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Republic of the Philippines ha
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 3 REGEIVED “2
Quezon City is} DATE 34 JUL 2
TWENTIETH CONGRESS

First Regular Session

HOUSE BILNo. 2823 _

Introduced by: Hon. Iris Marie D. Montes

AN ACT

ENSURING THAT SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES UNDER THE K TO 12
PROGRAM ARE EQUIPPED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE, TRAINING AND SKILLS
DEMANDED IN THE LABOR MARKET, ENHANCING THEIR EMPLOYABILITY AND
COMPETITIVENESS, CREATING THE BATANG MAGALING COUNCHS TO
‘STRENGTHEN MULTI-STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION AND SUPPORT FOR THEIR
EMPLOYMENT, ALLOWING DEDUCTION OF TRAINING EXPENSES INCURRED FOR
THEIR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES

EXPLANATORY NOTE

It has been reported that graduates of the K-12 program are encountering
obstacles to career growth, which highlights the need to further align education
with industry demands."

To address the challenges facing K-12 graduates, a study by the Philippine
Institute for Development Studies (PIDS) entitled: “Senior High School and the
Labor Market: Perspectives of Grade 12 Students and Human Resource Officers”
recommends the vigorous and sustained information campaign and other
awareness-raising activities among employers to be able to convince firms to
support the SHS program; deployment of students in work immersion venues is
according to their track/specialization choice; longer and competency-oriented
work immersion; and review and update curriculum content including immersion
delivery models

For this purpose, this bill aims to equip our Senior High School (SHS)
graduates with knowledge, training and skills that the labor market demands for
the. purpose of enhancing their employability and competitiveness in the
workforce.

The measure seeks to align the tracks and strands of the K to 12 Basic
Education Curriculum under Republic Act No. 10533, otherwise known as the
"Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013”, with the needs of the labor market.

‘K-12 graduates confront job growth hurdles — PBEd, Business World, January 24, 2025
(rites: Z/wws ng-management 01/24/648558/k-12-
3 les-pbed/) Accessed on 02 July 2025



It creates a National Batang Magaling Council, which shall serve as a
mechanism for active collaboration and meaningful communication for the
purpose of providing information to the education institutions for the updating
and alignment of the curricular offerings and the work immersion component of
the SHS program with the market needs as identified by industry partners and
government agencies.

It will also be tasked to increase the awareness and commitment of
industry partners and government agencies to accept learners in Work
Immersion Programs (WIPs); as well as to develop a local Batang Magaling
Roadmaps, to be evaluated and updated every three years, at the provincial,
city and municipal levels that shall introduce interventions and set measurable
goals on enhancing the employability, competitiveness, and productivity of SHS
graduates.

Towards the goal of achieving the employment and entrepreneurship
objectives of the K-12 SHS program, approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

Qatar Ud
MARIE D. MONTES
Kababaihan Kabalikatan para sa Kapakanan
‘at Kaunlaran ng Bayan (4K) Party-list


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

TWENTIETH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

House Bm No. _2823

jon. Iris Marie D. Montes _

(AN ACT

ENSURING THAT SENIOR HIGH SCHOOL GRADUATES UNDER THE K TO 12
PROGRAM ARE EQUIPPED WITH THE KNOWLEDGE, TRAINING AND SKILLS
DEMANDED IN THE LABOR MARKET, ENHANCING THEIR EMPLOYABILITY AND
COMPETITIVENESS, CREATING THE BATANG MAGALING COUNCILS TO
STRENGTHEN MULTI-STAKEHOLDER COLLABORATION AND SUPPORT FOR THEIR
EMPLOYMENT, ALLOWING DEDUCTION OF TRAINING EXPENSES INCURRED FOR
THEIR SKILLS DEVELOPMENT, APPROPRIATING FUNDS THEREFOR, AND FOR
OTHER PURPOSES

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the "Batang Magaling
Act.”

SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. - It is the policy of the State to establish,
maintain, and support a complete, adequate, and integrated system of education
relevant to the needs of the people and society.

This Act likewise reiterates a declared State policy that every graduate of
basic education shall be an empowered individual who has learned, through a
program that is rooted on sound educational principles and geared towards
excellence, the foundations for learning throughout life, the competence to
engage in work and be productive, the ability to coexist in fruitful harmony with
local and global communities, the capability to engage in autonomous, creative,
and critical thinking, and the capacity and willingness to transform others and
one's self.

SEC. 3. Objective. - This Act shall ensure that the Philippine basic education
system, as enhanced under Republic Act (R.A.) No. 10533 or the "Enhanced
Basic Education Act of 2013", will produce Senior High School (SHS) graduates
who are equipped with knowledge, training and skills demanded in the labor
market, whether they have chosen the higher education, middle-level skills
development, employment, or entrepreneurship exit, thereby enhancing their
employability and competitiveness in the workforce.

SEC. 4. Creation of the Batang Magaling National and Local Councils;
Strengthening Multi-Stakeholder Linkages and Collaboration; The Batang
Magaling Roadmap. - To align the tracks and strands of the K to 12 Basic


Education Curriculum under R.A. No. 10533 with the needs of the labor market,
a National Batang Magaling Council (National Council) shall be created composed
of the Department of Education (DepEd), the Technical Education and Skills
Development Authority (TESDA), the Department of Labor and Employment
(DOLE), three (3) national industry partners, one (1) national labor group, and
the Union of Local Authorities of the Philippines.

Local Batang Magaling Councils (Local Councils) shall likewise be formed at
the provincial, city and municipal levels to ensure that SHS graduates are
equipped with education, training and skills demanded by industry partners and
government agencies. The Local Councils shall be composed of the provincial,
city or municipal local school boards (LSBs), the Public Employment Service
Office (PESO), at least two (2) industry partners in the locality, a representative
of the TESDA provincial office, and a local employee organization or association.

Every education institution offering the SHS Program shall regularly consult
with the Local Council at least twice a year to be guided by the actions of the
Council especially the roadmap in paragraph e hereunder. The Council shall
serve as a mechanism for active collaboration and meaningful communication for
the fulfillment of the following purposes:

a. provision of information to the education institutions for the updating and
alignment of the curricular offerings and the work immersion component of the
SHS program with the market needs as identified by industry partners and
government agencies;

b. increase in the awareness and commitment of industry partners and
government agencies to accept learners in Work Immersion Programs (WIPs),
ensure that their deployment is done according to their tracks or specialization
courses, and enable them to acquire specialized skills and competencies to
advance in their chosen path;

c. enabling the LSBs to provide relevant data and Information to the
stakeholders, increase their awareness of their mutual issues and concerns on
the employability of SHS graduates in the locality, discuss and analyze the duties
and risks involved in WIPs, and give local incentives to recognize best practices
on collaboration;

d. crafting of the WIPs of education institutions offering the SHS Program
within a province, city or municipality and ensuring that the curriculum is aligned
with industry needs, learners meet the minimum requirements of the work
immersion industry partners and government agencies, and learners develop
competencies and acquire skills that are industry-based to improve their work
readiness and employability; and

e. development of local Batang Magaling Roadmaps, to be evaluated and
updated every three years, at the provincial, city and municipal levels that shall
introduce interventions and set measurable goals on enhancing the employability,
competitiveness, and productivity of SHS graduates, including but not limited to
an increase or improvement in the following: the number of industry partners
and government agencies participating in the WIPs; the number of SHS learners
deployed under the WIPs according to their tracks or specialization courses; and


the rate of employment of SHS graduates in jobs aligned to their skills. As such,
the local roadmap shall include the skills demanded by industry partners in the
locality vis-a-vis the needed knowledge, training and skills of SHS graduates to
match the said demand, using the labor market demand forecast under Sec. 6,
and the skills database under Sec. 7 hereof.

Taking into consideration the local roadmaps developed at the provincial, city
and municipal levels, the National Council shall craft a parallel National Batang
Magaling Roadmap to achieve the objective under Sec. 3 of this Act. The
provincial Local Councils shall similarly craft their respective Provincial Batang
Magaling Roadmaps based on the Municipal and Component Cities Batang
Magaling Roadmaps, while the city Local Councils shall base their respective City
Batang Magaling Roadmaps on the WIPs within the locality under their
jurisdiction.

SEC. 5. Work Immersion Programs. - The WIPs that are mandated to be
offered by education institutions offering the SHS Program shall develop in
learners the competencies, skills, work ethic and values relevant to pursuing
further education or joining the world of work.

The WIP shall be based on the Batang Magaling Roadmap and designed to
match the needs of the learners and the capabilities of the education institutions
vis- a-vis the demands of the work immersion industry partners.

The Schools Division Office of the DepEd shall approve the WIP as proposed
in these provinces, cities or municipalities, in accordance with DepEd policies and
issuances, and with due compliance to legal and administrative prescriptions on
the number of hours and delivery models, among others.

Sec. 6. Labor Market Demand Forecasting. - To align the WIP with market
demand and ensure that the knowledge, training and skills of SHS graduates
match the in-demand and projected in-demand jobs of industry partners in the
locality, the Councils are hereby mandated to conduct labor market demand
studies every three (3) years, using quarterly local labor market data collected
by the PESO.

The data derived from such demand forecast shall serve as basis for the work
immersion component of the SHS Program, the Batang Magaling Roadmaps, the
WIPs, the trainings to be conducted, the resources to be procured, and the skills
to be developed among the learners, among others. The demand forecast will
also allow education institutions to focus on employable skills as determined by
medium- to long- term labor market demand.

SEC. 7. Batang Magaling Database; Centralized Skills Database in
Collaboration with DOLE. - The DepEd, in collaboration with the DOLE, shall
develop, maintain and update a centralized nationwide database of skills
information to serve as one-stop shop for all matters related to the employment
of SHS graduates.

The Batang Magaling Database shall help strengthen the education
institutions’ linkages and collaboration with industry partners, facilitating the


meeting of skills demand within the province, city, municipality, and the country
as a whole.

The Batang Magaling database shall register the demographic profile of
learners including, but not limited to, their educational background, track and
strand completed in SHS, training, skills, competencies, work immersion
performance, course taken after SHS, work experience and employment history.
It shall also contain the profiles, demands, and vacancies, among others, of
industry partners.

SEC. 8. Affirmative Hiring of SHS Graduates; Industry Partners; Civil Service
Commission. -The DOLE, In coordination with the DepEd, shall conduct studies
and research for the crafting of strategies and guidelines to minimize the
impediments to SHS employment, and promote the affirmative hiring of SHS
graduates.

The industry partners are enjoined to rethink and review their hiring policies
and job requirements to provide employment opportunities, such as entry-level
positions, to SHS graduates.

The Civil Service Commission (CSC) is hereby mandated to review the
qualification requirements for government employment and revise its policies to
integrate the qualifications of SHS graduates in the CSC qualification standards
(QS) to provide employment opportunities to SHS graduates. Such QS may
include, among others, education, experience, training, and eligibility.

SEC. 9. Quality Assurance by the TESDA of the SHS Program of the DepEd;
National Competency Assessments; National Certificates. - The DepEd shall
comply
with the quality assurance framework set by the TESDA and ensure that the SHS.
program offerings meet the necessary criteria for TESDA's Training Regulations
program registration.

The DepEd, in coordination with the TESDA, shall provide, free of charge, the
national competency assessments to DepEd SHS Program learners upon their
graduation. SHS graduates who pass such assessments shall be awarded the
appropriate National Certificates (NCs) which shall serve as formal recognition of
their skills and competencies in accordance with the standards set by the TESDA.

SEC. 10. Joint Delivery Voucher Program for Senior High School Technical
Vocational-Livelinood Specializations (JDVP-TVL). - The JDVP-TVL, a program
designed by the DepEd to allow SHS learners enrolled in public schools to avail
of vouchers and take their desired TVL specializations in eligible partner
institutions from private SHSs, non-DepEd public SHSs, or TESDA-accredited
private Technical Vocational Institutes, shall be utilized to enable such learners
to receive instruction and training and complete their needed TVL skills and
competencies.

The rules and regulations to be issued pursuant to Sec. 14 of this Act shall
prescribe the guidelines for the implementation of the JDVP-TVL in cases where
the specialization desired by the learner is not offered by the public education
institution where he or she is enrolled.


SEC. 11. Deductible Training Expenses from Taxable Income; Additional Item
of Deduction. - Industry partners that incur training expenses for the skills
development of SHS learners participating in the WIP shall be allowed the
additional item of deduction from their taxable income under Sec. 34 (A) (1) (a)
(v) of R.A. No. 8424 or the National Internal Revenue Code of 1997, as amended
by R.A. No. 11534 or "CREATE".

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR), in collaboration with the DepEd, shall
issue the appropriate rules for availing this incentive, including simplified
processes and streamlined requirements for compliance and reporting.

SEC. 12. Mandatory Review and Impact Assessment. - The DepEd, in
collaboration with the National Council, shall conduct a mandatory review of the
implementation of this Act and submit an assessment report to Congress on its
impact and effectiveness, not later than two (2) years from its effectivity and
every two (2) years thereafter.

SEC. 13. Appropriations. -The amount necessary for the initial
implementation of this Act shall be charged against the current year's
appropriations of the departments and other agencies concerned. Thereafter, the
amount necessary for its continued implementation shall be included In the
annual General Appropriations Act.

The funding requirements needed for the Implementation of this Act by local
government units may be charged against their local funds.

SEC. 14. Implementing Rules and Regulations (IRR). - Within ninety (90)
days from the effectivity of this Act, the DepEd, CSC, DOLE, TESDA, and other
public and private stakeholders, including industry partners, shall issue the rules
and regulations implementing its provisions. The IRR issued pursuant to this
section shall take effect thirty (30) days after its publication in a newspaper of
general circulation.

SEC. 15. Separability Cause. - If any provision of this Act is held invalid or
unconstitutional, the other provisions not so declared shall remain In force and
effect.

SEC. 16. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive orders, presidential decrees,
administrative orders, rules and regulations, issuances, or parts thereof contrary
to or inconsistent with the provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or amended
accordingly.

SEC. 17. Effectivity. - Notwithstanding the non-issuance of the IRR, this Act
shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in
a newspaper of general circulation.

Approved,