MANILA — Senator Camille Villar, the youngest senator of the 20th Congress, has recently filed a bill seeking stronger protection for Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) workers. The earthquake that hit the province of Cebu last week underscored the urgency of the measure as she called out Cebu-based firms that forced employees back to work amid the recent disaster.
Cebu-based BPO workers decried unsafe return-to-work policies, harassment, and threats of job loss for prioritizing their safety as they were forced to report back to work shortly after the 6.9-magnitude earthquake.
“No worker should ever have to choose between their safety and their job. The welfare of our BPO employees must always come first,” Villar said, reiterating her call for swift passage of the measure.
Senate Bill No. 1401, or the “BPO Workers’ Welfare and Protection Act,” seeks to institutionalize comprehensive safeguards for employees in the outsourcing sector. A key provision directs the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to establish and strictly enforce Occupational Health and Safety Standards (OHSS) for BPO work, aligned with International Labor Organization (ILO) recommendations. These standards must be reviewed annually and applied in all establishments, with compliance subject to regular inspections.
Villar said these events emphasize why her measure is crucial: “BPO workers are at the frontline of our global service industry. Protecting their welfare means protecting the dignity of Filipino labor and ensuring shared prosperity.”
The bill further requires each company to craft its own Workplace Occupational Health and Safety (WOHS) policy, consistent with national standards but adaptable to local conditions.
Employers must review these policies annually with input from a designated Workplace Occupational Health and Safety Officer (WOHSO), Enforcement Officers, and other authorized representatives, ensuring that safeguards evolve with emerging risks and workplace realities.
Beyond workplace safety, the proposed measure also prohibits the imposition of excessive company bonds and fees on employees who leave before a set period, and explicitly protects them from discrimination based on ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, age, religion, disability, or any other status recognized under human rights standards.###
