Filipino freelancers’ rights bill filed
A BILL protecting Filipino online freelance workers by including them into the fold of the Philippine labor code to grant them basic rights provided to traditional workers, has been filed at the House of Representatives.
Filipino freelancers will be guaranteed the right to equitable compensation no less than the country’s minimum wage rate, under House Bill (HB) No. 10930, filed by Las Piñas Rep. Camille A. Villar on Sept. 18.
It will also mandate online work platforms to enroll Filipino freelancers to the country’s state benefits providers, such as Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (Philhealth), Social Security System (SSS), and the Home Development Mutual Fund.
“Since most gig workers in the Philippines are classified as independent contractors, they are technically not covered by the Labor Code of the Philippines. Therefore… they don’t enjoy the basic rights, benefits, and protection that traditional workers do,” the bill’s introductory note stated.
There are about 1.5 million Filipinos registered on international online work platforms, according to the measure, noting that the country is “among the fastest-growing gig market in the world.
“Online platform workers shall have the right to self-organize to collectively bargain and negotiate with online platform providers, and to engage in peaceful concerted activities,” the bill stated, protecting the rights of freelancers to unionize.
Online work platforms are also required to provide a contract for every working engagement involving Filipinos, it added. — Kenneth Christiane L. Basilio