Maximize telecommuting law, incentivize WFH arrangements -TPF
According to TPF Convener Primo Morillo, “We already have a law on telecommuting and with the preference of a large part of the workforce especially in BPOs to work from their own homes, we call on the Department of Labor and Employment to maximize this law by encouraging more firms to allow WFH.”
After the government provisionally extended the work-from-home policy for business process outsourcing firms, commuter group The Passenger Forum today called on the government to maximize Republic Act 11165 or the Telecommuting Law and to provide incentives for businesses that will allow WFH arrangements for their employees.
According to TPF Convener Primo Morillo, “We already have a law on telecommuting and with the preference of a large part of the workforce especially in BPOs to work from their own homes, we call on the Department of Labor and Employment to maximize this law by encouraging more firms to allow WFH.”
Morillo explained that government support for WFH set-up “will help us solve several problems as we continue to face the enduring threat of the pandemic, rising costs of petroleum products, and the current public transportation crisis.”
In a memorandum issued last week, the Fiscal Incentives Review Board, led by FIRB chairperson and Finance Secretary Benjamin Diokno, retained the status quo of the 30 percent WFH set-up for the information technology and business process management (IT-BPM) sector.
“We are pushing for a more permanent and inclusive policy on WFH. We are happy that they extended the 30% WFH set-up for BPOs but we can further maximize the benefits of telecommuting by allowing up to 50% of their workforce to work-from-home, extending the policy to other industries, and working on a permanent policy,” Morillo added.
The TPF convener also expounded that a permanent policy incentivizing telecommuting will allow businesses to plan how they can take full advantage of the benefits of having WFH arrangements for their workers.
“It is not a secret that several workers favor working from home as it gives them more time for family and leisure while also saving on transport costs. The ball is now in the court of our government officials on how they can maximize Filipino labor’s preference for WFH and use it for the benefit of our entire economy,” Morillo said.