Tired of spending hours upon hours either stuck in traffic or public transportation? Then we have some good news for you.
The Philippine Senate has passed Senate Bill No. 1571, otherwise known as the Alternative Working Arrangement Bill or ‘flexitime bill.’ Essentially, this amends the Philippine Labor Code with the goal of promoting work-life balance among Filipino employees via arrangements like compressed workweeks, shift flexibility, flexi-holiday, and so on.
All that’s needed now is the signature of President Rodrigo Duterte.
“Alam po kasi nila ang hirap ng pagpila sa MRT o paghahabol sa mga jeep at bus lalo na kapag rush hour samantalang pwede namang maiwasan ito sa pamamagitan ng mga alternative working arrangements tulad ng flexitime, compressed workweek, shift flexibility, flexi-holiday, rotating of workers, at iba pa,” Senator Joel Villanueva, the bill’s sponsor, says in a letter addressed to the President.
“Nagdagdag po tayo ng mga bagong pamamaraan sa pagtatrabaho sa ilalim ng ‘Alternative Working Arrangements Bill,’ in short, ‘AWA’ Bill dahil talaga naman pong nakaka-AWA na ang sitwasyon ng ating mga manggagawa,” Villanueva added.
“Napakarami ko pong kakilala na ang traffic at ang araw-araw na pag-aapura sa pagpasok sa trabaho ang sanhi ng kanilang stress at depresyon. Pero hindi po natin ito sinusulong dahil lang sa awa, kundi para iangat ang dignidad ng ating mga kababayan at para sa katatagan ng trabaho at mga negosyo sa bansa.”
Villanueva also stressed that under the bill, alternative working arrangements are voluntary, the 48-hour workweek will remain, and employee benefits—like overtime pay and night-shift differential—will not be reduced.
Are you looking forward to spending less time in traffic? We know we are.
This story originally appeared on Topgear.com.ph.
* Minor edits have been made by the Esquiremag.ph editors.
