Press Release
July 10, 2019

Villanueva: Growing support for Security of Tenure bill at Cabinet shows government's will to end ENDO

The growing support for the Security of Tenure bill among members of the Cabinet shows the government's determination to put an end into the practice of illegal labor contractualization, according to Senator Joel Villanueva.

Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez recently threw his weight for the Security of Tenure measure, a move that Villanueva described as a "vote of confidence" on the bill, which has been transmitted to Malacanang last month and is awaiting the President's signature.

"The latest vote of confidence on the Security of Tenure bill boosts our hopes that ending the evils of endo is within our reach. Malapit na po natin maabot ang pangarap na wakasan na ang endo sa lipunan," Villanueva said in a statement.

"With a stroke of his pen, the President can fulfill one of his hallmark campaign promise of getting rid of this terrible practice of endo," the senator continued. "We hope and pray that the President relegates endo to the annals of history by signing the Security of Tenure bill into law."

Being the primary agency tasked to make the country a conducive place to do business, the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) helps ensure that firms in the Philippines locate, remain, and expand here, Villanueva explained.

He added that the bill recognizes the importance of industry participation in shaping the policy on job contracting. The measure calls for organizing industry-based tripartite stakeholder panels to discuss and determine the course of job contracting based on industry needs.

Lopez is the latest Cabinet member to signify support on the passage of the Security of Tenure measure, commonly known as the End Endo bill.

Last month, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III expressed confidence in the President that he could sign the Security of Tenure bill in time for the annual State of the Nation Address on July 22 when the legislature opens the 18th Congress.

Villanueva also said he personally received positive feedback on the bill from Finance Secretary Carlos Dominguez III, which was relayed to the senator through one of the department's undersecretaries.

"The support from no less than three Cabinet members is a very encouraging sign, considering that two of them are part of the economic cluster. We take it to mean that the bill, when signed into law, bodes well for our economy," said Villanueva, who chaired the Senate Committee on Labor, Employment, and Human Resources Development in the previous Congress.

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