propose policy steps to follow through on their commitment to stop
contractualization. In a televised presidential debate last night, all five candidates
promised to “end endo.”
“It is obvious that the presidentiables played to the crowd by declaring
their intent to end endo but it was all too clear that they gave no concrete
proposals on regulating much less eradicating the epidemic of contractualization.
Either they have a shallow or erroneous understanding of the roots of
contractualization,” averred Rene Magtubo, chair of PM and also its first nominee
for the partylist elections.
“In deeds not by words should the presidentiables be judged on the
issue of contractualization,” insisted Magtubo. PM, along with other labor
groups, have been campaigning for the passage of the Security of Tenure bill
that has languished in Congress for nearly a decade. The bill seeks to regulate contractualization
by setting a cap on the number of non-regular workers and amending provisions
of the Labor Code on subcontracting and outsourcing.
The group noted that none of the presidentiables who are solons pushed
for the Security of Tenure bill while those who are local executives employ job
order workers, the equivalent of contractual employees in the public sector, in
their city halls.
“Mar Roxas deserves special mention for countenancing the outsourcing
of Philippine Airlines employees in 2011 while he was cabinet secretary and threatening
to file economic sabotage against PALEA members who fought contractualization
in the national flag carrier,” stated Gerry Rivera, PALEA president and also PM
partylist nominee.
He added that the “Contrary to the misconception of a few
presidentiables, contractualization is expressly allowed by the law and is
merely regulated but not prohibited. Moreover, lax inspection and enforcement by
the Department of Labor and Employment worsens the situation.”
“This stems from the view of government that employers have to be
encourged to invest and shifting from regular to contractual labor is part of
the package. Thus it is worrisome that even as the presidentiables profess
desire to end endo, in the same breath they want to placate employers by
providing more incentives. We won’t be surprised that whoever becomes president
will simply cave in to the employers’ lobby on the alibi that
contractualization is necessary to generate more investments,” Rivera
elaborated.
April 25, 2016
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