TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
P 2 -05
SENATE 
S. No. ^36
Introduced by Senator Francis G. Escudero
AN ACT
ESTABLISHING A TRIPARTITE COUNCIL TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEMS OF 
UNEMPLOYMENT, UNDEREMPLOYMENT, JOB-SKILLS MISMATCH AND 
TECHNOLOGY-INDUCED JOB DISPLACEMENT, AND APPROPRIATING 
FUNDS THEREFOR"
EXPLANATORY NOTE
While the rapidly developing economic landscape provides unprecedented 
access to financial, logistical, and other forms of resources, the same can also give 
rise to many socio-economic predicaments. Rapid modernization, for instance, can 
affect the labor market of a country, creating problems such as unemployment and 
underemployment particularly among college graduates, mismatch between available 
jobs and skills, and technology-induced job displacement. These concerns impair the 
realization of inclusive economic growth and threaten the livelihood and productivity 
of Filipino workforce, particularly those from the younger and older generations.
To address such predicaments, and in cognizance of the wisdom behind House 
Bill No. 7370 which was approved on third reading by the House of Representatives 
last Nineteenth Congress, this bill seeks to establish a coordinating and policy- 
formulating tripartite council composed of representatives from the government, 
academe, and industry sectors. The duties and responsibilities of the tripartite council 
shall complement interventions of the Trabaho Para sa Bayan Inter-Agency Council, 
created pursuant to Republic Act No. 11962, by ensuring that graduates produced by 
higher education institutions and technical-vocational institutions can adequately 
support the employment interventions identified by the latter.
Ultimately, the establishment of the tripartite council is seen to ensure that the 
government's efforts to educate and train its citizens would help realize the inclusive 
and comprehensive development of the country.
Respectfully submitted.
FRANCIS G. ESCUDERO


TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE ) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
25 JML-7 P 2 ’05
SENATE 
S. No. 236
I;’."::'
Introduced by Senator Francis G. Escudero
AN ACT
ESTABLISHING A TRIPARTITE COUNCIL TO ADDRESS THE PROBLEMS OF 
UNEMPLOYMENT, UNDEREMPLOYMENT, JOB-SKILLS MISMATCH AND 
TECHNOLOGY-INDUCED JOB DISPLACEMENT, AND APPROPRIATING 
FUNDS THEREFOR"
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
1 
Section 1. Declaration of Policy. - It is declared the policy of the State to reduce
2 
the ievels of unemployment and underemployment, increase productivity, improve the
3 
standards of living, and reduce the vuinerability of the Filipino workforce to rapid
4 
introduction of technoiogy and innovation through the sustained development of a
5 
skilled citizenry and maintenance of a reservoir of nationai talents consisting of Filipino
6 
scientists, entrepreneurs, professionals, managers, high-level technical manpower,
7 
and skilled workers and craftsmen in ail fields.
8 
To this end, the State shall ensure the relevance and adequacy of academic
9 
programs of higher education institutions (HEIs) and training programs offered in
10 
technical-vocationai institutions (TVIs) in relation to the needs and requirements of
11 
the business and industry sectors and the overali human resource requirement of the
12 
country pursuant to its socioeconomic development goals.
13 
Sec. 2. Creation of a Tripartite Council. - There is hereby established a T ripartite
14 
Council, hereinafter referred to as the Council, that shall formulate policies and
15 
programs to address the problems of unemployment, underemployment, job-skills
16 
mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement in the country. It shall be a
17 
coordinating body among the government, academe, and industry sectors to primarily


1 
monitor economic trends in the global and domestic markets, including those
2 
pertaining to business and commerce and the local labor market, and to generate
3 
information relative to employment, unemployment, underemployment, job-skills
4 
mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement. The Council shall be made up of
5 
representatives from the government, academe, and industry.
6 
The government representatives shall be composed of the following: a
7 
Commissioner of the Commission on Higher Education (CHED); a Deputy Director-
8 
General of the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA); an
9 
Undersecretary of the Department of Education (DepEd); an Undersecretary of the
10 
Department of Information and Communications Technoiogy (DICT); an
11 
Undersecretary of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE); an
12 
Undersecretary of the Department of Science and Technology (DOST); an
13 
Undersecretary of the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI); a Commissioner of
14 
the Civil Service Commission (CSC); and a Commissioner of the Professional
15 
Regulation Commission (PRC).
16 
The representatives of the academe shall be composed of the presidents of the
17 
federations of public and private HEIs, public and private TVIs, and accreditation
18 
bodies of higher and technical-vocational educational institutions, which shall include
19 
the following: Philippine Association of State Universities and Colleges; Association of
20 
Local Colleges and Universities; Coordinating Council of Private Educational
21 
Associations; Technical-Vocational Schools and Associations of the Philippines;
22 
National Network of Quality Assurance Agencies; and the Federation of Accrediting
23 
Agencies of the Philippines.
24 
The representatives of the industry sector shall be composed of the presidents
25 
of the following business and industry federations: Philippine Chamber of Commerce
26 
and Industry; Joint Foreign Chambers of the Philippines; Employers Confederation of
27 
the Philippines; Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines
28 
Foundation, Incorporated; Information Technology and Business Process Association
29 
of the Phiiippines; Philippine Business for Education; Management Association of the
30 
Philippines; Philippine Business for Social Progress; and the People Management
31 
Association of the Philippines.


1 
The Council shall be headed by a CHED Commissioner as Chairperson, and the
2 
Deputy Director-General of the TESDA shall be its Vice-Chairperson. The members of
3 
the Council, except for the ex officio members, shall receive per diem for every
4 
meeting attended in accordance with existing rules and regulations. The Council shall
5 
be attached to the CHED for administrative and budgetary purposes.
6 
The CHED shall provide a secretariat to the Council to be manned by the organic
7 
personnel of the CHED and may be augmented by the employees from the member-
8 
agencies of the Council through detail or secondment.
9 
For the effective performance of its functions, the Council may, upon the
10 
recommendation of the CHED and the TESDA, revise the composition of its members.
11 
Sec. 3. Powers and Functions of the Council. - The Council shall have the
12 
following specific powers and functions:
13 
a) Monitor the trends in the domestic and internationai labor market vis-a-vis
14 
the incidence of unempioyment, underempioyment, job-skilis mismatch, and
15 
technology-induced job displacement in the country;
16 
b) Formulate policies, plans and programs that shall address job-skills
17 
mismatch, unempioyment, and technology-induced job displacement;
18 
c) Conduct an inventory, review and evaluation of courses, academic programs
19 
and curricuia of HEIs and technicai education and training programs of TVIs;
20 
d) Conduct an assessment of qualifications, skills and competencies of
21 
students and graduates of higher education courses and technical-vocational
22 
education and training and benchmark these with national and international standards
23 
such as the Philippine Quaiifications Framework, Association of Southeast Asian
24 
Nations Qualifications Reference Framework, and other reievant frameworks and
25 
internationai agreements to which the Philippines is a signatory.
26 
e) Conduct an inventory of job specifications and skills requirement of various
27 
industries;
28 
f) Recommend to the President of the Phiiippines, Congress, and other
29 
government institutions such policies to address the problems of unemployment,
30 
underemployment, job-skills mismatch, and technology-induced job displacement;


1 
g) Request the assistance of government agencies in the performance of its
2 
duties and functions;
3 
h) Hoid reguiar quarterly meetings; and
4 
i) Perform such other functions as may be necessary for its effective operation
5 
to achieve the objectives of this Act.
6 
Sec. 4. Annual Report and Assessment - Upon effectivity of this Act, the Council
7 
shall submit an annual report to Congress on the status of employment of college
8 
students and new HEI or TVI graduates for the last five (5) years, as weil as an
9 
assessment of the trends in the labor market and the skills required by various
10 
industries and business estabiishments.
11 
Sec. 5. Appropriations. - The amount necessary for the effective
12 
implementation of this Act shali be inciuded in the annual General Appropriations Act.
13 
Sec. 6. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - Within sixty (60) days after the
14 
effectivity of this Act, the CHED shali, in coordination with the TESDA, DepEd, DOLE,
15 
DOST, DTI, CSC, and PRC, as weli as other education stakeholders, promulgate the
16 
rules and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.
17 
Sec. 7. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof is declared
18 
unconstitutional, the remainder of this Act or any provision not affected thereby shali
19 
remain in full force and effect.
20 
Sec. 8. Repealing Clause. - All laws, acts, decrees, executive orders, issuances,
21 
and rules and regulations or parts thereof which are contrary to and inconsistent with
22 
this Act are hereby repealed, amended, or modified accordingly.
23 
Sec. 9. Effectivity. - This Act shail take effect immediateiy following its
24 
pubiication in the Official Gazette or in a newspaper of general circulation.
Approved,