Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CCCI) president Virgilio Espeleta supports the Endo bill. /CDN Digital file photo
CEBU CITY–Two business leaders gave positive reactions to Senate’s approval on third reading of the Endo bill.
On Wednesday, May 22, the Senate Bill No. 1826, also known as the Endo Bill, was approved on third reading.
Read more: Senate OKs proposed measure to finish off ‘endo’
Virgilio Espeleta, president of the Cebu Chamber of Commerce and Industry, noted that they agreed to the objective of the bill.
The bill, which was filed by Senator Joel Villanueva, the principal author, aims “to protect workers who have suffered because of endo, a practice which corrupts the dignity of labor.”
“While the bill guarantees security of tenure for employees by preventing labor-only contracting, we welcome the provision to classify workers into four types namely: regular, probationary, project and seasonal,” Espeleta said.
But, on behalf of the business sector, he expressed concern over business survival, competitiveness, influx of foreign players, importation, increasing taxes and higher costs of doing business.
On top of these, Espeleta cited the bureaucratic regulations that would impede growth and sustainability.
“There is no guarantee for business owners to survive! The appetite to go into business might be dampened if we do not take into account the concerns of enterprises who have yet to hurdle their birth and growth pains and adjust to business disruptions amidst these regulations,” he pointed out.
Espeleta then reiterated their commitment to nation-building as they support the “Angat-Lahat” or Prosperity for All advocacy.
“Hence, we enjoin our member-companies to ensure the well-being of their employees as well as generate their shared commitment to productivity and meritocracy,” he added.
Read more: Cebu Chamber opposes ALU-TUCP petition for minimum wage hike
Rey Calooy, founder and president of RNC Marketing Philippines | FB page photo
Meanwhile, Rey Calooy, founder of RNC Marketing Inc. and the Filipino Cebu Business Club (FCBC), also expressed support for the Endo bill. The club members include micro and small enterprises.
“We welcome the new law. We will support it. In fact, most of our members don’t practice this,” said Calooy.
He explained that their group members were doing direct hiring because they could not afford to hire workers supplied by agencies.
“You know agencies will get a spread of around 10 percent from the basic pay,” Calooy noted.
He maintained that anything that would be good for both management and labor would be good for business. “This is a win-win situation,” he added./dbs