EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
)
Senate
of tb#
20 
JAN 21 
A 8 ‘•49
SENATE
S. B. No. 1279
RECElVcDR:
Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANUEVA
AN ACT
STRENGTHENING TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND 
TRAINING (TVET) IN THE PHILIPINES BY INCORPORATING 
APPRENTICESHIP AND DUAL TRAINING SYSTEM, 
PROVIDING FOR CONTINUOUS TRAINING OF THE UNEMPLOYED, 
AND EXPANDING THE PROVISION OF ENTERPRISE-BASED 
EDUCATION AND TRAINING, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
EXPLANATORY NOTE
According to JobStreet.corn’s 2018 Fresh Graduate Report, only 24% of 
employers from manufacturing, professional services, retail machinery and 
equipment and BPO industries in the Philippines are ready to hire K-12 graduates.1 
Lack of sufficient in-company or on-the-job training is partly blamed why K-12 
graduates are not satisfactorily geared up for work.
Data on work-based training from the Technical Education and Skills 
Development Authority (TESDA) reinforce the observation that lack of training in 
authentic work environments deepen job-skills mismatch in the country. According to 
TESDA, enterprise-based training (i.e.. Apprenticeship Program and Dual Training 
System) produced only 620,199 graduates or only 5.12% of the 12,110,210 
graduates of TVET from 2010-2018.
Enterprise-based training is the least participated training modality in the 
Philippines despite its potential to ensure employability of workers and secure the 
future of industries. Apparently, the rigidity of the current system discourages 
partnership with industry that can channel more young people to TVET.
1 https://www.rappler.eom/business/200514-jobstreet-philippines-fresh-college-graduates-report-2018- 
employers-k-to-12


Based on experience, in-company training alone can guarantee higher 
employment rates. 
For example, the training program conducted by the 
Semiconductor and Electronics Industries in the Philippines Foundation, Inc. (SEIPI) 
in 2015 for Electronics Backend Operations recorded 96.64% employment rate.
This experience points to the need to strengthen private sector participation in 
TVET through enterprise-based training to not only resolve job-skills mismatch but 
also to ensure adequate supply of relevant skills that our industries need to respond 
to the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). In fact, many countries across the globe 
have already shifted to work-based training as a way to train their workers.
This proposed measure aims to incorporate the existing EBT programs 
administered by TESDA and expand the provision of training programs being 
implemented within companies which can be a mix of workplace training and 
classroom-based learning.
By incorporating the Apprenticeship Program and the Dual Training System 
(DTS), the government and the private sector can better prepare our workers to 
changing market demands and to benefit from innovation and new technologies, 
especially automation and artificial intelligence. Thus, giving our young people 
chances to land into jobs.
The bill defines “Enterprise-Based Training Program” as a mix of practical 
training and related theoretical instructions conducted on-and-off the job. It involves 
an agreement between a trainee and an enterprise on an approved enterprise-based 
training qualification. Unlike the current set-up, training duration depend on the 
complexity of the competencies to be learned in a specific qualification.
This bill can help the government continue to rise up and meet the changing 
needs of the market, triggered by the 4th Industrial Revolution, and put in place good 
governance mechanisms that can expand partnership with industry associations and 
companies through enterprise-based training. More importantly, this bill can address 
the complaints of employers that Filipino graduates are not job-ready.
The immediate passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
SENATOR AOEL VILLANUEVA


EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
First Regular Session
of ItK Ifcfrrrtary
20 JAN 21 A8M9
SENATE
S. B. No. 1279
RECE- 
B W : -4 ^
Introduced by SENATOR JOEL VILLANEVA
AN ACT STRENGTHENING TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL EDUCATION 
AND TRAINING (TVET) IN THE PHILIPINES BY INCORPORATING 
APPRENTICESHIP AND DUAL TRAINING SYSTEM, PROVIDING 
FOR CONTINUOUS TRAINING OF THE UNEMPLOYED, AND 
EXPANDING THE PROVISION OF ENTERPRISE-BASED 
EDUCATION AND TRAINING, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled:
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SECTION 1. Short Title. -  This Act shall be known as the “Enterprise-Based 
Education and Training to Employment Act.”
SEC. 2. Declaration of Policy. -  It is hereby declared the policy of the State to 
enhance the skills of middle-level workforce of the entire nation. The State seeks to 
strengthen middle-level manpower education and training in the country and to 
promote employment so that it can be assured an ever-growing supply of an 
educated and skilled globally competitive manpower equipped with appropriate skills 
and desirable work habits and attitudes in accordance with the requirements that 
meet the demands and standards of the workplace in the market.
The policy recognizes two paths of education and training, namely: for developing 
and upgrading the skills of student/trainee in a technologically changing world, and 
for providing relevance in the training of student/trainee by encouraging work 
experiences as valid part and means of education and training. The recognition of 
the two paths of education and training shall greatly contribute to the creation of a 
dependable pool of well-trained middle-level workforce in the country.
SEC. 3. Statement of Objectives. -  This Act shall have the following objectives:


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a) 
To help meet the demand of the economy for well-trained manpower through 
Technical Vocational Education and Training;
b) 
To establish a national enterprise-based training system and standards that is 
competency-based, including an on- and off-the-job training program, through 
the participation of employers, workers, and government;
c) 
To establish enterprise-based training standards to ensure that the trainees will 
acquire the right competencies and for the protection of the rights and safety of 
the trainees; and
d) 
To broaden the opportunities, venues of education and training of Filipino 
workers towards greater access.
SEC. 4. Definition of Terms. -  As used in this Act, the following terms shall have
the following definitions:
a) 
“ Enterprise-Based 
Training 
Program” 
means 
practical training with 
compulsory related theoretical instructions conducted on-and-off the job 
involving an agreement between a trainee and an enterprise on an approved 
enterprise-based training qualification. The duration of the program shall be 
based on the complexity of the competencies to be learned in the specific 
qualification;
b) 
An “ Enterprise-Based Trainee/Student” is a person undergoing training for 
an approved enterprise-based education and training qualification in an 
established period assured by an enterprise-based education and training 
agreement;
c) 
“ Enterprise” is a group or association, industry organization, single 
proprietorship, government instrumentalities or civic group or any entity 
organized, whether or not for profit, regardless of the product or services it 
produces or provides;
d) 
“ Enterprise-Based Training Agreement Between Enterprise and Trainee”
is a contract wherein an enterprise binds itself to train a trainee, who in turn 
accepts the terms of education and training for an enterprise-based training 
qualification emphasizing the rights, duties and responsibilities of each party;
e) 
“ Enterprise-Based Education and Training Qualification” is a qualification 
approved for enterprise-based education and training by the Technical 
Education and Skills Development Authority (TESDA) Board. 
Qualification 
refers to the whole range of competencies a person possesses;
f) 
“ Enterprise-Based Education and Training Fund” is a fund to be used to 
defray the expenses of the trainees and other expenses related to the 
implementation of the Enterprise-Based Training program;
g) 
“ Competency Standards” are written specifications of the knowledge, skills, 
attitudes and values required for the performance of a job, occupation or trade


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and the corresponding standard of performance required for these in the 
workplace;
h) 
“ Competency Assessment” is the process of gathering and evaluating 
evidence to determine whether a person can perform to the standards in the 
workplace based on the defined competency standards;
i) 
“ Dual Education and Training” refers to the combination of on- and off-the- 
job training involving an enterprise and a training institution;
j) 
“ Period of Education and Training” refers to the time when the training
commences and terminates;
k) 
“ Nominai Duration of Education and Training” is the estimated number of 
training hours.
SEC. 5, Trainee Entry Requirements for Quaiifications of an Enterprise Based 
Education and Training, -  To qualify as an enterprise-based student/trainee, a 
person shall:
a) 
Be at least a high school graduate or its equivalent;
b) 
Possess vocational aptitude and capacity for enterprise-based training as 
established through appropriate testing; and
c) 
Possess the ability to comprehend and follow oral and written instructions. 
Industry associations and labor groups may recommend to the TESDA 
appropriate educational requirements for the different occupations.
SEC. 6. 
Aptitude Testing of Applicants. -  Consonant with the minimum 
qualifications of the enterprise-based trainee applicant required under this Act, the 
enterprises with duly recognized enterprise-based training programs shall have the 
primary responsibility of providing appropriate aptitude tests in the selection of 
trainees. If they do not have adequate facilities for the purpose, the TESDA may 
perform the service free of charge.
SEC, 7. Scope of Training and Coverage of Venues. -  An enterprise that desires 
to organize and implement an enterprise-based training program shall have its 
program registered with TESDA before it enters into an agreement with the trainees.
This Act shall apply to all work-related education and training regardless of the 
following seven (7) modalities; (a) Apprenticeship; (b) Learnership; (c) On the Job 
Training (OJT); (d) Practicum; (e) Work Appreciation Program; (f) Dual Training 
System; and (g) Internship.
SEC. 8. Contents of Enterprise-Based Training Agreement. -  Enterprise-Based 
Training Agreements shall conform to the rules issued by the TESDA, which shall 
include, but not be limited to, the following provisions:
a) 
Nature and purpose of training;


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b) 
Curriculum:
c) 
Period of training;
d) 
Training allowance equivalent to seventy-five percent (75%) of the existing 
minimum wage, which can be paid in cash or kind or in both;
e) 
Schedule of training allowance payments:
f) 
Process of termination of enterprise-based training; and
g) 
General rights and obligations of both parties.
SEC. 9. Signing of Enterprise-Based Training Agreement. -  Every enterprise- 
based education and training agreement shall be signed by the enterprise and by the 
student/trainee; Provided, That if the trainee is a minor, the agreement shall be 
signed in his behalf by his parent or guardian.
SEC. 10. 
Enterprise-based Education and Training Arrangements. -
Enterprises that desires to organize and implement an enterprise-based education 
and training program shall choose from any of the following enterprise-based training 
schemes, which shall use the dual education and training approach:
a) 
Enterprise-based education and training involving a company and an identified 
technical vocational institution; or
b) 
Enterprise-based education and training involving a group of companies and a 
technical vocational institution; or
c) 
Enterprise-based education and training involving an industry training center 
and a company or a group of companies.
SEC. 11. 
Responsibility for Theoretical Instruction. -  Compulsory theoretical 
instructions shall be part of enterprise-based education and training program. 
In 
cases where the program is undertaken in the plant, theoretical instructions may be 
given by the enterprise. If the latter is not prepared to assume the responsibility, the 
same may be delegated to an appropriate government agency or to an identified 
technical vocational institution.
SEC. 12. 
Enterprise-Based Education and Training Administration. -  The
overall policy for enterprise-based education and training shall be the function of the 
TESDA Board. 
The responsibility for enterprise-based training administration, 
monitoring and evaluation of on- and off-the-job training shall be the concern of the 
TESDA Secretariat. The identification and prioritization of enterprise-based training 
qualifications and the development of competency standards and curricula shall be 
the joint responsibility of industry associations, labor groups, and TESDA.
SEC. 13. Enterprise-Based Education and Training Committee. -  There shall be 
established in every enterprise implementing an enterprise-based training program 
an Enterprise-Based Education and Training Committee composed of labor and


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management. For unionized enterprises, the employees’ representative shall come 
from the existing labor unions, while employees’ representatives in non-unionized 
enterprises shall be elected by the employees of the enterprise.
The Committee shall be responsible for monitoring the program implementation, 
settling differences between management and trainees and recommending 
measures for effective program implementation.
In case the Enterprise-Based Education and Training Committee shall not be able to 
settle such differences, the TESDA Secretariat or its authorized representative shall 
investigate and render a decision pursuant to pertinent rules and regulations.
SEC. 14. Appeal to the TESDA Board. -  The decision of the TESDA Secretariat 
may be appealed by any aggrieved person to the TESDA Board within five (5) days 
from receipt of the decision. The decision of the TESDA Board shall be final and 
executory.
SEC. 15. Exhaustion of Administrative Remedies. -  No person shall institute any 
action for the enforcement of any enterprise-based training agreement or damages 
for breach of any such agreement, unless he has exhausted all available 
administrative remedies.
SEC. 16. Mandatory Implementation of Enterprise-Based Education and 
Training Program. -
(a) 
When national security or particular requirements of economic development so 
demand, the President of the Philippines may require compulsory enterprise- 
based education and training in certain trades, occupations, jobs or 
employment levels where storage of trained manpower is deemed critical, as 
determined by the TESDA Board upon the recommendation of its Secretariat;
(b) 
Where services of foreign technicians are utilized by private companies in 
enterprise-based training occupations, such companies shall be required to set­
up appropriate enterprise-based education and training programs.
SEC. 17. Enterprise-based Education and Training Fund. -  An Enterprise-Based 
Education and Training Program Fund shall be established to defray the expenses of 
the qualified trainees in the course of taking the education and training program. 
The fund shall be derived from the following:
a) 
One time fee paid by the graduates of the enterprise-based training program 
upon employment, to be paid through the Social Security System;
b) 
Donations, grants and endowments specifically for implementation of 
enterprise-based training programs; and
c) 
Such amounts as may be appropriated in the General Appropriations Act under 
the budget of TESDA.


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SEC. 18. 
Enterprise-based Education and Training Incentives. -  Enterprises 
participating in the enterprise-based training program shall be granted the following 
incentives:
a) 
An additional deduction from taxable income equivalent to seventy five (75%) 
of the training expenses incurred; Provided, That such expenses shall not 
exceed five percent (5%) of their total direct labor expenses or shall not exceed 
Twenty-Five Million Pesos (Php25,000,000) a year, whichever is lower;
b) 
Donations, contributions, bequest, subsidy or final aid actually paid or made to 
a participating training institution within the taxable year shall be fully deductible 
from gross income; and
c) 
Donations, contributions, bequest, subsidy or final aid actually paid or made to 
a participating training institution within the taxable year shall be exempt from 
donor's tax; Provided however, That not more than thirty percent (30%) of said 
donation shall be used by the training institution for administration purposes.
SEC. 19. Exemption from Probationary Employment; System of Equivalency. -
Certified enterprise-based training graduates shall be exempted from probationary 
employment in the event that they are employed in occupations requiring the same 
skills and qualifications standards which they shall have obtained upon passing the 
appropriate competency assessment.
Enterprise-Based Training graduates shall also be awarded equivalent unit credits in 
the formal system of education that can be used in pursuing tertiary degree courses, 
subject to the integrated policies and guidelines of equivalency and adult education 
acceleration program of TESDA, Commission on Higher Education (CHED) and 
Department of Education (DepEd).
SEC. 20. Insurance Coverage and Protection of Trainees. -  Every participating 
enterprise implementing an enterprise-based training program in accordance with 
this Act shall provide their trainees, free of charge, the appropriate life and/or 
accident insurance policy.
SEC. 21. Limitation on the Number of Trainees. -  No enterprise shall be allowed 
to engage trainees more than twenty percent (20%) of the total number of its regular 
employees, provided, that the TESDA Board may, upon recommendation of the 
industry association may increase or decrease the cap, if necessary; provided 
further, that any person who shall be engaged as a trainee in excess of the threshold 
herein provided shall be considered as a regular employee of the enterprise 
concerned.
SEC. 22. Implementing Rules and Regulations. -  Within ninety (90) days from 
the effectivity of this Act, TESDA shall, upon consultation with the Department of 
Labor and Employment, National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council (NTIPC), Bureau 
of Internal Revenue and other relevant stakeholders, issue the implementing rules 
and regulations for the effective implementation of this Act.


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SEC. 23. Sunset Provision. -  Four (4) years after the effectivity of this Act, the 
TESDA Board shall conduct a review of its implementation and submit a report to 
Congress within thirty (30) days after the conclusion of the review.
SEC. 24. Repealing Clause. -  All laws, decrees, orders, rules and regulations or 
parts thereof inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or modified accordingly.
SEC. 25. Separability Clause. -  If any provision of this Act is held invalid or 
unconstitutional, the same shall not affect the validity and effectivity of the other 
provisions hereof
SEC. 26. Effectivity. -  This Act shall take effect after completion of its publication in 
the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
Approved.