RURAL UPDATE

[av_one_full first min_height=” vertical_alignment=” space=” custom_margin=” margin=’0px’ padding=’0px’ border=” border_color=” radius=’0px’ background_color=” src=” background_position=’top left’ background_repeat=’no-repeat’ animation=”]

[av_heading heading=’RURAL UPDATE ‘ tag=’h3′ style=’blockquote modern-quote’ size=” subheading_active=’subheading_below’ subheading_size=’15’ padding=’10’ color=” custom_font=”]
BY JOHNNY NOVERA
[/av_heading]

[av_textblock size=” font_color=” color=”]

A permanent solution to ‘endo’

ONE election promise of the Duterte administration is to end the so-called “endo” scheme or labor contractualization, a rampant malpractice in our country by hiring employees or workers with tenure of “casuals forever” both in public and private establishments.
We wish that our authorities in the Department of Labor can read our article in Panay News of Dec. 7, 2009, which we re-produce below for our present column. It offered a solution to completely stop contractualization and improve our workers’ lot:
***
REGULAR WORK FOR EVERYONE
Regular work for everyone is the best way we can help our people live a decent life. But many of our business enterprises and industries today do not provide regular jobs; instead, with apparent connivance of Labor authorities, except for a few key positions, they hire contractual employees for five months service only so the worker or employee will not attain regular status as this is short of the six months minimum service period for regular employment.
New personnel will again be hired under the same temporary employment scheme to replace the ones whose term expired. Former workers are banned for re-employment should they apply again, lest they become permanent.
There is also the practice by government of hiring workers or employees as Casuals Forever. One street sweeper we met assigned on the street in front of our local government hospital has worked for City Hall for more than 20 years as a casual worker. He is paid a salary of P200 per day, except for Saturdays, Sundays and official holidays. Because salary payment is only released once at the end of the month he gets advances from a loan shark for his family’s subsistence, and this leaves him a few pesos when payday comes, hence he has to borrow again.
Now we would like to introduce here a function which can be undertaken by a service cooperative and this has not been explored. It is supplying outsourced staff or workers to business and industry. The service is unique because it will provide regular work for everyone.
What are the advantages of sourcing manpower needs from a cooperative?
First, there is no employer-employee relations established between the worker and the company to undertake a particular work or service, he being an owner-member of the coop and not an employee; second, the company will have no labor problem since the coop member-worker cannot form unions or join a labor organization; and third, there is no additional obligation by the company to the worker whatsoever outside of the contract price for the job with the coop, and neither can he become aregular employee even if he works for more than six months.
We believe that new personnel coming from the service coop will result in improved efficiency and profit, with the labor problem completely eliminated from the operation.
With the high and increasing unemployment in our country rising further in the 4Q of 2008 to 27.9 percent, this means that out of our labor force of 40 million, 11 million were unemployed. The plain reality is that our economy is not generating the jobs needed to enable millions of our people to live decent lives, even with so many politicians trying to solve the problem.
Regular work for everyone is what we need today. Why don’t we try the Cooperative way?”
***
The proferred solution of continuing with the intervention of service providers makes a big cut in the workers’ income. On the other hand, as owner-member of the coop, aside from the job, we can say that one can expect also both stock and cash dividends from the coop, grow the value of his investment through the years and enjoy other benefits of cooperative membership such as group insurance, credit privileges, purchase discounts etc., customarily extended to members. (For comments or reactions, please e-mail to jnoveracompany@yahoo.com)/PN
[/av_textblock]

[/av_one_full]

LEAVE A REPLY

Please enter your comment!
Please enter your name here