Senate, House seen to ratify kasambahay bill

MANILA, Philippines - The Senate and House of Representatives are expected to ratify the bicameral conference committee report on the kasambahay bill tomorrow, which would not only address the plight of abused domestic workers but also make the country fully compliant with its obligations under the International Labor Organization Convention 189.

Senate President Pro Tempore Jinggoy Estrada – the principal author and sponsor of Senate Bill 78, the proposed law providing additional benefits and protection for domestic workers – said the measure would benefit more than two million house helpers, nursemaids, cooks, gardeners and laundry persons all over the country.

While the proposed law did not significantly bring up the minimum wages for the domestic workers, it did provide other benefits for this sector, including enhanced coverage of social protection, humane treatment and respect for human rights, and strengthened social dialogue.

Among the authors of the House version of the bill are Reps. Juan Edgardo Angara of Aurora, Joseph Victor Ejercito of San Juan, Rufus Rodriguez of Cagayan de Oro City, Jack Enrile of Cagayan, Magtanggol Gunigundo of Valenzuela, and Edcel Lagman of Albay.

Rights spelled out

Under the bill, the rights and privileges of domestic workers were defined as follows:

• The employer or any member of the household shall not subject a domestic worker to any kind of abuse or any form of physical violence or harassment;  

• The employer shall provide for the basic necessities of the domestic workers to include at least three adequate meals a day and sleeping arrangements that ensure safety;

• The employer shall respect the privacy of the domestic worker and shall extend the same to his or her communication and personal effects;

• The employer shall grant the domestic worker access to outside communication; and  

• The employer shall afford the domestic workers to finish basic education and may allow access to alternative learning systems, higher education or technical and vocational training.

Every domestic worker would also be entitled to a daily rest period of eight hours and a weekly rest period of least 24 consecutive hours.

A domestic worker who has rendered at least one year of service shall be entitled to an annual service incentive leave of five days with pay.

The bill also prohibits employers from placing the domestic workers under debt bondage or the rendering of service as security or payment for a debt.

Angara said the bill also sets the minimum monthly wage at no less than P2,500 for those employed in Metro Manila; P2,000 for those in chartered cities and first-class towns and P1,500 for those in other municipalities.

The wage rates will be reviewed and adjusted one year after the bill becomes law, he said.

He added that domestic workers will also be entitled to 13th month pay as well as Social Security System, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG Fund coverage, with the cost to be shouldered by employers if they are paying the worker less than P5,000 a month.

Enabling law

Estrada said the bill, once acted upon by President Aquino, would become the enabling law of ILO Convention 189 or what is known as the convention on decent work for domestic workers, which the Senate ratified in August.

 “ILO Convention 189 is an international effort to address the exclusions of domestic workers from labor and social protection, and the occurrence of modern-day slavery. The kasambahay bill is a concrete, crucial step toward this universal objective,” he said.

Senate committee on foreign relations chairperson Loren Legarda, who co-sponsored the bill, said that she expects nothing less but the immediate enactment into law once Congress has completed its duty of ratifying the measure.

“We are only a few steps away from acknowledging the contributions of our household heroes into the global workforce; no longer as invisible hands but as workers equipped with the rights and benefits accorded others,” she said.