Senate bill pitches protection of BPO workers’ rights, welfare

By Butch Fernandez

ASSERTING it is time to protect the rights and welfare of workers in the Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) industry, Senator Lito Lapid is asking Congress to frontload passage of Senate Bill No. 2235, or BPO Workers’ Welfare and Protection Act of 2023, to address working conditions of some 1.3 million BPO workers employed by 1,000 companies.

In filing the long awaited remedial legislation, Lapid reminded since its establishment in the country, the laws governing the BPO industry have not adequately adapted to meet its increasing demands, leading to various challenges.”

As a result, the lawmaker lamented that BPO employees find themselves at the mercy of a results-oriented industry.

Citing negative feedbacks reaching his office, Lapid noted reports that “this situation exposed them to high levels of stress due to heavy workloads and stringent performance standards,” adding that “they also face insufficient breaks and sudden changes in shift schedules.”

He was also informed that “in an intensely competitive work environment, the health and safety of BPO employees have been compromised due to unrealistic expectations.”

At the same time, the senator observed that the BPO industry in the country has expanded and recorded great growth in the past two decades.

The Philippines, he noted, appears to be the global leader in the BPO sector because “Filipinos are known to be good at work, friendly and have lower wages compared to developed countries abroad.”

Moreover, the senator added that Filipinos have been “recognized around the world for their high English proficiency level, so they are preferred by BPO companies for their voicebased services, such as customer support and telemarketing.”

“Even though there was an outbreak of Covid-19 around the world, the BPO industry has been a great help in providing jobs and promoting the country’s economy,” Lapid noted.

He, however, said that “despite this, the rights of BPO workers are still not given protection,” especially as demand continue to increase and they are stuck in the resultsoriented industry.

“We need to ensure that there are proper standards for workers in the BPO sector, including humane treatment as well as ensuring that there are adequate benefits, privileges and comfortable working conditions in companies,” he said.

As provided in the Lapid bill, BPO companies shall be mandated to uphold the rights and benefits of their workers under the Labor Code.

“Abusive language, physical violence or any act which debases the dignity of a person shall not be used against the employee,” the bill stated.

The measure will prohibit understaffing or overloading by ensuring that the “ratio of BPO worker to client quota or quantitative targets shall be such as to reasonably effect a sustained quality of service at all times without overworking the workers.” established that it had the lowest calculated bid for the deal and that it passed the legal, financial, and technical specifications of the subject project.

Moreover, the Lapid bill also mandates the regularization of BPO workers and upholds their rights to “self-organization and participate in democratic exercises,” among others.

F urthermore, Hipolito said the LTO

“failed to fully disclose to petitioner the context of the latter’s alleged delays in performing its contracts with the BSP amounting to at least 10 percent of the contract price, effectively depriving it to file meaningful protest, by refusing to share with petitioner the BSP letters.”

H e likewise questioned the urgency on the part of the LTO to deny the request for consideration of Allcard, having the request denied in just a day—far from the “sevenday period given by law.”

“ Considering the substantial amount involved in the assailed procurement contract, and the financial as well as reputational prejudice that the petitioner stands to suffer and the extreme urgency considering the procurement project timeline involved in this case, petitioner’s Application for the issuance of Temporary Restraining Order (TRO) is hereby granted,” Hipolito said.

T he LTO “assures its commitment in adhering to the legal process.”

“Right now, we are consulting and coordinating with the Department of Transportation, particularly on the aspect of cushioning the impact of the court’s decision to our clients,” the LTO said.

“We hope that this issue would be addressed in the soonest possible time because it is the Filipino people who would certainly suffer from a prolonged legal battle.”

T he Philippines is in the midst of what government officials describe as a “card crisis,” after the previous administrators of the LTO failed to procure the supply of plastic cards for driver’s licenses for 2022.

The DOTr stepped in help the LTO procure the plastic cards, fast-tracking the process as the shortage mounted to hundreds of thousands in the first few months of the issue.

B anner was supposedly required to supply the LTO with a total of 5.2 million cards. Within the first 60 days, Banner has to deliver 1 million cards and 1.5 million each every 60 days.