Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 572 3

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INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ALFRED VARGAS

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Education and training is important in advancing productive employment

and socio-economic development in Asia and the Pacific. Thus,
Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) as
enhancing productivity and reducing poverty in the country.

the State recognizes
a necessary tool in

This bill seeks to realize the citizens’ rights to education and employment
by establishing a Philippine Labor Force Competencies Competitiveness Program.
This will ensure the people's access to technical and vocational training, thereby

improving an individual's prospect for employment. The bill

will also establish the

Tulong-Trabaho Fund which will provide financial assistance (training fees,
transportation allowance, laboratory fees, etc) to qualified applicants.

Furthermore,

the proposed “Tulong-Trabaho Act” aims to set the

appropriate standards to ensure the long-term Sustainability and Productivity of

the program.

This Representation recognizes the importance of TVET in bridging the gap
between education, the skills set of the workforce, and the jobs available in the
country. In with thisS, the immediate passage of this bill is sought

'D VARGAS


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

5729

HOUSE BILL No. _“ **

INTRODUCED BY REPRESENTATIVE ALFRED VARGAS.

AN ACT
INSTITUTING A PHILIPPINE LABOR FORCE COMPETENCIES COMPETITIVENESS
PROGRAM, AND ESTABLISHING FREE ACCESS TO TECHNICAL AND VOCATIONAL
TRAINING PROGRAMS

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

ARTICLE I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the “Tulong-
Trabaho Act of 2017.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - The Philippine Constitution provides that
the State shall promote a just and dynamic social order that will ensure the
Prosperity and independence of the nation, and 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. For this purpose,
the Constitution encourages informal and indigenous learning systems, as well as
self-learning, independent, and out-of-school study programs, particularly those
that respond to community needs.

SECTION 3. Objectives. - The objectives of this Act shall be:

(a) To strengthen the qualifications of the Filipino workforce to meet the
challenges of the rapidly evolving workplaces and work structures;

(b) To provide for more innovative approaches to education and training
linked to the requirement of industry.

(6) To facilitate access to quality technical education and training, and


(d)To encourage the participation of industry and communities in
competencies formation and upgrading towards a more competitive
Filipino workforce.

SEC. 4. Definition of Terms. - The following terms shall be used in this Act:

a) Competency refers to the standard knowledge, skills, attitude, and
values required to complete a work activity in a particular job, trade, or
occupation.

b) Competency-based learning system refers to a system by which the
learner is trained on the basis of demonstrated ability.

©) Direct training expenses refer to items of costs that are specifically
traced to or caused by the training and include consumables used in the
course of the program, training supplies, materials, utilities, venue and
equipment, trainers’ fees, and other related expenditures.

4) Formal Education refers to the systematic and deliberate process of
hierarchically structured and sequential learning corresponding to the
general concept of elementary and secondary level of schooling, At the
end of each level, the learner needs a certification in order to enter or
advance to the next level.

@) Informal Education refers to a lifelong process of learning by which
every person acquires and accumulates knowledge, skills, attitudes, and
insights from daily experiences at home, at work, at play, and from life
itself.

1) Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) refers to the
education or training process involving general education, the study of
technologies and related sciences, acquisition of practical skills relating
to occupations in various sectors of economic life and social life, and
comprises formal (organized programs as part of the school system) and
non-formal (organized classes outside the school system) approaches,

8) Philippine TVET Competency Assessment and Certificate System
refers to a quality-assured system in recognition of the attainment of
competencies (knowledge, skills, attitudes and values) as referred to the
competency standards set for middle-level occupation. It is the process
of determining the qualification level of a person and a tool in
identifying the training needs of a person with competency gaps.

h) Program refers to the Philippine Labor Force Competencies
Competitiveness Program established in accordance with this Act.


1) TESDA refers to the Technical Education and Skills Development
Authority.

SEC. 5. Philippine Labor Force Competencies Competitiveness
Program. - There shall be established a Philippine Labor Force Competencies
Competitiveness Program in accordance with Section 17 of this Act, and which
shall be funded through the Tulong-Trabaho Fund created in accordance with
Section 5 of this Act.

ARTICLE I
THE TULONG-TRABAHO FUND

SEC. 6. Tulong-Trabaho Fund. - There shall be established a Tulong-
Trabaho Fund that shall provide qualified recipients with access to TVET training
Programs through the full payment of the selected programs’ training fees, as well
as the possibility of providing additional financial assistance such as
transportation allowance and laboratory fees, as needed.

SEC. 7. Funding. ~ The funds necessary for the implementation of this Act
shall be included in the General Appropriations Act. The appropriated amount
shall be sufficient for free technical education and training and shall be used to
fund the training of qualified applicants for qualifications in key employment
generating sectors.

SEC. 8. Scope of Financial Assistance. - The Tulong-Trabaho Fund shall be
used to pay the fees of qualified recipients in Selected Training Programs (STPs)
selected in accordance with Section 10 of this Act.

SEC. 9. Qualified Recipients. ~ Access to the Tulong-Trabaho Fund shall be
made available to (i) any person at least fifteen (15) years of age who are not
employed, not in education, and not in training ("NEET*), and (ii) employed
workers who intend to develop and expand their current skills and training,

SEC. 10. Management of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund - TESDA shall be
Primarily responsible for managing the Tulong-Trabaho Fund. For this purpose,
the TESDA Board shall promulgate the policies and guidelines to implement the
Program.

The TESDA Board shall also have the power to receive donations from both
government and non-government organizations to be used strictly and exclusively
for the beneficiaries and qualified applicants of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund.

SEC. 11. Determination of Selected Training Programs. - The TESDA
Board shall approve the final list of Selected Training Programs (STPs) eligible to
receive funding from the Tulong-Trabaho Fund based on the initial


recommendation of the TESDA Secretariat. STPs may be school-based, center-
based, community-based, or enterprise-based programs shall be determined based
on the following considerations:

(a) The latest issuances of Labor Market Intelligence Reports;

(b) Quantitative and qualitative data on employment opportunities to be
provided by the Department of Labor and Employment;

(©) Quantitative and qualitative data on jobs and skills matching, as
determined by TESDA;

(d) The Human Resource Development Roadmaps; and

(6) Other quantitative and qualitative studies to be determined necessary
by the TEDSA Board in its selection of STPs,

Provided, That the TESDA Board may, in its discretion, adopt additional
bases to achieve the objectives of this Act.

The TESDA Board shall release the initial list of available STPs within two
(2) months from the effectivity of this Act, and shall update such list in accordance
with the provisions of this Act.

SEC. 12. Determination of Qualified Recipients. - The heads of entities
seeking funding for STPs shall submit a list of trainees who have requested
assistance from the Tulong-Trabaho Fund to the TESDA Regional Directors. The
TESDA Regional Directors shall assess the recipients and submit a list of qualified
recipients to the TESDA Director General for his or her approval.

The list of qualified recipients shall be periodically updated depending on
the availability of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund and the number of STPs,

SEC. 13. Evaluation of Assistance Given to Schools and Training
Centers. ~ The TESDA Board shall periodically evaluate schools and training
centers that receive funding from the Tulong-Trabaho Fund. These recipient.
institutions shall ensure that at least 70% of the beneficiaries of the Tulong-
Trabaho Fund are able to pass the Philippine TVET Competency Assessment and
Certification System. Failure to meet the passing rate shall subject the school or
training center to performance review and audit by the TESDA Board.

The TESDA Board shall have the discretion to provide other criteria and
standards to determine whether the school or center shall continue to receive
financial assistance through the Tulong-Trabaho Fund.

SEC. 14. Public Online Registry. - TESDA shall create a registry of schools
and training centers that offers STPs, a database of qualified recipients of financial


assistance and graduates of these programs. These lists shall be accessible through
the website of the TESDA.

SEC. 15. Evaluation. - The TESDA Board shall release an annual report to
be made available to the public on the management of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund,
including the appropriations from the General Appropriations Act, donations from
Private and other organizations, expenditures, performance of the qualified
recipients and other pertinent information as may be necessary in accordance with
the principle of fair and full disclosure.

ARTICLE III
DEVELOPMENT MODALITIES AND SUPPORT SYSTEMS

SEC. 16. Primary Duty of TESDA. - TESDA shall design and implement the
Support systems necessary to achieve the objectives of this Act, particularly the
development of additional TVET programs and the improvement of existing TVET
programs.

SEC. 17. Support Systems for the Development of the Program. -
Consistent with the recognition that a TVET program must be based on developing
competencies and focused on learning outcomes to be relevant to changing
demands, TESDA shall ensure that qualified recipients of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund
are appropriately trained and their competencies are regularly updated.

For this purpose, appropriate standards, proper planning, trainers’ training
and certification, competency assessment and certification and quality assurance
system shall be put in place to ensure that entrants’ to the Program shall be
sufficiently equipped. In addition, the development of modalities and programs for
employed workers and accumulation of new learning modules shall be undertaken
to upgrade competencies of employed workers.

The participation of industries and engagement of local governments shall
also be sought.

ARTICLE IV
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS

SEC. 18. Oversight Committee. - A joint oversight committee, composed of
the chairpersons of the Committee on Labor of the Senate and the House of
Representatives shall be convened in order to review, among others the
performance of the Tulong-Trabaho Fund.

SEC. 19. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The TESDA shall, in
consultation with relevant stakeholders, issue the implementing rules and
regulations of this Act within a period of ninety (90) days after the effectivity of
this Act.


SEC. 20. Separability Clause. - If any provision or part hereof, is held
invalid or unconstitutional, the remainder of the law or the provision not
otherwise affected shall remain valid and subsisting.

SEC. 21. Repealing Clause. - Any law, presidential decree or issuance,
executive order, letter of instruction, administrative order, rule or regulation
contrary to or inconsistent with, the provisions of this Actis hereby repealed,
modified, or amended accordingly.

SEC. 22. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days
after 4 its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation,

Approved,