Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIV!
Batasan Hills, Quezon City

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL-No._565

Introduced by
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,
ist Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL

AN ACT
ENSURING WEEKENDS AS DAYS OF REST
FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOL TEACHERS BY PROVIDING FOR
THEIR RIGHT TO CONDUCT MEETINGS, CONFERENCES, TRAININGS,
AND SIMILAR ACTIVITIES DURING WEEKDAYS,
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT 4461

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The weekend is supposed to be reserved for rest, a chance to recover from five
straight days of work and to physically and emotionally prepare for the work week
ahead.

For public and private school teachers, however, Saturdays and Sundays are
tiring extensions of the weekdays, as there are oftentimes required to report for
meetings, conferences, trainings, and the like. For the public school system, these
activities are commonly not held on weekends due to the “time on task”
rule—implemented by the Department of Education through DepEd Order 9, series of
2005. Citing the deteriorating quality of education, teachers are ordered “to increase
engaged time-on-task so that the required number of school days...and the time
allotment to teaching every subject in school are met by minimizing activities
participated in by the teachers and the pupils.

However, DepEd Order 16, series of 2009 and relevant issuances of the Civil
Service Commission reiterate the eight-hour work requirement in public schools,
which sets six hours for actual teaching and two hours for teaching-related activities.
More important are the constitutional right of teachers to professional advancement
(Section 5(4) of Article XIV) and the mandate on government to take measures to


promote morale, efficiency, and responsiveness in the civil service (Section 3 of
Article TX-B). Also on point is the constitutional right of teachers to
self-organization, which includes faculty associations, federations, and regional
unions, which should be fully promoted by government by, among others, supporting
their activities.

The “time-on-task” rule is usually cited to deny the holding of activities and the
participation of teachers therein from Mondays to Fridays—as if meetings of teachers’
organizations, federations, or unions or trainings, conferences, and other activities for
professional advancement were not part of a teacher’s tasks or not done to directly
improve a teacher’s work in the classroom. Limiting these activities to weekends
sends the wrong message that the pursuit of teachers’ constitutional rights to
professional advancement and self-organization should only be done during Saturdays
and Sundays and should eat up their time for relaxation and recuperation.

It is high time for a categorical directive from government that will allow
teachers to take their rest on Saturdays and Sundays. This bill therefore proposes for
an amendment to Republic Act 4461 (1965) to that effect and to likewise extend to
private schoo] teachers the right to rest on weekends.

For these reasons, approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A. MANUEL,
GaB, [ELA Women & Party KABATAAN Party



Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Batasan Hills, Quezon City

NINETEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL No. _565

Introduced by

ist Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,
ist Rep. RAOUL DANNIEL A, MANUEL

AN ACT
ENSURING WEEKENDS AS DAYS OF REST
FOR PUBLIC AND PRIVATE SCHOOL TEACHERS BY PROVIDING FOR
THEIR RIGHT TO CONDUCT MEETINGS, CONFERENCES, TRAININGS,
AND SIMILAR ACTIVITIES DURING WEEKDAYS,
AMENDING FOR THE PURPOSE REPUBLIC ACT 4461

Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in
Congress assembled:

SECTION 1. Section | of Republic Act 4461 shall be amended to read as follows:

Section 1 Meetings, TRAININGS, CONFERENCES, AND
OTHER ACTIVITIES of public AND PRIVATE school teachers
shail be held during school days instead of Saturdays and Sundays.
THE RIGHT TO REST ON WEEKENDS PROVIDED UNDER
THIS ACT SHALL COVER MEETINGS, TRAININGS,
CONFERENCES, AND OTHER ACTIVITIES REQUIRED BY
THE DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION AND OTHER
AGENCIES TO BE ATTENDED BY TEACHERS.

SEC. 2. Any violation of this Act shall give cause for appropriate administrative and
civil liabilities under appropriate laws, rules, and regulations.

SEC. 3. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official
Gazette or one (1) newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,