Lawmakers will continue to pursue bills that protects and strengthens workers’ rights once Congress resumes its sessions. Senate labor committee chairman Senator Joel Villanueva said Wednesday.
“We commit to support measures that will initiate job creation so we can sustain our economic growth and lift our people from poverty. Creating jobs for our people will ensure our continued prosperity as a nation,” said Villanueva.
He also vowed to prioritize the passage of the bill expanding the use of the legal assistance fund. The senator wants to ensure the fund shall be “immediately and at all times” available to migrant workers and overseas Filipinos in distress.
The fund “will be able to help our abused and maltreated OFWs seek justice, like our kababayan who died in the hands of her employer in Kuwait just before the New Year,” the senator said.
“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,” he said.
Villanueva also said senators want to start discussion on a measure that would end the “evil practices” on contractualization.
Congress had passed this measure on third reading, but the enrolled bill was vetoed by President Rodrigo Duterte.
“We remain hopeful that both houses of Congress, especially the Senate, are still committed in helping the President fulfill his campaign promise in further protecting the rights of our ordinary workers,” he said.
An inquiry in aid of legislation on the unusual influx of illegal foreign workers in the country, especially in the offshore gaming operations and its related industries, will also be prioritized this year, the senator said.
Villanueva said senators want to investigate whether the benefits of the industry outweigh its direct and indirect adverse effects, such as rising criminality, threat of money laundering, and increasing property prices, among others.
He said the Senate committee will also ensure that its proposed laws “are prepared for the 4th Industrial Revolution” by prioritizing the alternative work arrangement bill and the freelancers protection bill, “ in recognition of the fact that the world of work is rapidly changing.”
“The Labor Committee is looking forward to the year ahead, as we kickstart our committee discussions on bills that workers are amply protected,” Villanueva said.