TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES JUL 10 P6:33 First Regular Session SENATE S. B. No. 152 Introduced by Senator Rodante D. Marcoleta AN ACT GRANTING BENEFITS TO JOB ORDER, CASUAL, AND CONTRACT OF SERVICE EMPLOYEES WORKING IN THE GOVERNMENT, EITHER THROUGH DIRECT HIRE OR THIRD-PARTY SERVICE CONTRACTING AGREEMENTS EXPLANATORY NOTE As provided under the 1987 Philippine Constitution, it is the duty of the State to protect workers' rights and ensure fair working conditions. The State affirms labor as a primary social economic force of the country. Numerous laws have been enacted to protect the rights and promote the welfare of workers as mandated by the Constitution. Likewise, Article XIII Section 3 paragraph 2 of the 1987 Constitution provides that workers shall be entitled to security of tenure, humane conditions of work, and a living wage. However, despite these guarantees, as of June 2023 the Department of Budget and Management has reported that there are 832,812 contract of service and job order workers in the government. This number is 22.90% higher as compared to the 642,077 workers in the previous year. In addition, the national government employs 173,227 casual workers.' This is a clear manifestation of the rampant fixed term employment in government service. The battle against contractualization or "endo" has been long and tedious. Several measures have been filed before but failed due to budgetary concerns. In fact, Article 296 of the Philippine Labor Code states that employees who continue to work 'Alexis Romero, Marcos Extends Service of Government Contractual Workers, PHILSTAR.COM, April 26, 2024, available at https://www.philstar.com/headlines/2024/04/26/2350532/marcos-extends-service-government-contractual-workers accessed on July 07, 2025).
after a six-month probationary period must be regularized, and as such, given benefits like medical insurance, paid leaves, and security of tenure. But this provision was circumvented to save money by outsourcing contract workers from agencies that are rampant today. It should be emphasized that the government should be at the forefront in protecting the welfare of Filipino workers, yet in practice it is the contrary that is being done. This proposed measure aims to protect employees who have been deprived of necessary benefits despite their hard work and long years in the government. In view of the foregoing, the immediate approval of this measure is earnestly sought. RODANTE D. MARCOLETA
frate nfl TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE JUL 10 P6:33 REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES First Regular Session SENATE S. B. No.. Introduced by Senator Rodante D. Marcoleta AN ACT GRANTING BENEFITS TO JOB ORDER, CASUAL, AND CONTRACT OF SERVICE EMPLOYEES WORKING IN THE GOVERNMENT, EITHER THROUGH DIRECT HIRE OR THIRD-PARTY SERVICE CONTRACTING AGREEMENTS Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:
Section. 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as "JOCCOS Workers' Benefits
Act"
Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. - To fully utilize its core human resources, the
State shall protect the rights of government workers and ensure and promote their welfare.
Sec. 3. Definition of Terms. - For the purposes of this Act, the following
definitions shall apply: a. Casual Appointment - shall refer to an appointment issued to a person to perform essential and necessary services when there are not enough regular staff to meet the demands of the services and for emergency cases and intermittent period not exceeding one (1) year; b. Contractual Appointment - shall refer to an appointment issued to a person whose employment is in accordance with a contract to undertake a locally funded or foreign assisted program or project, or to perform a specific work or a job requiring special or technical skills that are not available in the employing agency, to be accomplished within a specific period; C. Contract of Service (COS) - shall refer to an engagement of the services of a public agency or a private individual or organization as a consultant, learning
service provider or technical expert to undertake a special project or job within a specific period; d. Contractor or Service Provider - shall refer to an individual, a government agency or a private or a non-government entity that is duly registered and recognized by authorized agencies to provide services in their respective field of expertise or business; and, e. Job Order (JO) - shall refer to piece of work (pakyaw) or intermittent or emergency jobs and other manual, trades and crafts services to be performed within a short duration of time and to be paid according to an agreed contract amount for the piece of work or on daily wage basis;
Sec. 4. Benefits for Long-Time Casual and Contractual Employees of the
Government. - It is hereby mandated that all incumbent casual and contractual government employees, who have rendered a minimum of five (5) years of continuous service in government as of the effectivity of this Act shall be entitled to privileges and the benefits namely: a. 13th Month Pay; b. HMO coverage; c. Mid-Year Bonus; d. Performance Based Bonus; e. Productivity Enhancement Incentive; f. Sick leave; g. Philhealth coverage; h. Pag-IBIG membership; i. GSIS contributions; and, j. Year End Bonus/Cash Gift: Provided, however, that said continuous service may be waived if the service of the employees concerned prior to the completion of the said years was interrupted for not more than one (1) year taken cumulatively due to office reorganization.
Sec. 5. Positions. - Positions held by employees covered by this Act shall be
deemed necessary and essential for the efficient and effective operation of the government and shall be marked co-terminus with the incumbent employees. The said positions may not be abolished unless vacated by their incumbents.
Sec. 6. Qualifications. - COS/JO workers in the government shall be entitled to
receive health insurance benefits, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG Contributions, 13th month pay, productivity bonuses and such other privileges mentioned in Section 3 of this Act, provided they meet the following qualifications: a. They are directly hired or engaged by the government through a third-party service contractor for a job or task to be performed on a daily basis and has
been in service for at least six (6) months or have been performing the job or task satisfactorily; b. They are earning monthly pay equivalent to or less than the computed Salary Grade 7 in the government service: Provided, That such employees shall be accorded adequate protection against unlawful termination to evade payment of the aforementioned benefits. All Contractors or Service Providers are mandated to provide the abovementioned benefits to qualified COS/JO workers. Failure to do so shall result in the cancellation of their accreditation and corresponding fines or penalties.
Sec. 7. Appropriations. - The amount necessary to carry out the provisions of
this Act shall be charged against the Contingent Fund, the Miscellaneous Personnel Fund, and other applicable current appropriations. Thereafter, the amount needed for the effective implementation of this Act shall be included in the General Appropriations Act and local appropriations ordinance.
Sec. 8. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Department of Budget and
Management, Civil Service Commission, and Commission on Audit, shall jointly promulgate the rules and regulations to effectively implement the provisions of this Act.
Sec. 9. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part of this Act is declared
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder thereof not otherwise affected shall remain in full force and effect.
Sec. 10. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees, executive orders,
letters of instructions, proclamations or administrative regulations that are inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
Sec. 11. Effectivity. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following its
publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. Approved,