Senator to refile vetoed endo bill

MANILA, Philippines — A day after President Duterte vetoed the Security of Tenure (SOT) bill, its author Sen. Joel Villanueva vowed to refile the measure this week.

Villanueva, Senate committee on labor chairman, said Senate President Vicente Sotto III advised him to just refile the bill and give it priority.

“We will not give up the fight. I will still refile it because at the end of the day, the social protection of our workers is important. It is more important than what unscrupulous business organizations could gain,” Villanueva said over dwIZ.

While also entertaining the possibility of overriding the President’s veto by getting a two-thirds vote of both Houses, Villanueva said such move will not look good for the President and many lawmakers are not comfortable doing it.

Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto said Malacañang should file its own version of the bill with an attached presidential certification as to its urgency.

“This is needed because the veto message did not cite the specific provisions that triggered the veto. Let the burden of proposition fall on them this time. But this will be for the information of Congress only, and should not mean that it must be the one passed en toto,” Recto said.

Recto expressed support for Villanueva’s move to “reboot” his vetoed bill.

Villanueva described as baseless the decision of the President to veto the SOT bill, which was certified as a priority and urgent measure by Malacañang.

Villanueva said the veto reflects the growing problem of misinformation and confusion in government.

Villanueva said claims that the bill widened the definition of labor-only contracting, prohibited legitimate job contracting and prevented business from contracting services out are baseless.

“While we respect the presidential prerogative, we maintain that the grounds of the veto are weak, if not flimsy,” Villanueva said.

He stressed the bill clarified the existing definition of labor-only contracting under the Labor Code and clearly established grounds that can determine its existence.

During deliberations on the bill, Villanueva said companies complained about the arbitrary determination of labor inspectors on the existence of labor-only contracting. The clearer grounds should have addressed that gap had the bill passed.

Villanueva said the measure also mandates the licensing of job contracting firms, a guarantee that these companies engaged in legitimate job contracting adhere to pertinent labor laws and regulations such as the payment of minimum wage and statutory benefits.

“That’s why we find the claim that the bill will increase the cost of labor is nothing but a lousy excuse. Companies still need to pay minimum wage and statutory benefits like social security and health insurance because there are existing laws,” Villanueva said. – With  Sheila Crisostomo