Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _________ 
Introduced by Representative Paolo Henry M. Marcoleta 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
The 1987 Philippine Constitution clearly states that 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 constitutional protections, 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.1 This is a 
clear manifestation of the rampant fixed term employment in government 
service. 
The issue of contractualization, often referred to as “endo” (end of 
contract) has been a persistent and contentious labor concern. 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 after 
a six-month probationary period must be regularized, and as such, given benefits 
like medical insurance, paid leaves, and security of tenure. This provision is 
often circumvented to save money by outsourcing arrangements allowing 
agencies to avoid regularization. 
1Alexis 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 
(last accessed on July 07, 2025). 
August 5, 2025
11:54 am
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Emphasis must be given to the verity 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 seeks to correct that 
contradiction and 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. 
PAOLO HENRY M. MARCOLETA 
Representative, SAGIP Party-List


Republic of the Philippines 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
Quezon City 
TWENTIETH CONGRESS 
First Regular Session 
HOUSE BILL NO. _________ 
Introduced by Representative Paolo Henry M. 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 House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled: 
Section 1. Short Title. – This Act shall be known as "JOCCOS Workers’ 
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Benefits Act”. 
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Sec. 2. Declaration of Policy. – To fully utilize its core human resources, 
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the State shall protect the rights of government workers and ensure and promote 
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their welfare. 
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Sec. 3. Definition of Terms. –  For the purposes of this Act, the following 
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definitions shall apply: 
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a. Casual Appointment - shall refer to an appointment issued to a person to
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perform essential and necessary services when there are not enough
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regular staff to meet the demands of the services and for emergency
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cases and intermittent period not exceeding one (1) year;
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b. Contractual Appointment - shall refer to an appointment issued to a
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person whose employment is in accordance with a contract to undertake
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a locally funded or foreign assisted program or project, or to perform a 
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specific work or a job requiring special or technical skills that are not 
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available in the employing agency, to be accomplished within a specific 
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period; 
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c.  Contract of Service (COS) - shall refer to an engagement of the services 
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of a public agency or a private individual or organization as a consultant, 
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learning service provider or technical expert to undertake a special 
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project or job within a specific period;  
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d. Contractor or Service Provider - shall refer to an individual, a 
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government agency or a private or a non-government entity that is duly 
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registered and recognized by authorized agencies to provide services in 
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their respective field of expertise or business; and  
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e. Job Order (JO) - shall refer to piece of work (pakyaw) or intermittent or 
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emergency jobs and other manual, trades and crafts services to be 
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performed within a short duration of time and to be paid according to an 
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agreed contract amount for the piece of work or on daily wage basis. 
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Sec. 4. Benefits for Long-Time Casual and Contractual Employees of the 
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Government. –  It is hereby mandated that all incumbent casual and contractual 
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government employees, who have rendered a minimum of five (5) years of 
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continuous service in government as of the effectivity of this Act shall be entitled 
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to privileges and the benefits namely: a. 13th Month Pay; b. HMO coverage; c. 
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Mid-Year Bonus; d. Performance Based Bonus; e. Productivity Enhancement 
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Incentive; f. Sick leave; g. Philhealth coverage; h. Pag-IBIG membership; i. GSIS 
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contributions; and, j. Year End Bonus/Cash Gift: Provided, however, that said 
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continuous service may be waived if the service of the employees concerned prior 
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to the completion of the said years was interrupted for not more than one (1) year 
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taken cumulatively due to office reorganization. 
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Sec. 5. Positions. – Positions held by employees covered by this Act shall 
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be deemed necessary and essential for the efficient and effective operation of the 
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government and shall be marked co-terminus with the incumbent employees. The 
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said positions may not be abolished unless vacated by their incumbents. 
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Sec. 6. Qualifications. – COS/JO workers in the government shall be 
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entitled to receive health insurance benefits, PhilHealth and Pag-IBIG 
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Contributions, 13th month pay, productivity bonuses and such other privileges 
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mentioned in Section 3 of this Act, provided they meet the following 
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qualifications:  
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a. They are directly hired or engaged by the government through a third-
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party service contractor for a job or task to be performed on a daily basis 
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and has been in service for at least six (6) months or have been 
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performing the job or task satisfactorily; and 
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b. They are earning monthly pay equivalent to or less than the computed 
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Salary Grade 7 in the government service. 
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Provided, That such employees shall be accorded adequate protection 
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against unlawful termination to evade payment of the aforementioned benefits. 
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All Contractors or Service Providers are mandated to provide the 
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abovementioned benefits to qualified COS/JO workers. Failure to do so shall 
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result in the cancellation of their accreditation and corresponding fines or 
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penalties. 
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Sec. 7. Appropriations. – The amount necessary to carry out the provisions 
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of this Act shall be charged against the Contingent Fund, the Miscellaneous 
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Personnel Fund, and other applicable current appropriations. Thereafter, the 
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amount needed for the effective implementation of this Act shall be included in 
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the General Appropriations Act and local appropriations ordinance. 
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Sec. 8. Implementing Rules and Regulations. – The Department of Budget 
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and Management, Civil Service Commission, and Commission on Audit, shall 
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jointly promulgate the rules and regulations to effectively implement the 
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provisions of this Act. 
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Sec. 9. Separability Clause. – If any provision or part of this Act is declared 
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invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder thereof not otherwise affected shall 
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remain in full force and effect.   
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Sec. 10. Repealing Clause. – All laws, presidential decrees, executive 
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orders, letters of instructions, proclamations or administrative regulations that are 
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inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or 
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modified accordingly. 
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Sec. 11. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days following 
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its publication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation. 
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Approved,  
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