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Labor in the Philippines:
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Rights of Women and Young Workers
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WOMEN
1. Who are considered working women?
- Female workers found in the formal and informal work force;
- Of legal age regardless of their civil status and nature of employment who may be employed in any commercial; industrial, agricultural or non-agricultural enterprises, government-owned or government controlled corporations, including religious charitable, medical or educational institutions whether operating for profit or not.
2. Can a women be employed in any kind of occupation or undertaking?
Yes, she can be employed in any occupation or undertaking allowable by law provided it is not deleterious to her health and safety. She should not be discriminated against in employment by reason of her age, marital status and pregnancy.
3. What special workplace facilities provided for women which benefit men as well?
The special workplace facilities include the following:
- Properly designed seats;
- Separate toilet rooms and lavatories for men and women;
- Separate dressing rooms for men and women; and
- A nursery in the workplace for the benefit of men and women employees who bring their children to the work premises.
4. What are considered as acts of discrimination against women?
The following are considered acts of discrimination:
- Payment of a lesser compensation, including wage, salary and fringe benefits, to a female employee as against a male employee, for work of equal value;
- Favoring a male employee over a female employee with respect to promotion, training opportunities, study and scholarship grants solely on account of their sexes.
5. Does the law allow a married woman to practice her profession or engage in business occupation?
Yes, the Family Code of the Philippines expressly provides that married women may exercise any lawful profession, occupation or engage in business.
6. Is it necessary for a married woman to obtain the consent of her husband to practice her profession or occupation or engage in business?
No, Either spouse may exercise any legitimate profession, occupation or business activity without the consent of the other. The latter may object only on valid, serious and moral grounds.
7. Does the law allow women to work at night?
Yes, However, the Labor Code prohibits night work for women under any of the following conditions:
- In any industrial undertaking or branch between 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. of the following day;
- In any commercial or non-industrial undertaking or branch, other than agricultural, between midnight and 6:00 a.m. of the following day;
- In any agricultural undertaking at night unless the women workers are given a period of rest of not less than nine (9) consecutive hours.
8. Are there exception to the above conditions?
Yes, Even if the above general conditions are present, women may be allowed to work at night in the following cases:
- Actual or impeding emergencies caused by serious accident, fire, flood, typhoon, earthquake, epidemic , or any other disaster or calamity, force majeure or imminent danger to public safety;
- Urgent work to be performed on machineries, equipment or installation to avoid serious loss which the employer would otherwise suffer;
- The work is necessary to prevent serious loss of perishable goods;
- The women employee holds a responsible position of managerial or technical nature of where the service of women employee has been engaged to provide health and welfare service;
- The nature of work requires the manual skills and dexterity of female workers and the same cannot be performed with equal efficiency by male workers;
- The woman employee is an immediate member of the family operating the establishment;
- In other analogous cases authorized by the Department of Labor and Employment in appropriate regulations.
9. What is the maternity leave benefit required by law?
Maternity leave benefit is the entitlement due any pregnant woman who has rendered a total of six months’ service for the last 12 months. The benefit consists of a 60-day allowance paid to a female member who gives birth through normal delivery, miscarriage or spontaneous abortion; or a 78-day allowance paid in case of a caesarian section delivery. It shall be enjoyed only on the first four deliveries. The duration of maternity leave during which the woman employee does not report for work may be extended for medical reasons, but in the absence of an agreement, such extension shall be without pay or allowance.
10. What are the conditions for a woman to be entitled to maternity leave benefit?
The conditions for entitlement of said benefit:
- She is an SSS member employed at the tine of delivery, miscarriage or abortion and has rendered service at least six months within one year with the same employer during the last 12 months immediately preceding the delivery, abortion or miscarriage;
- She must have given the required written notification to the SSS thru her employer;
- Her employer must have paid at least three months of maternity contributions within the 12-month period immediately before the date of contingency.
11. How much maternity leave benefit will a pregnant woman receive?
The member shall receive a maternity benefit equivalent to 100% of her average daily salary credit multiplied by 60 days for normal delivery of 78 days in cases of caesarian section delivery.
12. Who will pay the maternity leave benefits?
The employer advances the maternity leave benefit to the qualified employee in full or in two equal installments, the first to be made upon receipt of maternity leave application and the second not later than 30-days after payment of the first installment. Upon receipt of satisfactory proof of such payment, the SSS will reimburse the employer after the contingency for the amount of maternity benefit legally advanced to the employee.
13. Can a maternity leave benefit be extended beyond the allowable period ?
Yes, A maternity leave may be extended beyond 60 days upon request of the woman employee due to illness medically certified to arise out her pregnancy, delivery, complete abortion or miscarriage which renders her unfit to work. The extended leave benefit shall be a hindrance to recover sickness benefit for the same period of 60 days for the same childbirth, abortion or miscarriage.
14. Can an employer allow a woman employee, after her normal delivery, to report to work even before the completion of the maternity leave period?
Yes, provided that she is fit to go back to work as certified in writing by a competent public health authority. In addition to the maternity benefit she receive from the SSS, the employer shall pay her the basic wage or salary and other existing benefits granted by the company.
15. What are the prohibited acts of the employer in relation to the marriage and pregnancy of working women?
It shall be unlawful for any employer:
- To deny any woman employee the benefits provided for by the Labor Code or to discharge any woman employed by him or her for the purpose of preventing her from enjoying any of the employee benefits;
- To discharge such woman on account of her pregnancy or while on leave or in confinement due to her pregnancy;
- To discharge or refuse the admission of such woman upon returning to her work for fear that she may again be pregnant.
16. What is the liability of the employer for willful commission of unlawful acts?
The law provides for criminal liability for the willful commission of any unlawful act as mentioned.
17. What is the status of a woman permitted or suffered to work in any night club, bar, or other similar establishment under the Labor Code?
Any woman who is permitted or suffered to work with or without compensation in any night club, cocktail lounge, message clinic bar, or similar establishment shall be considered as an employee of such establishment for purposes of labor and social legislation.
18. What other statutory benefits and services shall an employer provide the woman employee?
The employer shall provide the following:
- Free family planning services to employees and their spouses, if the establishment regularly employ more than 200 workers;
- Holiday pay during the period that the woman employee is receiving maternity or disability benefits, equivalent to the same percentage as the benefit granted by SSS;
- Flexible work schedule to any solo parent as defined in Republic Act No. 8972;
- Parental leave of not more than seven days every year to the solo parent who has rendered at least one-year service.
YOUNG WORKERS
1. Who considered young workers and working children?
Young workers are in different categories, namely:
- The working youth who are between 15 and 30 years of age (Republic Act No. 8044 );
- Employed minors who are from 15 to below years of age (Labor Code);
- Working children who are below 15 years of age, subject to the exceptions specified by Republic Act No. 7658;
- Those engage in Child Labor (prohibited by law)
2. What is the minimum employable age for young workers?
The minimum employable age for young workers is 18 years old. However, any person between 15 and 18 years of age may be employed in undertakings not hazardous or deleterious in nature.
3. What is a non-hazardous undertaking?
It refers to any kind of work or activity in which the employee is not exposed to any risk that constitutes an imminent danger to his or her life and limb, safety and health.
4. What are the hazardous work and activities to persons below 18 years of age?
Hazardous work and activities to persons below 18 years age include:
- Work which exposes children to physical; psychological or sexual abuse;
- Work under ground, under water, at dangerous heights or at unguarded heights of two meters and above, or in confined spaces;
- Work with hazardous machinery, equipment and tools, or which involves manual handling or transport of heavy loads;
- Work in an unhealthy environment which may expose children to hazardous processes, to temperatures, noise levels or vibrations damaging to their health, to toxic, corrosive, poisonous, noxious, explosive, flammable and combustible substances or composites, to harmful biological agents, or to other dangerous chemicals including pharmaceuticals.
- Work under particularly difficult conditions such as work for long hours or during the night, or work where the child is unreasonably confined to the premises of the employer.
5. Can child below 15 years of age be employed or made to work?
A child below 15 years old is NOT permitted to work in any public or private establishment EXCEPT in these two situations:
- When the child works directly under the sole responsibility of his or her parents or guardians or legal guardian and where only members of the employer’s family are employed, with the following conditions:
- The employment does not endanger the child’s life, safety and health and morals;
- The employment does not impair the child’s moral development
- The employer parent or legal guardian provides the child with primary and / or secondary education prescribed by the Department of Education
- Where the child’s employment or participation in public entertainment or information through cinema, theater, radio or television is essential, provided that:
- The employment does not involve advertisement or commercials promoting alcoholic beverages, intoxicating drinks, tobacco and its by-products or exhibiting violence;
- There is a written contract approved by the DOLE;
- The employment does not endanger the child’s life, safety, health and morals;
- The employment does not interfere with his or her schooling.
6. How does the DOLE ensure that the above conditions are met?
Before an employer engages a child for employment, he or she must first secure a work permit from DOLE Regional Office having jurisdiction over the workplace. The DOLE Regional Office requires employers to submit documents in support of the application for permit, conducts interview and, upon its initiative, conducts monitoring, ocular inspection visits to the workplace.
7. If the child below 15 years of age is employed under the responsibility of the parent or guardian, is he or she an employee of the firm or family undertaking?
Yes. The child is considered an employee of the firm or family undertaking.
8. Suppose the child in the above case meets a work-connected injury, will the employee be held responsible?
Yes. The employer firm or undertaking shall be held responsible.
9. Once a firm validly employs a young person, is he or she entitled to the same terms and conditions of employment accorded to an employee of legal age?
Yes. An employer is prohibited by the Labor Code to discriminate against any young person with respect to terms and conditions of employment on account of his or her being a minor.
10. Can a person between 15 and 18 years of age be allowed to engage in domestic service?
A minor, whether male or female, may be employed to render non-hazardous or service that usually necessary and desirable in the employer’s home, such as ministering to personal comfort and convenience of the members of the employer’s household.
11. What are the benefits due a young domestic or house helper under the law?
A domestic or house helper below 18 years of age is entitled to the same benefits as those due an adult. These include just and humane treatment; minimum cash wage for house helpers; free, suitable and sanitary living quarters and adequate food and medical assistance.
In addition, the employer shall give him or her an opportunity for at least elementary education.
12. Is a young house helper who is an elementary or high school graduate not entitled to the opportunity for education?
He or she can avail of vocational, technical or college education as may be agreed upon with the employer.
13. Who will pay for the young house helper’s education?
If there is no agreement that the employer will shoulder the expenses for such education, the cost will be part of the young house helper’s compensation.
14. Can a young workers be a member of the Social Security System (SSS) and avail of the social security (SS) and employees compensation (EC) benefits?
Yes. The Social Security Law provides that coverage in the SSS is compulsory upon all employees not over 60 years of age. This law defines an employee as any person who performs services for an employer and who receives compensation for such services, where there is an employer-employee relationship. Self-employed young persons can also be SSS members.
15. What are the requirements for job apprenticeship?
Applicants for job apprenticeship must meet the following requirements:
- Must be at least 15 years old;
- Pass test for vocational aptitude and capacity for apprenticeship test;
- Possess the ability to comprehend and follow oral and written intructions
16. Who are considered child laborers?
Child laborers are persons aged below 15, or from 15 to below 18 years, performing work or service that is hazardous or deleterious in nature, or exploitative, or unsupervised by the child’s parent or guardian, or that interferes with normal development, or deprives that child’s right to health and education.
However, not all children who work are engaged in child labor. Work performed by any person below 15 years of age is not considered child labor if it falls under allowable situations under Republic Act No. 7658. Light work that is occasional, legal and respects is the child’s right to health and education is not child labor.
17. Aside from the rights to Health and Education, what are the other Rights of the Child, whether working or not?
Under the Convention of the Right of the Child, children have the Right to:
- Life;
- Adequate standard of living;
- Parental care and support;
- Social security;
- A name, nationality; and identity;
- Information;
- Leisure, recreation and cultural activities;
- Opinion;
- Freedom of thought, conscience and religion;
- Freedom of association;
- Privacy.
18. What are the benefits provided by law to young and deserving students who want to work?
Republic Act No. 7323 provides for employment assistance to students who are at least 15 but not more than 25 years of age enrolled or intending to be enrolled in any secondary, tertiary, vocational or technological institutions. The qualified and deserving youth can be employed during summer and /or Christmas vacation as aid in pursuit of their education.
As incentives for employers, they shall pay the students only 60% of the basic wage and the 40% in the form of educational vouchers payable by the government. An employers, under this law, can be a national or local government office or a private establishment or undertaking.
Source: http://www.dole.gov.ph/primers/rightswyw.htm
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