Gibo supports WFH extension amid soaring oil prices

MANILA, Philippines — Former defense secretary and senatorial candidate Gilbert “Gibo” Teodoro said the government should consider extending the work-from-home (WFH) arrangement for the information technology and business process outsourcing (IT-BPO) sector amid increasing oil prices.

“It is timely to extend the work-from-home scheme, as the public is encouraged to conserve energy to reduce fuel consumption. I support the call of the IT-BPO industry to expand this work arrangement beyond the end of this month. The Philippine Economic Zone Authority has even asked for its extension until September of this year,” Teodoro said.

Teodoro said that the government should give consideration to the IT-BPO sector as the country remains under a state of calamity until September 2022.

IT-BPO firms have invested on personal computers, laptops and connectivity for their employees to make WFH arrangement possible at the onset of the COVID-19 lockdown.

Teodoro, who has vast experience in both the public and private sectors, pointed out that economic activities were picking up even in a WFH setup. This could be proven by the 7.7 percent gross domestic product growth of the country during the last quarter of 2021.

For workers’  welfare

Senatorial candidates Jinggoy Estrada and Loren Legarda yesterday supported calls for measures protecting the welfare of workers, as the nation shifts to a “new normal” while recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The two returning senators, both candidates of the Ferdinand Marcos Jr.-Sara Duterte UniTeam, specifically called for a wage increase amid skyrocketing oil prices and for lifting of the government’s ultimatum requiring all BPO workers to physically report to work by April 1.

Estrada has declared his support for the wage hike petition of the Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).

He said the wage increase is necessary since most Filipinos are suffering from the almost weekly hikes in oil prices that led to the spike in the price of food and other basic necessities.

As former chairman of the Senate labor committee, Estrada called on the country’s regional wage boards to buckle down to work and immediately release their recommended wage hike as ordered by Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III.

He said the National Capital Region-Regional Wages and Productivity Board must study and act with dispatch on TUCP’s proposal to add P470 to the daily wage of workers in Metro Manila.

Legarda, on the other hand, expressed her support for the call of BPO companies and workers for the government – through the Fiscal Incentives Review Board – to temporarily lift its ultimatum requiring them to physically report to work by April 1.

As principal author of House Bill No. 6864 or the Better Normal for the Workplace, Communities and Public Spaces Act, Legarda has been pushing for the enactment of the proposed measure that would allow the private sector to implement and adopt alternative work arrangements that would balance the need to ensure continuity in business operations and sustain productivity, while looking after the welfare of workers, employees and even the management of private commercial, industrial and other businesses.

Such alternative arrangements include but are not limited to WFH schemes and implementation of rotational work or shifting in schedules.

“We crafted the proposed measure when we had just been hit by the pandemic, and our main goal then was to curb the spread of the virus. This is still what we are aiming for because even if many, if not most, of our workers have already been vaccinated, we continue to face health risks caused by the pandemic,” the House deputy speaker argued.

Bike lanes

Road construction and improvements across the country must include designated lanes for bicycles as part of the new normal, amid the popularity of bicycles both as means of transportation and health-related hobbies, particularly for the youth, said retired PNP chief and senatorial aspirant Guillermo Eleazar.

He said bicycles are now becoming a better transportation alternative not only because of the threat of the pandemic, but also because of the series of big-time oil price hikes.

“I see many young people taking up cycling, and I have seen this during my visits to the provinces, especially in places where the road climbs along their favorite routes,” he said in Filipino.

“In order to encourage more people to use bicycles, then we should pursue new normal road constructions and improvements wherein there should be mandatory bike lanes with structures that would ensure their safety, especially against reckless drivers,” Eleazar stressed.

Binay pushes health care

Meanwhile, former vice president and UNA senatorial aspirant Jejomar Binay stressed yesterday the importance of bringing preventive health care closer to the people, especially in the provinces.

“Preventive health care must be given priority. These are measures to prevent sickness. This would, in turn, help reduce the strain on the public health system placed by expenditures on treating debilitating and even life-threatening diseases,” Binay said.

He said preventive health measures include mass immunization or vaccination, nutrition, promoting healthy lifestyles, proper sanitation, community-based health programs and traditional medicine.  – Jose Rodel Clapano, Paolo Romero