Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Third Regular Session

House Bill No.8566

Introduced by DIWA Party-list Representative Pepito M. Pico

EXPLANATORY NOTE

Our nation has always been beset by storms, with both mighty gales and heavy rains
that imperils the people and property. The danger posted by typhoons has only worsened in
the past years, with global warming contributing to super typhoons that brings stronger
rains and stronger winds, more frequently and less predictably, than at any previous time
in our recorded history.

The safety and health of persons during times of storms should remain the highest
priority of both the State and employers. Yet making a living is both a right and an ever
present concern, for employers and employees. The unpredictability of typhoons and the
particular needs of employers and employees can create a chaotic situation which
exacerbates the exposure of persons to the direct and indirect dangers posed by typhoons.
While the government has implemented several warning systems, how employers react
to these systems varies from one place to another, and may not take into account the
particular situations of employees.

In the interest of the common good, this bill will require employers to systematize
their procedure during typhoons, anchoring the same on the government warning systems
and giving employers the leeway to adapt other sources of wai made possible by
modern telecommunications advances, but retaining a flexibility that allows these
procedures to vary from industry to industry, and region to region. It is our hope that the
mandatory creation of a Typhoon Codes of Practice will reduce confusion,
miscommunication, and inconvenience during typhoons, as well as to minimize the
attendant dangers, without unnecessarily impairing business operations.

PHPITO M. PICO
Representative, DIWA Party-list

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Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Quezon City, Metro Manila

SEVENTEENTH CONGRESS
Third Regular Session

House Bilf No, 8966

Introduced by DIWA Party-list Representative Pepito M. Pico

AN ACT MANDATING THE CREATION OF A TYPHOON CODE OF
PRACTICE IN EVERY OFFICE AND ESTABLISHMENT
WHERE EMPLOYEES ARE REQUIRED TO REPORT
TOA PLACE OF WORK

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

SECTION 1. Short Title. - This Act shall be known as the Typhoon Code of Practice
Act.

SECTION 2. Declaration of Principles and Policies. - Section 15, Article 2, of the
1987 Constitution states that "[t}he State shall protect and promote the right to health of the
people and instill health consciousness among them." The Constitution likewise mandates in
Section 5, Article 2, "the protection of life, liberty, and property, and prolongation of general
welfare."

SECTION 3.Definition of Terms. - For purposes of this Act, the following terms
are defined:

(a) Employer - refers to all employers, businesses, entltles, corporations, or
establishments that require employees to report to a specific place of work.

(b) Flood Report - refers to a report from an Accredited Source, as defined in this
Act, that the residence of the employee, or his/her Route to Work, as defined
in this Act, is impassable/unusable or virtually impassable/ unusable due to
flooding, rains, landslide, accident, or other cause attributable to the Typhoon.

(©) Place of Work - refers any location where an employee is habitually required
to be, pursuant to his employment, the location beng other than his/her
residence.

(@) Rainfall Warning - refers to warnings issued by the Philippine Atmospheric,

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Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) that relate
to the amount of rainfall observed/expected in a given hour.

(©) Report for Work - refers to the act of the employee travelling to his/her
Place of Work pursuant tohis/her employment;

(® Typhoon Code of Practice - refers to a document that outlines automatic
procedures to be followed and benefits that accrue to employees in the event
that Typhoon Signals are raised in the area to which their Place of Work
belongs.

(g) Typhoon Signals- refer to warnings issued by the Philippine Atmospheric,
Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) that
relate to weather and storm conditions affecting safety and welfare in a
particular area within the Philippine Area of Responsibility.

SECTION 4. Coverage. - This Act covers all employers, businesses, entities,
corporations, orestablishments that require employees toreport toaspecificplace of work.

SECTION & Typhoon Code of Practice, Required. - All covered employers,
businesses, entities, corporations, or establishments are hereby required to create a Typhoon
Code of Practice, in accordance with the provisions of this Act and its Implementing Rules
and Regulations.

SECTION 6. Contents of Typhoon Code of Practice.- The Implementing Rules
shall provide a template for, and the contents of, the Typhoon Code of Practice, which contents
shall include the following:

(a) A classification of essential and non-essential employees; provided that
there can be more than two levels of classification;

(b) The Typhoon Signal and Rainfall Warning level under which non-essential
employees shall not be required to report for work;

(c) The sources of information that are to be considered as Accredited Sources
for purpose of determining the existence ofa valid Flood Report, under which
non-essential employees in the affected area shall not be required to report
for work; provided that these Accredited Sources may consist of news outlets
or reports from employees in the affected area, or any other analogous source
of information that the employer, in consultation with the Employees,
deems valid;

) The time period for the issuance/public dissemination of the Typhoon Signal,
Rainfall Waring, or Flood Report that will be considered for purposes of
determining whether or not an employee shall not be required to report for
work:

(©) The means by which the employer shall disseminate any work cancellation
orders not due to Typhoon Signals, Rainfall Warnings, or Flood Reports.

(8) The procedure to be followed if work is cancelled, either by a Typhoon
Signal or the decision of the employer, after employees have already reported

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for work;

(g) The amount of the travel allowance, meal allowance, and/or additional
compensation that essential employees are entitled to for work done
during a Typhoon Signal, Rainfall Warning and/or in spite of being affected
bya flood Report.

(h) The effect of a cancellation/lifting/lessening of a Typhoon Signal and/or
a Rainfall Warning, or a change in the flood situation covered by the Flood
Report. Provided, that if the Rainfall Warning system is not yet implemented
in the relevant areas of the employers, businesses, entities, corporations, or
establishments, and no analogous regional or local government warning
system exists, the Code of Practice shall not take Rainfall Warnings into
consideration, but shall be expeditiously amended if a Rainfall Waring
system is implemented in the relevant area/s.

SECTION 7. Prohibition of Penalties. - An employer shall not deduct the wages,
or leaves (whether as a penalty or as compensation for work days lost to the Typhoon), or
impose a penalty on employees who were unable to work because of the Typhoon, or a cause
attributable to the Typhoon, including the need to rescue or aid the family of the employee,
provided thatthe employee can reasonably prove the same.

SECTION 8.Consultation with Employees. - The Code of Practice shall be created
by the employer upon due consultation with all employees; the Code of Practice shall be
reviewed annually, which review shall again involve a consultation with employees.

SECTION. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The Secretary of the Department
of Labor, in consultation with employer and employee groups at the national and local levels,
as well as private individuals with relevant expertise, shall issue the necessary rules and
regulations for the effective implementation of this Act within ninety (90) days after its
effectivity. These Implementing Rules shall mandate, amongst others, the period by which
employers must have completed their Typhoon Code of Procedures, which period shall not be
less than ninety (90) days after the promulgation of the Implementing Rules.

SECTION. Separability Clause. - If any provision of this Act is declared
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other
provisions hereof

SECTION. Repealing Clause. - All laws, executive- orders, presidential decrees,
presidential proclamations, rules and regulations or parts thereof inconsistent with the
provisions of this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.

SECTION 25. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days

from its publication in the Official Gazette oratleast two (2)national newspapers of general
circulation.

Approved,

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