The Senate passed on third reading on Wednesday the “End of Endo” bill, outlawing employers’ practice to circumvent labor laws by hiring contractual workers, whose short-term contracts expire before they qualify for permanent employment under existing law.

“We longed for this day to come, especially our workers who have suffered because of the evils of Endo, a practice which corrupts the dignity of labor,” said Sen. Joel Villanueva, who sponsored the End of Endo bill as chairman of the endorsing Senate Committee on Labor, Employment and Human Resources Development.

Villanueva explained that the remedial legislation was crafted “to give all workers peace of mind when it comes to employment status, that no worker can be dismissed without just or authorized cause and due process.”

“We listened to the concerns of various stakeholders and took these into account in putting together this bill,” he said, adding, “We believe this measure protects the interests of all parties concerned.”

The senator also credited fellow senators, including the members of the endorsing committee on labor, “for the support we received from colleagues who helped pass us this measure.”

Villanueva, however, admitted that their task is not yet done, noting that the legislation has yet to hurdle the bicameral committee that will craft the reconciled Senate-House version of the End of Endo bill to be submitted to Malacañang for signing into law.

“The next phase of our struggle to end Endo is in the bicam,” he said, adding: “we are determined to pursue this, especially that this measure has been certified urgent by the Executive.”

Villanueva noted that “in upholding the Constitutionally guaranteed right to security of tenure, the bill reiterates the prohibition on labor-only contracting, and clarifies ambiguities in existing laws that have allowed employers to tiptoe around the ban.”

He added: “We longed for this day to come, especially our workers who have suffered because of the evils of Endo, a practice which corrupts the dignity of labor. We listened to the concerns of various stakeholders, and took these into account in putting together this bill. We believe this measure protects the interests of all parties concerned. We are grateful for the support we received from our colleagues who helped us pass this measure.”

The bill also classifies workers under four employment types: regular, probationary, project and seasonal. Project and seasonal workers have the same rights as regular employees like the payment of minimum wage and social protection benefits, among others, for the duration of their employment.

“The provision trims down the employment arrangements and addresses the current practice of misclassifying employees to prevent them from obtaining regular status,” Villanueva said.

In addition, the bill calls for all contractors to obtain a license to engage in job contracting from the Department of Labor and Employment. Making contractors submit themselves to licensing allows the department to scrutinize their capacity to adhere to existing labor laws and regulation, and gauge their ability to provide for their employees.

Source: https://businessmirror.com.ph/2019/05/23/senate-okays-end-of-endo-bill/