Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILL NO. 1682

Introduced by HONORABLE LUIS RAYMUND F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

EXPLANATORY NOTE

The Philippine government is the single biggest employer in the country.
Based on the Labor Force Survey of the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA) for the
July 2018 round, out of the total 26.567 million wage and salary workers, 3.668
million are in the government or government-owned and controlled corporations
(GOCCs)

On 14 August 2017, the Philippine Government ratified ILO Convention 151,
known as Labour Relations (Public Service) Convention, 1978, or the “Convention
concerning Protection of the Right to Organise and Procedures for Determining
Conditions of Employment in the Public Service” after nine (9) long years of
campaigning by the public sector organizations for its ratification. The ratification is
expected to usher an era of robust and progressive labor relations environment for
the public service.

The 1987 Philippine Constitution recognizes the public sector employees right
to self-organization through Article IX-B and this Constitutional guarantee was
translated into Executive Order No. 180, Series of 1987, or the “Guidelines for the
Exercise of the Right to Organize of Goverment Employees, Creating a Public
Sector Labor-Management Council, and For Other Purposes”. Executive Order No.
180 and its implementing rules and regulations have since been the governing
issuances on public sector labor relations. It has not been amended despite the
need and several attempts to do so for an enabling environment for decent work in
the public sector and address permeating patronage system, bloated bureaucracy,
“transaction costs/corruption in the bureaucracy” and inefficient public service
There are also longstanding observations by the ILO Committee of Experts on the
Application of Conventions and Recommendations (CEACR) in respect to gaps in
the laws and practices with respect to public sector unionism.


The essentiality of having a robust and progressive labor relations
environment cannot be overemphasized. It would create conditions for a
professionalized, trained, motivated and efficient public sector employees which are
essential ingredients in fostering sustainable good and high quality public service. In
fact, the main argument for the ratification of ILO Convention No. 151 was the
mobilization of the public sector employees in reforming the bureaucracy and in
addressing corruption and widespread “endo” or end of contract engagement of
public service employees in core or critical services through job orders or contracts
of service, casuals and other forms of contractual work.

With this and the obligation arising from the ratification of ILO Convention No.
151, upgrading Philippine laws and practices on freedom of association and
collective bargaining in the public sector is imperative. Hence, this proposed
measure to address the gaps in public sector labor relations particularly on:
protection of the right to organize, facilities to be afforded to public sector employees’
organizations, procedures for determining the terms and conditions of employment,
civil and political rights, and settlement of disputes arising or in connection with the
determination of terms and conditions of employment.

~

ID F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Sesfian

HOUSE BILLNO.___

Introduced by HONORABLE LUIS RAYMUND F. VILLAFUERTE, JR.

AN ACT
TO AMEND REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10868,
OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE CENTENARIANS ACT OF 2016
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

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

SECTION 1. Section 2 of Republic Act No. 10868, otherwise known as Centenarians Act of
2016 is hereby amended to read as follows:

Sec. 2. Letter of Felicitation and Cash Gift. - All Filipinos who reach the age
‘of one hundred (100) years old, whether residing in the Philippines or abroad,
shall be honored with:

a) A Letter of Felicitation from the President of the Philippines congratulating the
celebrant for his or her longevity; and

b) A Centenarian Gift in the amount of one hundred thousand pesos
(P 100,000.00) to be distributed and given as follows: Upon reaching the
age of ninety (90) years old 90,000.00 shall be advanced to him or her.
The P10,000.00 balance shall be given when he or she will reach one
hundred (100) years old together with the letter of felicitation mentioned
above,

SECTION 2. Repeating Clause. — All laws, decrees, executive orders, rules and regulations
inconsistent with any provision of this Act are hereby repealed, amended or modified
accordingly.

SECTION 3. Effectivity — This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the
Official Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation, which shall not be later
than seven (7) days after the approval thereof.

Approved,