Hundreds of establishments adopting shorter work week – DOLE

MANILA, Philippines - Whether it’s due to the traffic situation or other reasons, many workers and employers now prefer a shorter work week.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) yesterday reported that hundreds of commercial establishments nationwide are adopting flexible work arrangements or compressed work week schemes.

Catherine Parado, DOLE’s Bureau of Working Condition (BWC) director, said a total of 544 commercial establishments voluntarily adopted flexible work arrangements last year in a bid to improve business competitiveness and productivity.

“After consultations and in agreement with their workers, nearly 600 companies implemented a compressed work week scheme,” Parado said.

“They did this to cut cost in utility consumption and, more importantly, to provide their employees with additional rest and more time to spend with their families,” she added.

Parado said many firms also agreed on a compressed work week and other flexible working arrangements as a way to minimize vehicular traffic in Metro Manila.

The five regions with the most number of establishments that implemented the compressed work week scheme in 2013 were the National Capital Region (NCR) with 257 establishments; Central Visayas with 163; Calabarzon with 64; and Central Luzon and Western Mindanao, 17 establishments each.

The top five industries which adopted the scheme were the manufacturing industry, 118 establishments; customer service/BPO, 114; services, 81; retail, 36 and export trading, 31 establishments.