Sponsorship Speech of Senate Bill 1778 under Committee Report No. 105 by Senator Joel Villanueva

Mr. President and distinguished colleagues:

Kalusugan, trabaho at edukasyon po ang tatlong nangungunang mahalaga sa buhay para sa mga Pilipino.Ang tatlo rin pong ito ang sinapol ng pandemya. Kaya talagang tagos po sa kaibuturan ng pagkatao nating mga Pilipino ang COVID-19.

However, even before and amidst the pandemic, one particular malarchy that add salt to the wounds of our Filipino workers is the influx of foreign workers in the country who take on jobs that Filipinos are competent, able, and more than willing to take, such as call center agents, electrical technicians, tour guides, machine operators, and construction workers.

Pati po mga barbero at chef sa mga restawran natin - may mga dayuhang manggagawa na rin. Hindi po ba katumbas na rin ito ng pagpayag nating ipanakaw ang mga trabaho at oportunidad na sa mga kababayan pa lang po natin ay kulang na kulang na?

Higit 27-milyong Pilipino ang walang trabaho noong isang buwan ayon sa SWS. Higit sa tatlong beses na mas mataas kumpara sa inilabas na datos ng PSA noong Abril kung saan pumalo sa 7.3-milyong Pilipino ang walang trabaho.

Sa laki ng pangangailangan ng mga Pilipino sa trabaho, hindi na dapat maging bahagi ng ating "new normal" ang patuloy na pagdagsa ng mga ilegal na dayuhang manggagawa sa bansa.

Mr. President and distinguished colleagues:

The influx of foreign workers is more pronounced in the exponential and even virulent mushrooming of Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators or POGOs in our country.

Mula po noong isiwalat natin at ng ibang kasamahan natin dito sa Senado ang pagdagsa ng mga iligal na dayuhang na manggagawa, simula po doon kung inyong matatandaan sa Fontana Leisure Park and Casino Hotel sa Clark, Pampanga noong 2016, tila hindi na naampat ang bunton-buntong pagdating ng mga dayuhang Chinese na nagtatrabaho sa mga POGO.

Kahit po ang COVID, hindi napigilan ang operasyon ng POGO at sugal sa bansa. Patuloy din po ang pagpasok ng mga dayuhang manggagawa habang may lockdown samantalang hindi naman makapasok sa kanilang mga trabaho ang mga Pilipino.

Sa kasagsagan ng lockdown, pinayagan din ang mga POGO na mag-operate kahit na hindi natin maunawaan kung paanong naging "essential service" ang sugalan. May mga iligal na POGO rin ang nahuling nag-o-operate tulad ng 44 na mga Chinese worker na nahuli sa isang police operation sa Baranggay Tambo sa Paranaque noong Abril 26 at marami pa pong iba. Ayon sa DOLE humigit kumulang 100 kumpanya ng POGO ang patuloy ang operasyon kahit may lockdown.

Mr. President, before COVID-19, PAGCOR has already accredited a total of 228 POGO Licensees and Accredited Service Providers[4] [as of January 2020]. According to DOLE, it issued 143,056 AEPs to foreigners working in the POGO industry.

Ang ginagamit na katwiran sa patuloy na pagbibigay ng AEP ay ang kawalan ng mga Pilipinong mataas sa wikang Mandarin. Tama, hindi po ganoon karami ang Pilipinong fluent sa Mandarin, per meron po.

Mr. President and distinguished colleagues:

The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. disclosed that out of 243 POGO-related establishments in the country, only 153 hire Filipino workers, and of the 10 biggest POGO licensees, six companies have less than 5% Filipinos workers[5].

Ngayon, paano po magkakaroon ng "understudy program" kung wala naman palang mga Pilipino sa POGO, in the first place? At kung patuloy ang pagbibigay ng AEPs sa kasagsagan ng lockdown, paano rin kaya nagawa ang Labor Market Test?

Isa lamang po ito Mr. President sa ating nais tukuyin, isang industriya pa lamang.

We believe, Mr. President, that DOLE should adopt a more stringent process for vetting of foreign workers, not just in POGOs but in all industries, considering the peculiarities of the industry.

Mr. President and distinguished colleagues:

The lingering problem of coordination and accountability among government agencies for the increasing number of foreign nationals working illegally in the country is the context of our proposed amendments to Articles 40, 41, and 42 of the Philippine Labor Code.

It is also in the context of contributing to the necessary "balancing act" amid the COVID-19 pandemic that we sponsor SB 1778, under Committee Report No. 105, enhancing the regulation on employment of foreign nationals and transfer of technology, amending Articles 40, 41, and 42 of the Labor Code.

The salient points of our bill includes:

• A mandate for all non-resident foreign nationals seeking employment in the Philippines that they mustapply for an employment permit from DOLE. This intends to eliminate, Mr. President, the ambiguity in the law which allowed the BI, if you would recall when we were discussing this issue because they are somehow able to issueforeign work permit. At mismong dating DOJ secretary kasama natin, Sen. Frank Drilon, ay nagulat po dito.

• Another is the provision that an AEP may only be given if there are no qualified and willing Filipino who can perform the services for which the foreigner is being engaged. This, Mr. President, is to ensure a "Filipino First Policy" in the Philippine Labor Market.

• Another provision that the Secretary of Labor may grant to foreign nationals, exemptions to the conduct of labor market test in accordance with law (e.g., Anti-Dummy Law, Mining Act, PRC Law), only in occupations in short supply according to the DOLE's labor market report, and only upon tripartite consultation.

• A provision that employers engaging foreign nationals must have an understudy program, duly approved by the DOLE, committing to train Filipinos who could otherwise succeed the foreign national in his/her task, within a specified period.

• Prohibiting foreign nationals from changing his/her position in the same company or transferring to another company without the approval of the DOLE.

• Lastly, Mr. President,provides for penalties for hiring foreign nationals without AEP; for failing to complete the skills and technology transfer to Filipinos by employed foreign nationals within the prescribed period; and for changing positions or employers by employed foreign nationals without the prior approval of the DOLE.

Nais po natin, Mr. President, ipagdiinan na hindi po tayo against sa foreign employees, okay lang po silang pumasok dito as long as walang more than willing or able na makakagawa o gagampanan ang kanilang trabaho dito sa PIlipinas.

The bottom-line principle of this bill is "Filipino First Policy" in the Labor Market in the Philippines. It is a matter of sovereignty, Mr. President. It is a matter of employment, of livelihood, and earning a living and living a life of dignity.

Sagrado po ang probisyong nakasaad sa Section 12, Article 12 ng ating Konstitusyon na gumagarantiya sa patakarang "Pilipino Muna". Ang probisyong ito ang pinagbatayan, pinaghugutan at pinaninindigan ng Senate Bill 1778.

For the said reasons, the immediate passage of this bill is sought.