Domestic job protection soon a law

The House of Representatives is inching towards the final passage of a measure seeking to strengthen the regulation of employment of foreign nationals in the country.

The House Committee on Labor and Employment, chaired by Davao Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles, sought the plenary approval of House Bill (HB) 5887 when Congress resumes session on Nov. 3.

“We must protect the welfare of the country’s human resource against undue incursion of foreign labor in consonance with our commitments to international labor agreements,” Nograles, principal author of the measure and panel chairman, said.

The bill seeks to amend Articles 40,41 and 42 of Title II,Book One of Presidential Decree No. 442, as amended, otherwise known as the “Labor Code of the Philippines.”

HB 5887 provides that all nonresident foreign nationals seeking employment in the Philippines shall obtain an employment permit from the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).

An employment permit may be issued to a non- resident foreign national subject to the labor market test based on the non-availability of qualified and willing Filipino nationals, it said.

The bill authorizes the Secretary of Labor and Employment to grant exemptions from the labor market test to foreign nationals as provided for under existing laws and agreements, as well as in industries or occupations or practice of professions where there is short supply, after tripartite consultations.

“HB 5887 seeks to improve our policy on the employment of foreign nationals according to our commit- ments to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and the General Agreement on Trade in Services (GATS), and in preparation for the regional integration envisioned in the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) Blueprint,” Nograles said.

He explained that the measure also mandates foreign nationals issued employment permits to transfer technology to Filipino understudies within a prescribed period.

In amending Article 41 of the Labor Code, HB 5887 prohibits foreign nationals after the issuance of an employment permit to transfer to another job or change his employer without prior approval of the Secretary of Labor and Employment.

Violators shall be slapped with a fine of 50,000 to 100,000, and/or imprisonment of six months to six years or both such fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the court.