TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
HOUSE BILL No. 1962 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
AN ACT 
TO PROTECT AND PROMOTE THE RIGHTS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION 
WORKERS, 
APPROPRIATING 
FUNDS 
THEREFOR, 
AND 
FOR 
OTHER 
PURPOSES 
EXPLANATORY NOTE 
Congress continuously endeavors to institute necessary reforms to achieve 
game-changing social and economic outcomes. While no law is perfect in its form, the 
Legislative body is consciously striving to pass laws that will significantly change our 
people's lives.  Congress’ role has always been anchored on having a preferential bias 
towards the poor and marginalized. For that reason, social protection components are 
always included in the legislative agenda. 
Among the marginalized sectors that need the government’s attention are the 
Public Transport Workers (PTWs) who are the backbone of the country’s mobility. 
They provide essential services that keep people moving and transportation systems 
running.   PTWs support businesses, tourism and the economy at large.  Despite their 
contribution in keeping the country alive and thriving, much is still desired in protecting 
their livelihood as they are tied to a “boundary-system” income.  This income payment 
arrangement not only encourages reckless driving, it also perpetuates the PTWs’ lack 
of job security and non-accountability of vehicle owners. 
To give ample protection to PTWs and their livelihood, this bill seeks to 
establish a Magna Carta for Public Transportation Workers which shall establish their 
rights, particularly to a living wage, to be considered employees of Public Utility Vehicle 
workers, and to humane working conditions.  
This bill also provides mechanisms and institutes bodies for the PTWs' exercise 
of their right to associate and form organizations for mutual aid. Under this Act, the 
boundary-system as currently in force shall be prohibited, and PTWs shall be accorded 
rights granted to employees under the Labor Code. A requirement for health checkups 
shall likewise be instituted to ensure that said PTWs are fit for work with Public Utility 
Vehicles.   
July 16, 2025
8:02 am


Our PTWs have long been bravely fighting the perils of poverty to support the 
needs of their family.  We do not sensationalize their hardships but instead push for 
improving their welfare.  
In view of the foregoing, approval of this bill is highly recommended. 
REP. CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
DUMPER PTDA PARTY-LIST 


TWENTIETH CONGRESS OF THE 
) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES 
) 
First Regular Session 
) 
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 
HOUSE BILL No. 1962 
Introduced by REPRESENTATIVE CLAUDINE DIANA D. BAUTISTA-LIM 
AN ACT 
TO PROTECT AND PROMOTE THE RIGHTS OF PUBLIC TRANSPORTATION 
WORKERS, 
APPROPRIATING 
FUNDS 
THEREFOR, 
AND 
FOR 
OTHER 
PURPOSES 
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
the Congress assembled: 
ARTICLE I 
GENERAL PROVISIONS 
Section 1. Title. This Act shall be known as the "Magna Carta for Public 
Transportation Workers Act". 
Section 2. Declaration of Policy. It is hereby declared the policy of the State 
to recognize and promote a just and dynamic social order that will ensure the 
prosperity 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 
improved quality of life.  
In the Declaration of Principles and State Policies in Article II, Sections 10 and 
11 of the 1987 Constitution, it is further declared that the State shall value the dignity 
of every human person. 
Towards these ends, the State shall institute and establish the necessary 
mechanisms to enforce and guarantee the realization of the rights of all drivers of 
Public Utility Vehicle Workers, taking into consideration the nature of their work and 
the integral part they play in the economy, industry, and the daily lives of the Filipino 
public. 
Section 3. Construction. The best interest of the public utility worker shall be 
considered in the interpretation of the provisions of this Act, including its implementing 
rules and regulations. 


ARTICLE II 
DEFINITION OF TERMS 
 
Section 4. Terminologies. As used in this Act: 
 
(a) "Boundary system" refers to the arrangement between owners or operators of 
public utility vehicles and public utility drivers wherein public utility drivers pay 
a fixed fee or "boundary" to the owners/operators for its use as a public utility 
vehicle. 
 
(b) "Certificate of Public Convenience" refers to the permit issued by the LTFRB 
for the operation of public utility vehicles. 
 
(c) "Worker" shall mean every licensed operator, driver, conductor, or other 
workers working with public utility vehicles. 
 
(d) "Motor Vehicle" shall mean any vehicle propelled by any power other than 
muscular power using the public highways, streets, and thoroughfares, but 
excepting road rollers, trolley cars, street-sweepers, sprinklers, lawn mowers, 
bulldozers, graders, fork-lifts, amphibian trucks, and cranes if not used on public 
highways, streets or thoroughfares, and tractors, trailers, and traction engines 
of all kinds used exclusively for agricultural purposes. 
 
Trailers with any number of wheels, when propelled or intended to be propelled 
by attachment to a motor vehicle, shall be classified as separate motor vehicles 
with no power rating. 
 
(e) "Operator" shall mean the holder or grantee of a valid and subsisting Certificate 
of Public Convenience by the LTFRB; 
 
(f) "Owner" shall mean the actual legal owner of a motor, in whose name such 
vehicle is duly registered with the Land Transportation Office 
 
(g) "Public Utility Driver" shall mean any driver hired or paid for driving or operating 
a public utility vehicle. 
 
(h) "Public Utility Vehicle" (PUV) refers to a motor vehicle considered as a public 
transport conveyance or common carrier duly registered with the Land 
Transportation Office (LTO) and granted a franchise by the Land Transportation 
Franchising Regulatory Board (LTFRB); 
 
(i) "Transport Network Vehicle" refers to a ridesharing entity that matches 
passengers with vehicles through websites or mobile applications.  
 
 
ARTICLE III 
RIGHTS OF PUBLIC UTILITY DRIVERS 
 
Section 5. Employer-Employee Relationship. Upon the effectivity of this Act, 
there shall be deemed to exist an employer-employee relationship between the 


owners or operators of public utility vehicles and public utility workers, regardless of 
the existing arrangements between the owners or operators of public utility vehicles 
and public utility drivers.  
 
Section 6. Wages. Public utility workers shall have the right to a living wage. 
Wages for all actual work during regular hours and days shall not be lower than the 
prescribed minimum wage of the National Wages Productivity Commission. 
 
Section 7. Prohibition of the Boundary System. The boundary system 
arrangement is hereby prohibited to ensure the orderly, efficient and optimal 
dispatching of public utility vehicles. 
 
Section 8. Maximum Hours of Work. The normal work hours of Public Utility 
Drivers and other Workers shall not exceed ten (10) hours a day. Hours worked shall 
include (a) the time during which a public utility driver or worker is required to be on 
duty or to be at a prescribed location and (b) the time during which a public utility driver 
or worker is suffered or permitted to work, but shall not include the one (1) hour lunch 
break period given to all public utility drivers or workers. Rest periods of short duration 
during working hours shall be counted as hours worked; Provided:  that the aggregate 
amount of time spent on such rest periods must not exceed one (1) hour a day.  
 
Section 9. Minimum Benefits. Public utility drivers and workers shall be 
entitled to the following benefits: 
 
a) Twelve (12) Regular Holidays with pay pursuant to Republic Act No. 9849. The 
public utility driver or worker shall be paid holiday pay of 100% of the minimum 
wage even if he/she does not report for work, provided he/she is present or is 
on leave of absence with pay on the workday immediately preceding the 
holiday. If the public utility driver or worker is required to work on said holiday, 
he shall be paid 200% of the minimum wage; 
 
b) Rest day of twenty-four (24) consecutive hours for every six (6) consecutive 
working days. If the public utility driver or worker is required to work on a rest 
day, he/she shall be paid an additional premium pay of 30% of the basic wage. 
If the public utility driver is required to work on special days under Republic Act. 
No. 9849, he/she shall also be paid an additional premium of 30% of the basic 
wage. Whenever work is performed on a rest day, which happens to also be a 
special day, he/she is entitled to an additional 50% of the basic wage; 
 
c) Overtime pay is equivalent to at least 25% of the basic wage on ordinary days 
and 30% on regular holidays, special days, and rest days for work beyond eight 
(8) hours per day; 
 
d) Night shift pay of an additional 10% of the basic wage for work between 10:00 
p.m. and 6:00 a.m. of the following day; 
 
e) Paid service incentive leave of five (5) days for every year of service; 
 
f) 13th-month pay pursuant to the Presidential Decree No. 851, as amended, 
which entitles the employee to receive an amount equivalent to 1/12 of the total 


basic salary earned within the calendar year, not later than 24 December of 
each year; 
 
g) Paid maternity leave of sixty (60) days for normal delivery or seventy-eight (78) 
days for caesarian section, pursuant to Republic Act No. 8282, otherwise 
known as the Social Security Act of 1997; 
 
h) Paid paternity leave of seven (7) days, pursuant to Republic Act No. 8187, 
otherwise known as the Paternity Leave Act of 1996; 
 
i) Paid parental leave of seven (7) days for solo parents pursuant to Republic Act 
No. 8972, otherwise known as the Solo Parents' Welfare Act of 2000; 
 
j) Paid leave of ten (10) days for victims of violence against women and children, 
pursuant to R.A. 9262, otherwise known as the Anti-Violence Against Women 
and Their Children Act of 2004; 
 
k) Paid special leave for women who underwent surgery caused by gynecological 
disorders, pursuant to Republic Act 9710, otherwise known as the Magna Carta 
of Women; and 
 
l) Retirement pay upon reaching the age of sixty (60) or more, pursuant to 
Republic Act No. 7641. 
 
Section 10. Right to Security of Tenure. Public utility drivers and workers 
shall enjoy the security of tenure in their employment as provided by law. Accordingly, 
their employment can only be terminated for just or authorized causes pursuant to the 
provisions of the Labor Code, as amended. 
 
Section 11. Observance of Required Standards of Due Process; 
Requirements of Notice. In all employment termination cases, the standards of the 
due process laid down in the Labor Code, as amended, and settled jurisprudence on 
the matter, must be observed. Accordingly, the following is hereby set out to clarify the 
standards of due process that must be observed: 
 
a) For termination of employment based on just causes as defined in the Code, 
the requirement of two written notices served on the employee shall observe 
the following: 
 
a. The first written notice should contain the following: 
i. The specific causes or grounds for termination; 
ii. The detailed narration of the facts and circumstances that will 
serve as the basis for the charge against the employee. A general 
description of the charge will not suffice; 
iii. The company rule, if any, that is violated and/or the ground that 
is being charged against the employee; and 
iv. A directive that the employee is given an opportunity to submit a 
written explanation within a reasonable period. 
 


b. After serving the first notice, the employer should afford the employee 
ample opportunity to be heard and to defend himself/herself with the 
assistance of a representative if he/she so desires, as provided in Article 
277(b) of the Labor Code, as amended. 
 
c. After determining that termination of employment is justified, the 
employer contractor shall serve the employee a written notice of 
termination indicating that: (1) all circumstances involving the charge 
against the employees have been considered; and (2) the grounds have 
been established to justify the severance of their employment. 
 
The foregoing notices shall be served on the employee's last known 
address. 
 
b) For termination of employment based on authorized causes defined in Article 
283 of the Labor Code, the requirement of due process shall be deemed 
complied with upon service of a written notice to the employee and the 
appropriate regional office of the Department of Labor and Employment at least 
thirty days before the effectivity of the termination, specifying the ground or 
grounds for termination. 
 
c) If the termination is brought about by the completion of the contract or phase 
thereof, no prior notice is required. If the termination is brought by the failure of 
a probationary employee to meet the reasonable standards of the employer, 
which was made known to the employee at the time of his/her employment, it 
shall be sufficient that a written notice is served upon the employee within a 
reasonable time prior to the expiration of the probationary period. 
 
Section 12. Protection from Fluctuation of Oil Prices. Public utility drivers 
and workers shall have the right to be protected from the increase or fluctuation of the 
price of fuel. Operators shall bear the cost of the fuel of the public utility vehicle. These 
costs shall not be taken from the wages or earnings of the public utility drivers or 
workers. 
 
 
Section 13. Public Utility Drivers' Insurance. Public utility drivers and 
workers shall be protected from pecuniary loss as a consequence of vehicular 
accidents.  
 
There shall be a car insurance policy for all public utility vehicles, which policy 
shall cover all types of vehicular accidents. No public utility driver or worker shall bear 
the loss of vehicular accidents to which he or she has been a party, except if said 
public utility driver or worker is found to be at fault by a competent judicial authority.  
 
 
Section 14. Health Checkup Requirement. Owners and operators who intend 
to employ public utility drivers shall acquire a certification from accredited healthcare 
providers in order to ascertain the driver's fitness to operate public utility vehicles. 
 


Public utility drivers or workers are required to secure health certifications one 
(1) year after their last certification of fitness. Owners and operators shall cover the 
costs of the annual health checkups for public utility drivers under their employ. 
  
This certification shall be submitted to the LTFRB within thirty (30) days after 
the last checkup of the public utility driver.  
 
Section 15. Mutual Aid Associations for Public Utility Drivers and 
Workers. To ensure that the goals of this Act are fulfilled, there shall be constituted a 
mutual aid association for public utility drivers and workers, which shall be composed 
of all public utility drivers in every province or independent component city. The 
Department of Social Welfare and Development, the Department of Health, the 
Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas, and the Department of Trade and Industry are hereby 
enjoined to create programs for trainings and lectures to be administered in every 
mutual aid association for public utility drivers, for instruction in financial literacy, first 
aid, family planning, and nutrition, among other subjects, as may be deemed 
necessary by the mutual aid association concerned.  
 
Section 16. National Federation of PUD Mutual Aid Associations. There 
shall be established a National Federation of PUD Mutual Aid Associations, which 
shall comprise all Mutual Aid Associations of public utility drivers. The Federation shall 
convene quarterly and shall submit to the LTFRB a report on the concerns and 
recommendations of public utility drivers in relation to the transport sector.  
 
Section 17. Consultative Council on Transport. There shall be formed a 
Consultative Committee on Transport (CCT), which shall be composed of the 
following:  
 
(a) The Secretary of the Department of Transportation; 
(b) The Chairperson of the LTFRB 
(c) The Chairperson of the LTO 
(d) Two (2) representatives from the National Federation of PUD Mutual Aid 
Associations; and 
(e) Two (2) representatives from an association or federation of public utility vehicle 
operators  
(f) Two (2) representatives from an association or federation of public utility vehicle 
drivers or workers  
 
The Consultative Council on Transport shall have the following functions:  
 
(a) Coordinating and Oversight Body for all Transport-related regulations. – The 
CCT shall act as the coordinating and supervising body for all agencies tasked 
with the implementation of transport-related regulations. Further, the CCT shall 
monitor and assess the implementation of this Act, as well as the progress of 
programs and training conducted by the DSWD, DOH, BSP, and DTI for the 
mutual aid associations of public utility drivers.  
 
(b) Provision of a Compliance Guide. – For each rule or group of related rules 
issued by any government agency for compliance by public utility drivers, the 


CCT shall publish compliance guidelines which shall be written in plain 
language or in the local dialect, whenever necessary.  
 
(c) Conduct of Research on Transport Regulation. – The CCT shall conduct 
research on a periodic basis to assess the effect of regulations on the transport 
sector, particularly on public utility drivers, and submit a report on said research 
to Congress and the agencies tasked with implementing transport-related laws 
and regulations.  
 
 
ARTICLE IV 
IMPLEMENTING AGENCY 
 
Section 18. Implementing Agencies. The Department of Transportation, 
through the LTFRB, shall be the primary implementing agency of this Act.  
 
Section 19. Enforcement of Labor Provisions. Compliance with minimum 
wages, wage-related benefits, hours of work, and other labor-related provisions shall 
be enforced by the appropriate DOLE-Regional Office having jurisdiction over the 
principal office of the bus owner/operator in accordance with the prescribed rules and 
regulations. 
 
Consistent with Article 128 (Visitorial and Enforcement Power) of the Labor 
Code, as amended, the Regional Director, through his/her duly authorized 
representatives, shall conduct routine inspection of the workplace and shall also have 
access to the employer's records and premises at any time of the day or night 
whenever work is being undertaken therein, and the right to copy therefrom, to 
question any employee and investigate any fact, condition, or matter which may be 
necessary to determine violations or which may aid in the enforcement of the Labor 
Code and of any labor law, wage order, or rules and regulations issued pursuant 
thereto. 
 
Based on the visitorial and enforcement power of the Secretary of Labor and 
Employment in Article 128 (a), (b), (c), and (d), the Regional Director shall issue 
compliance orders to give effect to the labor standards provision of the Labor Code. 
 
Section 20. Implementing Rules and Regulations. A committee composed 
of the Department of Transportation, through the LTFRB, and the Land Transportation 
Office shall prepare the necessary rules and regulations for the proper implementation 
of this Act within sixty (60) days from this approval. 
 
Section 21. Funding. The initial funding requirements for the implementation 
of this Act shall be charged against the current appropriations of the agencies 
concerned. Thereafter, such sums as may be necessary for the implementation of this 
Act shall be included in the agencies' yearly budgets under the General Appropriations 
Act. 
 
 
 
 


ARTICLE V 
MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS 
 
 Section 22. Sanctions. Any violation of the labor provisions of this Act shall be 
resolved through the disposition of labor case procedures and conciliation-mediation 
services of the DOLE pursuant to Department Order No. 107, series of 2010, as may 
be applicable. 
  
Violation of any provisions of this Act shall subject the owner or operator 
concerned to appropriate civil and/or criminal sanctions, including revocation of the 
Certificate of Public Convenience.  
 
Section 23. Separability Clause. If any provision of this Act is declared 
unconstitutional or invalid, other parts or provisions hereof not affected shall continue 
to be in full force and effect. 
 
Section 24. Repealing Clause. All laws, decrees, orders, rules, and 
regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or amended 
accordingly. 
 
Section 25. Effectivity Clause. This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days 
following its publication in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation. 
 
Approved,