Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Batasan Hills, Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

HOUSE BILLNo. °23_

Introduced by
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,
BAYAN MUNA Party-List Rep. CARLOS ISAGANI T. ZARATE,
Rep. FERDINAND GAITE and Rep. EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. SARAH JANE I. ELAGO

AN ACT
RECOGNIZING THE ANNUAL OBSERVANCE OF WORLD EDUCATION SUPPORT
PERSONNEL DAY, DECLARING FOR THE PURPOSE THE SIXTEENTH DAY OF MAY OF
EVERY YEAR AS NATIONAL EDUCATION SUPPORT PERSONNEL DAY IN THE
PHILIPPINES

EXPLANATORY NOTE

On May 16, 2018 during the first conference on Education Support Personnel
in Brussels, Belgium, Education International, a global union federation representing
organizations of teachers and other education employees, launched the first World
Education Support Personnel Day and adopted the Declaration on the Rights and
Status of Education Support Personnel. This landmark document affirms that
administration of quality education is impossible without teaching assistants;
registrars and clerks; school doctors, nurses, and psychologists, guidance counselors;
librarians; and the rest of professional, administrative, technical, and general staff
working in education sector.


Education International raised concerns on the increased exploitation of ESP,
the absence of decent work conditions, and the violation of fundamental human and
labor rights such as the right to organize and bargain collectively—which El partly
attributed to outsourcing, labor cost-cutting and austerity measures, and
privatization in the education sector.

Education support personnel in the Philippines are ignored and undervalued
just like their international counterparts. Non-teaching personnel in public and
private education are paid inadequate salaries and benefits. The minimum pay for
regular employees is far below the living wage, and the salaries of non-regular
employees are even lower.

Also alarming is the lack of sufficient education jobs which forces teachers to
act as nurses, librarians, encoders, and processors for school data, janitors, security
guards, and others, causing them severe overwork and contributes to the decline of
quality of education in general.

Other concerns include lack of security of tenure; abuse of job order, contract
‘of service, part-time, and limited-term hiring, endo, and other forms of
contractualization; overwork and inhumane working conditions; unsafe and
unhealthy work environment; and lack of professional support and guidance as well
as possibilities for career development.

This bill sets aside May 16 as a special working holiday in the honor of
education support personnel, to enable society to celebrate and value their
important role. More importantly, this will highlight government's duty to take
concrete steps to promote and protect their status, rights, and conditions of service,
foremost of which is increasing the budget to be spent directly for our public schools
and education support personnel, and the institution of policies to counter and
resolve the above issues in both public and private education.


Approval of this bill is earnestly sought.

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Rep. CARLOS ZX T. ZARATE

Rep. FERDINAND GAITE
BAYAN MUNA Party-List

fue filer

BAYAN MUNA Party-List

Rep. EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS
BAYAN MUNA Party-List GABRIELA Women’s Party

Rep. SAKAHAANE I. ELAGO
Party-List


Republic of the Philippines
HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES.
Batasan Hills, Quezon City

EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS
First Regular Session

513
HOUSE BILL No.

Introduced by
ACT Teachers Party-List Rep. FRANCE L. CASTRO,
BAYAN MUNA Party-List Rep. CARLOS ISAGANI T. ZARATE,
Rep. FERDINAND GAITE and Rep. EUFEMIA C. CULLAMAT,
GABRIELA Women’s Party Rep. ARLENE D. BROSAS,
and KABATAAN Party-List Rep. SARAH JANE |. ELAGO

AN ACT
RECOGNIZING THE ANNUAL OBSERVANCE OF WORLD EDUCATION SUPPORT
PERSONNEL DAY, DECLARING FOR THE PURPOSE THE SIXTEENTH DAY OF MAY OF
EVERY YEAR AS NATIONAL EDUCATION SUPPORT PERSONNEL DAY IN THE
PHILIPPINES:

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

SECTION 1. Title. This Act shall be known as the “National Education Support
Personnel Day Act.”

SECTION 2. Education Support Personnel refers to a wide range of professional,
administrative, technical, and general staff working within the education sector such
as teaching assistants; school doctors, nurses, and psychologists; registrars and
clerks; guidance counselors; librarians; and bus drivers, among others.

SECTION 3. In recognition of the observance of the World Education Support
Personnel Day, the Sixteenth day of May of every year is hereby declared as
“National Education Support Personnel Day.”


To ensure a meaningful observance of this special working holiday, all heads
of government agencies and instrumentalities, including government-owned and -
controlled corporations especially those directly involved with education, including
local government units, and employers in the private sector, shall encourage and
afford sufficient time and opportunities for their employees to engage and
participate in any activity conducted within the premises of their offices or
establishments in the celebration of “National Education Support Personnel Day.”

SECTION 4. Lead Agencies. Pursuant to the observance of National Education
Support Personnel Day, the annual program of activities shall be prepared and
implemented with the Department of Education and the Commission on Higher
Education as the lead agencies.

SECTION 5. Effectivity. This Act shall take effect fifteen days after its complete
publication in the Official Gazette or in at least two newspapers of general

circulation, whichever comes earlier.

Approved,