DOLE suspends labor inspections, reports high compliance rate

MANILA, Philippines — Starting Dec. 1, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) will stop conducting routine inspections of commercial establishments.

Labor Secretary Bienvenido Laguesma has issued Administrative Order 342 suspending all labor inspection activities nationwide until the end of the year.

Laguesma, however, said complaint inspections on Occupational Safety and Health Standards (OSHS) as well as inspection activities that he ordered are exempted from the suspension.

While routine labor inspections are suspended, Laguesma directed DOLE regional offices to focus efforts on pending labor standards cases as well as the conduct of regional training activities.

Starting last January until Oct. 31, the DOLE inspected a total of 74,945 establishments.

The agency recorded an initial compliance rate of 78.08 percent on general labor standards, 53.96 percent on OSHS and 94.49 percent on minimum wage.

The compliance rate rose to 88.24 percent on general labor standards and 72.61 percent on OSHS after the inspected establishments implemented the necessary corrections.