Establishing a Tripartite Council

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) REPURE OF SEE A LESS First Regular Session 25 JUL -7 P2:05 SENATE S. No. - Introduced by Senator Francis G. Escudero AN ACT ESTABLISHING A TRIPARTITE COUNCIL TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEMS OF UNEMPLOYMENT, UNDEREMPLOYMENT, JOB-SKILLS MISMATCH AND TECHNOLOGY-INDUCED JOB DISPLACEMENT, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR" EXPLANATORY NOTE While the rapidly developing economic landscape provides unprecedented access to financial, logistical, and other forms of resources, the same can also give rise to many socio-economic predicaments. Rapid modernization, for instance, can affect the labor market of a country, creating problems such as unemployment and underemployment particularly among college graduates, mismatch between available jobs and skills, and technology-induced job displacement. These concerns impair the realization of inclusive economic growth and threaten the livelihood and productivity of Filipino workforce, particularly those from the younger and older generations. To address such predicaments, and in cognizance of the wisdom behind House Bill No. 7370 which was approved on third reading by the House of Representatives last Nineteenth Congress, this bill seeks to establish a coordinating and policy- formulating tripartite council composed of representatives from the government, academe, and industry sectors. The duties and responsibilities of the tripartite council shall complement interventions of the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Inter-Agency Council, created pursuant to Republic Act No. 11962, by ensuring that graduates produced by higher education institutions and technical-vocational institutions can adequately support the employment interventions identified by the latter. Ultimately, the establishment of the tripartite council is seen to ensure that the government's efforts to educate and train its citizens would help realize the inclusive and comprehensive development of the country. Respectfully submitted. FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO

TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) First Regular Session JUL -7 P2:05 SENATE RECR S. No. Introduced by Senator Francis G. Escudero AN ACT ESTABLISHING A TRIPARTITE COUNCIL TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEMS OF UNEMPLOYMENT, UNDEREMPLOYMENT, JOB-SKILLS MISMATCH AND TECHNOLOGY-INDUCED JOB DISPLACEMENT, AND APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR" Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:

Section 1. Declaration of Policy. - It is declared the policy of the State to reduce

the levels of unemployment and underemployment, increase productivity, improve the standards of living, and reduce the vulnerability of the Filipino workforce to rapid introduction of technology and innovation through the sustained development of a 5 skilled citizenry and maintenance of a reservoir of national talents consisting of Filipino 6 scientists, entrepreneurs, professionals, managers, high-level technical manpower, and skilled workers and craftsmen in all fields. To this end, the State shall ensure the relevance and adequacy of academic 9 programs of higher education institutions (HEls) and training programs offered in technical-vocational institutions (TVIs) in relation to the needs and requirements of the business and industry sectors and the overall human resource requirement of the country pursuant to its socioeconomic development goals.

Sec. 2. Creation of a Tripartite Council. - There is hereby established a Tripartite

14 Council, hereinafter referred to as the Council, that shall formulate policies and programs to address the problems of unemployment, underemployment, job-skills mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement in the country. It shall be a coordinating body among the government, academe, and industry sectors to primarily

monitor economic trends in the global and domestic markets, including those pertaining to business and commerce and the local labor market, and to generate information relative to employment, unemployment, underemployment, job-skills mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement. The Council shall be made up of representatives from the government, academe, and industry. The government representatives shall be composed of the following: a 7 Commissioner of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED); a Deputy Director- General of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA); an Undersecretary of the Department of Education (DepEd); an Undersecretary of the Department of Information and Communications Technology (DICT); an Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE); an Undersecretary of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST); an Undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI); a Commissioner of the Civil Service Commission (CSC); and a Commissioner of the Professional Regulation Commission (PRC). The representatives of the academe shall be composed of the presidents of the federations of public and private HEIs, public and private TVIs, and accreditation bodies of higher and technical-vocational educational institutions, which shall include the following: Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges; Association of Local Colleges and Universities; Coordinating Council of Private Educational 21 Associations; Technical-Vocational Schools and Associations of the Philippines; 22 National Network of Quality Assurance Agencies; and the Federation of Accrediting Agencies of the Philippines. The representatives of the industry sector shall be composed of the presidents of the following business and industry federations: Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines; Employers Confederation of the Philippines; Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation, Incorporated; Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines; Philippine Business for Education; Management Association of the Philippines; Philippine Business for Social Progress; and the People Management Association of the Philippines.

The Council shall be headed by a CHED Commissioner as Chairperson, and the Deputy Director-General of the TESDA shall be its Vice-Chairperson. The members of the Council, except for the ex officio members, shall receive per diem for every meeting attended in accordance with existing rules and regulations. The Council shall be attached to the CHED for administrative and budgetary purposes. The CHED shall provide a secretariat to the Council to be manned by the organic personnel of the CHED and may be augmented by the employees from the member- agencies of the Council through detail or secondment. For the effective performance of its functions, the Council may, upon the 10 recommendation of the CHED and the TESDA, revise the composition of its members.

Sec. 3. Powers and Functions of the Council. - The Council shall have the

following specific powers and functions: a) Monitor the trends in the domestic and international labor market vis-à-vis the incidence of unemployment, underemployment, job-skills mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement in the country; b) Formulate policies, plans and programs that shall address job-skills mismatch, unemployment, and technology-induced job displacement; c) Conduct an inventory, review and evaluation of courses, academic programs and curricula of HEis and technical education and training programs of TVIs; d) Conduct an assessment of qualifications, skills and competencies of students and graduates of higher education courses and technical-vocational education and training and benchmark these with national and international standards such as the Philippine Qualifications Framework, Association of Southeast Asian Nations Qualifications Reference Framework, and other relevant frameworks and international agreements to which the Philippines is a signatory. e) Conduct an inventory of job specifications and skills requirement of various industries; f) Recommend to the President of the Philippines, Congress, and other government institutions such policies to address the problems of unemployment, underemployment, job-skills mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement;

g) Request the assistance of government agencies in the performance of its duties and functions; h) Hoid regular quarterly meetings; and i) Perform such other functions as may be necessary for its effective operation to achieve the objectives of this Act.

Sec. 4. Annual Report and Assessment. - Upon effectivity of this Act, the Council

shall submit an annual report to Congress on the status of employment of college students and new HEI or TVI graduates for the last five (5) years, as weil as an assessment of the trends in the labor market and the skills required by various industries and business establishments.

Sec. 5. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the effective

implementation of this Act shali be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.

Sec. 6. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within sixty (60) days after the

effectivity of this Act, the CHED shall, in coordination with the TESDA, DepEd, DOLE, DOST, DTI, CSC, and PRC, as well as other education stakeholders, promulgate the rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.

Sec. 7. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof is declared

unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provision not affected thereby shall remain in full force and effect.

Sec. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, acts, decrees, executive orders, issuances,

and rules and regulations or parts thereof which are contrary to and inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.

Sec. 9. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect immediateiy following its

publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. Approved,