No less than President Rodrigo Roa Duterte led the celebration of the 115th Labor Day on May 1, 2017 at the People’s Park, Davao City with the theme: “Matatag na Kabuhayan at Trabaho Tungo sa Progresibong Pagbabago”.
In his speech, the President stressed his commitment to address the issue of contractualization which is a continuing concern for the labor sector. “I stand firm in my convictions to end ‘endo’. The Labor Code guarantees all workers on the right to security of tenure”, said Duterte.
Showing his commitment to ending endo, the President announced that he will be issuing an Executive Order directing the strict implementation of existing provisions of laws against endo and labor-only contracting. Moreover, he said that his administration will hire more labor inspectors, and instructed DOLE to deputize trade unions to conduct inspections of all establishments. This was welcomed by labor leaders with a resounding applause.
Also during the Labor Day celebration, the President stated that he will ratify ILO Convention No. 151 which refers to Labor Relations in the Public Sector. He said, “I will ask the senate for its concurrence [to the ratification of ILO Convention 151]. May this serve as a symbol of government’s commitment to continuously uphold the aspiration of a corrupt-free civil service”.
Prior to his speech, the President, together with DOLE Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III and other senior officials had a dialogue with labor leaders in a closed-door session.
END/ John Christopher P. Lapiz