1 
Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No. _____ 
Introduced by CIBAC Party-List Representative 
Eduardo “Bro. Eddie” C. Villanueva 
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A MAGNA CARTA FOR WORKERS IN 
THE INFORMAL ECONOMY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The International Labour Organization (ILO) defines the informal 
economy as consisting of dependent, self-employed small-scale 
producers and distributors of goods and services,”1 or workers who are 
not, or are otherwise insufficiently, covered by formal work arrangements.2 
In a survey conducted in 2008, the then National Statistics Office (NSO) 
and the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and 
the Pacific (UN ESCAP) found that there were approximately 10.5 million 
informal sector operators in the Philippines.3  
In 2018, the Informal Sector Survey conducted by the Philippine 
Statistics Authority estimates that there are about 15.68 million informal 
1
Informal 
Economy 
in 
the 
Philippines. 
International 
Labour 
Organization. 
Available 
at 
https://www.ilo.org/manila/areasofwork/informal-economy/lang--en/index.htm (date last accessed: July 21, 2020). 
2  Magna Carta of Workers in the Informal Economy. Philippine Commission on Women. Available at  
https://www.pcw.gov.ph/wpla/-magna-carta-workers-informal-economy (date last accessed: July 21, 2020). 
3 Informal sector operators counted at 10.5 million (Results from the 2008 Informal Sector Survey). Philippine 
Statistics Authority. Available at https://psa.gov.ph/content/informal-sector-operators-counted-105-million-results-
2008-informal-sector-survey (date last accessed: July 21, 2020). https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/survey/labor-and-
employment/labor-force-survey/title/Employment%20Situation%20in%20July%202018 
July 25, 2022
8:00 am
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2 
or self-employed workers nationwide.4 This number represents more than 
one third of the estimated 43 million workforce in the country in 2018.5 
The contribution of workers from the informal economy to the overall 
economic health of the country cannot be gainsaid. The informal economy 
allows for the creation and production of economic opportunities, most 
especially for those who cannot integrate into the formal economy. 6 
Regrettably however, while the informal economy serves as a real driving 
force of the country’s economy, the workers and actors in the informal 
economy remain largely “not covered by the country’s labor laws and 
regulations.” In simpler terms, the informal economy as a whole has little 
protection from the law. 
This paradox is highlighted even more in the face of the 
Constitutional prescriptions requiring the State to “promote a just and 
dynamic social order that will… free the people from poverty through 
policies that provide adequate social services, promote full employment, 
a rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all”;7 and 
“protect the rights of the workers and promote their welfare”;8 and “afford 
full protection to labor.”9 
Thus, the proposed bill, among others, seeks to remedy this 
shortcoming in our legal system by affirming and establishing as a matter 
of law the rights, protection, and security afforded to workers and 
economic units in the informal sector, including rights and labor standards 
guaranteed to all workers and the entire labor force under the Constitution 
and relevant labor laws.  
The proposed bill likewise affirms and protects the right of the 
informal sector workers to organize and perform legitimate activities as an 
organization. Additionally, it directs key government agencies to support 
and institutionalize social security measures and protection for the 
informal sector. The proposed bill also seeks to afford the informal 
4 Available at: https://pcw.gov.ph/magna-carta-of-workers-in-the-informal-economy/ 
5 Available at: https://psa.gov.ph/statistics/survey/labor-and-employment/labor-force-survey/ 
title/Employment%20Situation%20in%20July%202018 
6 Supra, note 2.  
7 Constitution, Article II, Section 9. 
8 Id., Section 18.  
9 Id., Article XIII, Section 3. 


 
 
3 
workers, economic units, and own-account workers preferential 
treatments, policy and infrastructure support, and measures intended to 
help the informal sector thrive and flourish as a successful and formidable 
economic force. This includes capacity-building for own-account workers 
to access e-marketing facilities that will especially remove middle men in 
the transaction and facilitate the sale of produce or products directly to the 
consumers. Our experience during the Enhanced Community Quarantine 
(ECQ) in 2020 has greatly emphasized the need to directly connect these 
workers to the consumers in order to facilitate the continuous movement 
and sale of goods and products.   
 
Lastly, this bill also mandates the Department of Social Welfare and 
Development (DSWD), in coordination with the Department of Interior and 
Local 
Government 
(DILG), 
Department 
of 
Information 
and 
Communications Technology (DICT), the Department of Labor and 
Employment (DOLE), and other appropriate government agencies, to 
establish a system of registration of workers in the informal economy. The 
need for such a registry has been all the more highlighted by the alleged 
chaotic distribution of financial assistance during the ECQ. 
 
In view of the foregoing, the immediate passage of this bill is 
earnestly sought. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 


4 
Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
NINETEENTH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
House Bill No. _____ 
Introduced by CIBAC Party-List Representative 
Eduardo “Bro. Eddie” C. Villanueva 
AN ACT PROVIDING FOR A MAGNA CARTA FOR WORKERS IN 
THE INFORMAL ECONOMY AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
1 
Philippines in Congress assembled: 
2 
3 
Chapter I 
4 
GENERAL PRINCIPLES 
5 
6 
SECTION 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as the “Magna 
7 
Carta for Workers in the Informal Economy.” 
8 
9 
SECTION 2. Declaration of Policy.  – It is hereby declared the policy 
10 
of the State to: 
11 
12 
(a)
Promote a just and dynamic social order that shall ensure the
13 
prosperity and independence of the nation, and free the people
14 
from poverty through policies that provide adequate social
15 
services, promote decent, sustainable, and full employment, a
16 
rising standard of living, and an improved quality of life for all;
17 
18 
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5 
(b) Protect, promote, and fulfill the rights of every worker, including 
1 
gender equity, non-discrimination, the right to self-organization, 
2 
just and humane conditions of work, access to social protection 
3 
programs and services, access to justice, security of and in the 
4 
workplaces, and the right to represent their organizations in a 
5 
continuing process of consultation, social dialogue, and tripartite 
6 
bodies; and 
7 
 
8 
(c) Establish an integrated and coherent policy, at all levels of 
9 
government, of formalization of informal economic units and 
10 
informal economy workers, and make them visible in all relevant 
11 
national and local statistics. 
12 
 
13 
SECTION 3. Coverage. – This Act shall apply to all workers and 
14 
economic units, including enterprises, entrepreneurs, and households in 
15 
the informal economy, in particular: 
16 
 
17 
(a) The 
self-employed 
workers, 
own-account 
workers 
and 
18 
employers, members of cooperatives, and members of other 
19 
social and solidarity economy units; 
20 
 
21 
(b) Home-based workers or contributing family workers, irrespective 
22 
of whether they work in economic units in the formal or informal 
23 
economy; 
24 
 
25 
(c) Employees holding informal jobs in or for formal enterprises, or 
26 
for economic units in the informal economy, including those in 
27 
contract arrangement and/or in supply chains, or as paid 
28 
domestic workers employed by households;                                                  
29 
 
30 
(d) Workers 
in 
unrecognized 
or 
unregulated 
employment 
31 
relationships;  
32 
 
33 
(e) Agricultural workers or fisherfolk in unrecognized or unregulated 
34 
agricultural or farming endeavors and fishing activities; and 
35 
 
36 
(f) 
Non-regular domestic workers. 
37 


 
 
6 
 
1 
SECTION 4. Definition of Terms. – As used in this Act, the following 
2 
terms shall mean: 
3 
 
4 
(a) “Informal Economy” refers to all economic activities by workers 
5 
and economic units that are, in law or in practice, not covered or 
6 
insufficiently covered by formal arrangements and does not 
7 
cover illicit activities;  
8 
 
9 
(b) “Economic Units in the Informal Economy” include units that 
10 
employ hired labor, units that are owned by individuals working 
11 
on their own account, either alone or with the help or contributing 
12 
family workers, cooperatives and other social and solidarity 
13 
economy units, and informal work that may be found across all 
14 
sectors of the economy, in households, as well as public and 
15 
private spaces; 
16 
  
17 
(c) “Informal Economy Workers’ Organization” refers to a group of 
18 
informal sector workers, whether formally constituted or 
19 
otherwise, that are organized with the primary objective of 
20 
promoting the rights and welfare of workers in the informal 
21 
economy; 
22 
 
23 
(d) “Informal Employment or Work” refers to an employment or work 
24 
arrangement with no legal protection and social benefits, 
25 
unrecognized or unregulated, either in the formal or informal 
26 
sector whether public or private, or in households either based 
27 
on casual or contractual employment, kinship, or personal and 
28 
social relations; 
29 
 
30 
(e) “Own-account worker” refers to workers who, working on their 
31 
own account or with one or more partners, hold the type of job 
32 
defined as a self-employed job, and have not engaged, on a 
33 
continuous basis, any employee to work for them during the 
34 
reference period; 
35 
 
36 


 
 
7 
(f) 
“Security of and in the Workplace” refers to the right of every 
1 
worker and informal economic units to an environment that 
2 
guarantees and protects the spaces to undertake their work, 
3 
including the right to be safe in one’s own work space, security 
4 
of tenure and freedom from discrimination, risk, danger, doubt, 
5 
anxiety, or fear of being removed, evicted, or prevented from 
6 
working; 
7 
 
8 
(g) “Social Protection” refers to policies and programs that seek to 
9 
reduce poverty and vulnerability to risks and enhance the social 
10 
status of the marginalized by promoting and protecting livelihood 
11 
and employment, protecting against hazards and sudden loss of 
12 
income, and improving people’s capacity to manage risk, as well 
13 
as all other interventions that support communities, households, 
14 
and individuals, both women and men, and realizing their rights 
15 
as citizens through their full participation in decision-making 
16 
affecting or which may affect their access to and control over 
17 
resources necessary to  maintain and sustain a decent and 
18 
secure life; 
19 
 
20 
(h) “Social and Solidarity Economy Units” refers to enterprises and 
21 
organizations, including cooperatives as defined under Republic 
22 
Act No. 9520, otherwise known as the Philippine Cooperative 
23 
Code 
of 
2008, 
mutual 
benefit 
societies, 
associations, 
24 
foundations, and social enterprises which produce goods, 
25 
services, and knowledge that meet the needs of the community 
26 
they serve, through the pursuit of specific economic and social 
27 
objectives and the fostering of solidarity. 
28 
 
29 
Chapter II 
30 
RIGHTS AND BENEFITS 
31 
 
32 
SECTION 5. Rights and Benefits of Workers in the Informal 
33 
Economy. –  Workers in the informal economy shall be entitled to all the 
34 
rights accorded to workers by the Philippine Constitution, the Labor Code 
35 
of the Philippines, as amended, and relevant international human rights 
36 


 
 
8 
instruments and international labor standards.  Accordingly, the State 
1 
shall guarantee all workers in the informal economy the following:  
2 
 
3 
(a) Right to security of and in the workplace;  
4 
 
5 
(b) Right to make a living by work freely chosen or accepted; 
6 
 
7 
(c) Right to just and favorable conditions of work, including provision 
8 
for work-life balance, child care, and other facilities; 
9 
 
10 
(d) Right to a living wage and equal remuneration for work of equal 
11 
value without distinction of any kind, especially for women who 
12 
shall be guaranteed equal wages for work similar or equivalent 
13 
to those done by men; 
14 
 
15 
(e) Right to equal opportunity for promotion, subject to no other 
16 
considerations than seniority and competence; 
17 
 
18 
(f) 
Right to safe and healthy working conditions, safeguarding 
19 
general, occupational, and reproductive health; 
20 
 
21 
(g) Right to basic services, including affordable medical care, 
22 
reproductive and other health services, low-cost housing, water, 
23 
sanitation, cheap and affordable electricity, and efficient and 
24 
effective transportation system; 
25 
 
26 
(h) Right to rest, leisure, and reasonable limitation of working hours; 
27 
 
28 
(i) 
Right to maternity and paternity benefits, as provided for by law; 
29 
 
30 
(j) 
Right to equal access to education, skills training, and economic 
31 
resources to develop self-reliance, especially for the youth, 
32 
without any discrimination; 
33 
 
34 
(k) Right to self-organization and to collectively negotiate with 
35 
government and other entities in the promotion of their welfare 
36 


 
 
9 
and in the advancement of their interests, free from any political 
1 
interference; 
2 
 
3 
(l) 
Right to adequate food, clothing, shelter and standard of living, 
4 
and the continuous improvement of such standard; 
5 
 
6 
(m) Right to be free from any form of discrimination, violence, 
7 
exploitation, including sexual exploitation, harassment, abuse, 
8 
and any form of inhumane treatment which debases, degrades, 
9 
or demeans the intrinsic worth and dignity of the worker as a 
10 
human being; 
11 
 
12 
(n) Right to accessible social protection and safety nets, labor 
13 
market programs, and social welfare interventions such as social 
14 
security, health care, and insurance; 
15 
 
16 
(o) Right to participate in policy and decision-making processes and 
17 
social dialogue, including access to information and resources 
18 
relevant to the promotion and protection of their rights and 
19 
welfare; and 
20 
 
21 
(p) Right to equal and equitable access to justice for redress of 
22 
grievances, including alternative dispute resolution processes. 
23 
 
24 
SECTION 6. Rights and Benefits of Own-Account Workers.  – In 
25 
addition to the rights of workers in the informal economy, own-account 
26 
workers, as well as informal economic units, being the working poor’s 
27 
primary instruments to address and overcome poverty, shall be accorded 
28 
preferential rights by the State over the following: 
29 
 
30 
(a) Infrastructure support, such as farm to market roads, common, 
31 
affordable, and secure workplaces and facilities, merchandising 
32 
centers, farmers’ markets or bagsakan with proper storage 
33 
facilities, and inventory bulk-buying centers; 
34 
 
35 
(b) Policy support to ensure the unimpeded transport of their 
36 
produce or products;  
37 


 
 
10 
 
1 
(c) Policy support to promote and protect locally-produced products 
2 
and services, including enhancement of the local value chain; 
3 
 
4 
(d) Ease and facilitation of access to markets, including capacity-
5 
building to access e-marketing facilities that will especially 
6 
remove middle men in the transaction and facilitate the sale of 
7 
produce or products directly to the consumers; 
8 
 
9 
(e) Access to affordable, appropriate, and adequate financial 
10 
services, including, among others, collateral-free and gender-
11 
balanced credit at low interest; 
12 
 
13 
(f) 
Access to appropriate and adequate machinery, equipment, and 
14 
other technologies, with the end view of increasing productivity 
15 
and growth; 
16 
 
17 
(g) Protection from unjust dislocation from places where economic 
18 
activities are conducted, observing the policy of “relocation 
19 
before demolition”; 
20 
 
21 
(h) Measures against racketeering, extortion, and harassment, by 
22 
both State and non-State elements; 
23 
 
24 
(i) 
Common workplaces, shared facilities, product development 
25 
and technology support, and adequate and affordable marketing 
26 
facilities; 
27 
 
28 
(j) 
Freedom from deprivation of property without valid cause and 
29 
due process of law; and 
30 
 
31 
(k) Affordable and customized social security and insurance 
32 
programs. 
33 
 
34 
SECTION 7. Rights of Legitimate Organization of Workers in the 
35 
Informal Economy or Employment. – Workers in the informal economy 
36 
or employment may organize into unions, cooperatives, social and 
37 


 
 
11 
solidarity economic units’ organizations, and mutual benefit associations. 
1 
Organization of workers in the informal economy or employment shall 
2 
register with the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and shall 
3 
have the right to:  
4 
 
5 
(a) Freely function and act as the representatives of their members 
6 
in policy and decision-making processes, collective negotiations, 
7 
tripartite bodies and consultations, multi-sectoral and other 
8 
similar bodies; 
9 
 
10 
(b) Establish, join, or affiliate with national federations or 
11 
confederations and international trade union organizations; 
12 
 
13 
(c) Access information from concerned government institutions and 
14 
other parties that are pertinent to the protection and promotion 
15 
of the rights and welfare of their members; 
16 
 
17 
(d) Own property, whether real or personal, for the use and benefit 
18 
of their organizations and members; 
19 
 
20 
(e) Sue and be sued under their registered name; and 
21 
 
22 
(f) 
Undertake all other activities, not contrary to law, designed to 
23 
benefit their organizations and members. 
24 
 
25 
SECTION 8. Assistance to Organizations of Workers in the 
26 
Informal Economy. – The State shall promote and support the formation 
27 
of organizations among marginalized farmers, fisherfolk, women, and 
28 
workers in the informal economy or employment, whether in 
29 
manufacturing, agriculture, transport, retail, services, or home-based 
30 
enterprises.   
31 
 
32 
Towards this end, all national government agencies, government 
33 
financial institutions, and local government units’ plans, programs, and 
34 
policies shall foster an atmosphere conducive to the exercise of the right 
35 
to self-organization of the workers in the informal economy. Such policies 
36 
shall also facilitate and promote access to credit, skills training, and inputs 
37 


 
 
12 
at lower cost. These policies shall also be geared towards assisting such 
1 
workers in obtaining fair prices for their produce or products and ensuring 
2 
uninterrupted supply chain for the efficient, effective and economical 
3 
transport of their products to consumers. 
4 
 
5 
Chapter III 
6 
SECURITY IN THE WORKPLACE OF WORKERS IN THE 
7 
INFORMAL ECONOMY OR EMPLOYMENT 
8 
 
9 
SECTION 9. Designation of Workplaces. – Local Government 
10 
Units (LGUs), in coordination with legitimate organization of workers in the 
11 
informal economy and their members, affected communities, and other 
12 
relevant groups, shall identify, designate, and design a system of 
13 
assignment on the following:  
14 
 
15 
(a) Productivity and merchandizing centers as viable workplaces for 
16 
informal workers, which may include markets and vacant areas 
17 
near markets, vacant public spaces and other spaces which may 
18 
be a private property that the LGU may acquire, lease, or 
19 
negotiate with legitimate organization of workers in the informal 
20 
economy for lease under a memorandum of agreement; and 
21 
 
22 
(b) Routes, terminals, and specific lanes for small transport workers.  
23 
 
24 
SECTION 10. Policy on Eviction and Demolition.  – Workers in 
25 
the informal economy or employment shall not be evicted from their 
26 
homes and workplaces without any legal ground as provided under 
27 
Republic Act No. 7279, otherwise known as the “Urban Development and 
28 
Housing Act of 1992.” They shall also be provided with the same or similar 
29 
livelihood opportunities, adequate water and electricity and decent 
30 
conditions of living in accordance with law.  Logistical viability for the 
31 
displaced shall be given priority in the course of determining the relocation 
32 
sites or areas.   
33 
 
34 
SECTION 11. Policy on Confiscation of Materials and 
35 
Impounding of Vehicles. – In cases where demolition or eviction is 
36 
warranted by appropriate court order, the public officer or government 
37 


 
 
13 
agency that conducted the same shall ensure non-violence and shall 
1 
issue an itemized receipt of all products, goods, and other materials 
2 
seized or confiscated from vendors and other affected workers in the 
3 
informal economy or employment. In no event shall these products be 
4 
destroyed or discarded in the course of such demolition or eviction.  
5 
 
6 
Tricycles, pedicabs, and other modes of transportation shall not be 
7 
impounded for violations of license, registration, or traffic regulations 
8 
unless the said vehicles were utilized in the conduct of criminal activities. 
9 
In cases of violation of traffic regulations, a traffic violation ticket shall be 
10 
issued to the erring driver without impoundment.  
11 
 
12 
SECTION 12. Policy on Relocation of Vending Sites.  – Before 
13 
any public market is closed, sold, or demolished, all market vendors shall 
14 
first be relocated by the LGU to a temporary or new public market. Notice 
15 
of the intention to close, sell, or demolish any public market shall be made 
16 
to all concerned vendors at least sixty (60) days before the actual transfer 
17 
or relocation to another market site. Within the sixty-day period after 
18 
issuance of notice, the LGU shall conduct consultations with affected 
19 
vendors on the relocation site and implementation of the relocation. 
20 
 
21 
Vendors, ambulant or otherwise, occupying or selling in public 
22 
places not previously designated as vending sites shall be provided notice 
23 
of transfer at least fifteen (15) days before the actual transfer to the 
24 
designated vending site.  The fifteen (15)-day notice shall likewise apply 
25 
to vendors granted with permits but whose workplaces are withdrawn from 
26 
the list of allowable vending sites.  Any change in the list of allowable 
27 
vending sites shall only be done after consultation with the affected 
28 
vendors. 
29 
 
30 
In the event that a new public market is constructed in place of an 
31 
old one, market vendors with stalls displaced from their workplaces shall 
32 
be given priority in the assignment of stalls in the new market. 
33 
 
34 
SECTION 13. Policy on Relocation of Terminals and Change of 
35 
Route.  – Relocation of designated terminals for tricycles, pedicabs, 
36 
jeepneys and other similar modes of transportation and any change of 
37 


 
 
14 
route shall not be arbitrarily carried out without prior notice and 
1 
consultation with the drivers and/or transport groups concerned, 
2 
legitimate organizations of workers, affected community, and other 
3 
relevant sectors.  The relocation of terminals and change of route shall be 
4 
implemented through an ordinance, the enactment of which shall be 
5 
subject to the required consultation and notice of intention as provided in 
6 
the immediately preceding section. 
7 
 
8 
Chapter IV 
9 
SOCIAL PROTECTION FOR THE INFORMAL SECTOR 
10 
 
11 
SECTION 14. Formalization of the Social Protection Floor. – The 
12 
State shall support, sustain, enhance, or institutionalize the social 
13 
protection floor initiative through convergence of the resources of various 
14 
agencies of the government for continuous social security and health 
15 
insurance subsidies to vulnerable and other informal workers, as well as 
16 
initiate programs for the unemployed, children, and older persons based 
17 
on applicable and ever improving standards.  
18 
 
19 
SECTION 15. Social Welfare and Safety Nets. – The Department 
20 
of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), in coordination with the 
21 
DOLE, Department of Agriculture (DA) and other government agencies, 
22 
shall consolidate all social welfare programs and safety nets to address 
23 
the needs of the workers in the informal economy, including direct 
24 
assistance, policy development, and community engagement for the 
25 
workers.  
26 
 
27 
SECTION 16. Role of the Department of Labor and Employment.  
28 
– The DOLE shall engage in labor market interventions that shall provide 
29 
adequate protection and enable transition of workers in the informal 
30 
economy to formal work arrangements. It shall ensure timely and 
31 
immediate action for labor concerns, as well as job generation, and other 
32 
pertinent concerns.    
33 
 
34 
SECTION 17. Social Insurance. – Social insurance programs 
35 
including Social Security, Pag-ibig (Home Development Mutual Fund), 
36 
and universal health care shall be made fully available to workers in the 
37 


 
 
15 
informal economy. For this purpose, policies and mechanisms for their full 
1 
utilization and benefit shall be formulated by the Social Security System, 
2 
HDMF, and the Philippine Health Insurance Corporation.   
3 
 
4 
Chapter V 
5 
LABOR STANDARDS AND ENFORCEMENT OF LABOR LAWS 
6 
FOR WORKERS IN THE INFORMAL ECONOMY 
7 
 
8 
SECTION 18. Applicability of the Provisions of the Labor Code. 
9 
–The provisions of the Labor Code particularly, the minimum age 
10 
requirement, general labor standards and occupational safety and health 
11 
shall be adapted to work, engagement or employment in the informal 
12 
economy.  
13 
 
14 
SECTION 19. Prohibited Acts Specific to Workers in the 
15 
Informal Economy. – The following are deemed prohibited: 
16 
 
17 
(a) 
Non-compliance with Minimum Labor Standards and 
18 
Occupational Health and Safety Standards.  The terms and 
19 
conditions of employment of workers in the informal economy 
20 
shall not be lower than the minimum standards set by law. The 
21 
lack of formality of the work arrangement between the employer 
22 
and the worker or intermittency of work shall not mean the 
23 
absence of an employment relationship in the informal economy; 
24 
it is sufficient that there is control on how the work is to be done 
25 
at the time of the engagement or economic dependence of the 
26 
worker on the employer is present.   
27 
 
28 
In all cases, the employment agreement shall be explained to 
29 
the worker, and be in a language that is easily understandable 
30 
to the worker. The worker shall also be furnished a copy of such 
31 
employment agreement for his records. 
32 
 
33 
(b) 
Recruitment or Finders’ Fees. Regardless of whether the 
34 
worker was sourced either through an employment agency or a 
35 
third party, workers in the informal economy shall neither be 
36 


 
 
16 
charged nor levied a recruitment fee or finders’ fee by the 
1 
employment agency or third party. 
2 
 
3 
(c) 
Hazardous Work and Conditions. Workers in the informal 
4 
economy shall not be engaged to do hazardous work, activity, or 
5 
undertaking, or be exposed to hazardous working conditions. 
6 
The rights of all workers under Republic Act No. 11058, 
7 
otherwise known as An Act Strengthening Compliance with 
8 
Occupational Safety and Health Standards and Providing 
9 
Penalties for Violations Thereof, shall be promoted and fulfilled.   
10 
 
11 
(d) 
Interference and Coercion. Any person is prohibited from 
12 
committing any of the following acts of interference and coercion: 
13 
 
14 
(1) Preventing any worker from upholding or exercising his/her 
15 
rights; 
16 
 
17 
(2) Preventing any worker from joining or assisting organization 
18 
for purposes not contrary to law; 
19 
 
20 
(3) Preventing any worker from carrying out his/her duties or 
21 
functions in an organization, or to penalize the same for any 
22 
lawful action performed in that capacity and in the 
23 
performance of his/her work or undertaking; 
24 
 
25 
(4) Harassing, threatening, coercing, or intimidating any worker 
26 
that has the tendency or has the result of preventing him or 
27 
her from performing his or her duties and functions; 
28 
 
29 
(5) Transferring, penalizing, or terminating the services of a 
30 
worker without valid or legal ground; and  
31 
 
 
 
32 
(6) Other acts calculated to diminish the independence and 
33 
freedom of workers’ organization to direct its own affairs. 
34 
 
35 
(e) 
Non-compliance with Republic Act No. 7610, as amended by 
36 
Republic Act No. 9231 in the employment of minors. – In 
37 


 
 
17 
cases where minors are contracted or hired to render work or 
1 
services in any informal economic activity, the DOLE and the 
2 
LGU or a duly elected Barangay official where the work is to be 
3 
done shall ensure compliance with Republic Act No. 7610, as 
4 
amended by Republic Act No. 9231. The employer of the minors 
5 
shall also provide them with access to at least elementary or 
6 
secondary education, either through traditional schooling or 
7 
alternative learning systems.  
8 
 
9 
SECTION 20. Visitorial and Enforcement Power of the Secretary 
10 
of Labor and Employment. – The scope of the visitorial and enforcement 
11 
power of the Secretary of Labor under Article 128 of the Labor Code of 
12 
the Philippines, as amended, shall include employment and other work 
13 
engagement in the informal economy.  
14 
 
15 
Chapter VI 
16 
POLICY COORDINATION AND DEVELOPMENT  
17 
 
18 
SECTION 21. Function of National Economic Development 
19 
Authority. – The Committee on Social Development of the National 
20 
Economic Development Authority (NEDA) shall develop policies and 
21 
programs that shall:   
22 
 
23 
(a) facilitate the transition of workers and economic units from the 
24 
informal to the formal economy to achieve inclusive development 
25 
and to realize decent work for all, while respecting workers’ 
26 
fundamental rights and ensuring opportunities for income security, 
27 
livelihoods and entrepreneurship; 
28 
 
29 
(b) promote the creation, preservation and sustainability of enterprises 
30 
and decent jobs in the formal economy and the coherence of 
31 
macroeconomic, employment, social protection and other social 
32 
policies; and  
33 
 
34 
(c) prevent the informalization of the formal economy. 
35 
 
36 


 
 
18 
SECTION 22.  Informal Economy Initiatives of Local 
1 
Development Council.  – The Local Development Councils of all 
2 
provinces, cities, and municipalities shall establish a body of coordination, 
3 
registration, and assistance for workers in the informal economy within 
4 
their respective jurisdictions.  
5 
 
6 
The Local Development Councils shall also form a sectoral or 
7 
functional committee that shall facilitate the registration of informal 
8 
economy workers.  
9 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
10 
 
 
 
 
 
Chapter VII 
11 
REGISTRATION OF INFORMAL ECONOMY WORKERS 
12 
 
13 
SECTION 23.    Registration. – The DSWD, in coordination with 
14 
the Department of Interior and Local Government (DILG), Department of 
15 
Information and Communications Technology (DICT), DOLE, and other 
16 
appropriate government agencies, shall establish a system of registration 
17 
of workers in the informal economy.  
18 
 
19 
The national and local governments shall review, revalidate, and 
20 
reassess such database as a tool for national and local planning and for 
21 
other purposes every two (2) years.  
22 
 
23 
The registry of economic units shall take into account the different 
24 
sub-classifications in terms of asset size, number of workers, social 
25 
insurance provided, statutory benefits and wages, industry, geography, 
26 
premises, sex, ethnicity, vulnerability, and roles and functions. The 
27 
database shall also indicate informal economic units which may be 
28 
categorized as livelihood enterprises and entrepreneurial or growth-
29 
oriented informal businesses.  
30 
 
31 
CHAPTER VIII 
32 
FINAL PROVISONS 
33 
 
34 
SECTION 24. Penal Provision. – 
35 
  
36 


 
 
19 
(a) Any person who shall willfully interfere with, restrain or coerce a 
1 
worker in the exercise of his or her rights or shall in any manner 
2 
commit any act in violation of any of the provisions of this Act shall, 
3 
upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not less than Twenty 
4 
Thousand Pesos (Php20,000.00) or imprisonment of one (1) to six 
5 
(6) years or both fine and imprisonment at the discretion of the Court. 
6 
 
7 
(b) If the offender is a public official, the Court, in addition to the penalties 
8 
provided in the preceding paragraph, may impose the additional 
9 
penalty or disqualification from public office. 
10 
 
11 
(c) Any person who violates Section 11 of this Act (Policy on Confiscation 
12 
of Materials and Impounding of Vehicles) shall be liable. Nothing 
13 
herein shall prohibit the aggrieved workers in the informal economy 
14 
from initiating a criminal or civil action against the responsible person 
15 
or officer. 
16 
 
17 
(d) Failure to implement Sections 12 (Policy on Relocation of Vending 
18 
Sites) and 13 (Policy on Relocation of Terminals and Change of 
19 
Route) shall render the responsible official/s administratively liable 
20 
pursuant to Republic Act No. 7160 and other applicable laws, without 
21 
prejudice to any civil or criminal cases that may be filed against such 
22 
erring official/s.  
23 
 
24 
(e) If a private institution/company is found to have violated any 
25 
provisions of this Act, its business shall be suspended or revoked at 
26 
the discretion of the Court. 
27 
 
28 
SECTION 25. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). – The 
29 
DOLE, DILG, DSWD, and NEDA, in coordination with other concerned 
30 
government agencies and stakeholders, shall formulate the implementing 
31 
rules and regulations within 180 days from the effectivity of this Act.  
32 
 
33 
SECTION 26. Separability Clause. – If any provision of this Act is 
34 
declared unconstitutional or   invalid, the provisions not affected shall 
35 
continue to be in full force and effect. 
36 
 
37 


 
 
20 
SECTION 27. Repealing Clause. – All laws, decrees, orders, rules 
1 
and regulations or other    issuances inconsistent with the provisions of 
2 
this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified accordingly, 
3 
 
4 
SECTION 28.  Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) 
5 
days after its publication in the Official Gazette. 
6 
 
7 
Approved, 
8