A New Bill Will Let You Choose Your Bank for Your Payroll Account

When a company hires you, the usual process is for you to apply for a new account with a bank of the company’s choosing where your wages will be deposited. But a new bill filed by a lawmaker seeks to change that so you get to decide which bank you would like to open your payroll account.

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Rep. Stella Quimbo of Marikina said House Bill 7619, or the Bank Account Portability for Workers Act, seeks to grant workers the right to choose their preferred bank and, in the process, ensure competition within the banking industry instead of leaving the decision up to the employer.

“As a result, the chosen bank gains an undue advantage by securing numerous clients because of the choice of one—the employer,” Quimbo told the state-owned Philippine News Agency (PNA).

Quimbo stressed that it should be up to the workers where to open their payroll account depending on a several factors, including “attractiveness of their financial products, interest rates offered, and the location of their branches.”

“Kaya kahit na sa tingin ng empleyado na may mas magandang serbisyo sa ibang bangko sa mas murang halaga, nape-pwersa siyang magbukas ng bank account sa isang bangko dahil lang sa ito ang pinili ng kumpanya (That’s why even though an employee prefers a bank with better services and affordable fees, he or she is forced to open an account with a bank that the company chose for him or her),” she said. 

The bill seeks to encourage competition in the industry, she added, allowing banks to offer better products and services.

“Kung minsan, ang bangkong ito ay mas malayo sa isang empleyado kaysa sa iba pang bangko. Dagdag gastos pa tuloy sa kanya ang pag-withdraw ng sahod. Ito ang konteksto kung bakit kailangan nating bigyan ang mga empleyado ng karapatang mamili kung saan ipadadala ang mga kinita nila (Sometimes, the chosen bank is a long way off from the employee compared to other banks. This leads to more expenses just to withdraw his or her salary. This is the reason why employees should be given the right to choose where their salaries should be deposited into),” she added.

According to PNA, Quimbo also cited the Constitution, which mandates government to protect the rights and welfare of workers. 

“Stronger competition results in better goods and services,” the lawmaker said. “Grant the employees their freedom of choice and we improve employee welfare.”