Senator Sherwin Gatchalian on Wednesday renewed his push for the passage of amendments to the 57- year old Revised Magna Carta for Public School Teachers embodied in Senate Bill No. 2493.
Meanwhile, in conjunction with the national observance of Labor Day, Senate President Juan Miguel Zubiri renewed their commitment to fight for the rights and welfare of Filipino workers.
“Let us remember the dedication to their work of our teachers, They are the ones molding the intelligence and capability of our students so let us support huge pay and better lives for them,” said Gatchalian, chairman of the Senate Committee on Basic Education.
The proposed measure aims to introduce substantial amendments to the Magna Carta for Public School Teachers (Republic Act No. 4670) to uphold teachers’ welfare and provide crucial benefits for them.
The incentives included calamity leave, educational benefits, and longevity pay.
The proposed law also aims to address the conditions for granting special hardship allowance, enhances salary criteria, and protects teachers from out-of-pocket expenses.
The measure also provides that probationary teachers shall have the same or equally favorable salaries, benefits, and work conditions as entry-level teachers.
It also reduces classroom teaching hours from six to four to improve teachers’ working conditions. Teachers, however, may render up to eight hours of service when the exigencies of the service require.
Those who render these additional hours are entitled to compensation equivalent to their regular remuneration plus at least 25 percent of their basic pay. The bill also allows for the temporary hiring of substitute teachers when an incumbent teacher is on leave.
Furthermore, the bill prohibits the assignment of non-teaching tasks to teachers.
Gatchalian recalled that despite efforts to allow teachers to focus on teaching, the Second Congressional Commission on Education flagged that public school teachers continue to be burdened by 50 non-teaching or administrative tasks.
“I stand with every Filipino worker in fighting for their rights, from better wages to safer workplaces,” Zubiri stressed.
He cited the proposed P100-daily minimum wage increase recently passed by the Senate in response to the workers’ clamor for higher pay.
Zubiri expressed hopes the bill would eventually become a law.
He lamented that despite having a vital role in the national economic landscape, the workers remain largely undervalued for their contributions.
“They power our industries, and any economic gains that we make as a country” he added.
Senate majority leader Joel Villanueva said they are doing everything to compensate the worker’s efforts by crafting laws to strengthen their protection, welfare and ability.
Villanueva said the implementing rules and regulations of “Trabaho Para sa Bayan Act” has been signed.
For his part, Senate Committee on Labor chairman Senator Jinggoy Estrada thanked the country’s workforce for their great contribution to the country’s economy.