Lacson supports working from home, especially for BPOs, amid high fuel and transportation costs

SEN. Panfilo M. Lacson over the weekend endorsed the continuation of flexible work-from-home (WFH) arrangements amid soaring fuel and transportation costs that are eating away at workers’ take-home pay.

Supporting the calls made by affected workers, Lacson cited the steady rise in world oil prices driven by the Ukraine crisis.

Appearing at the first Election Commission presidential debate last Saturday night, Lacson fought for information technology process outsourcing (IT-BPO) workers, endorsing their plea to expand the work setup to (WFH) for call center employees until December.

The Partido Reporma standard-bearer said that if the government is to reopen the economy, among other things by forcing workers out of their homes, it must take into account the plight of ordinary workers facing higher transport costs in because of high fuel prices, as well as the need to save fuel for everyone.

Earlier, the Tax Incentives Review Board, chaired by Secretary of Finance Carlos G. Dominguez III, twice rejected the appeal of the IT-BPO sector and the Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza). to extend the 10% WFH deal they were given during the pandemic.

This plan ends on March 31 unless the FIRB changes its mind.

Senator Lacson, however, emphasized his plea on behalf of affected BPO workers, saying: . To Meron Tayong Telecommuting Law.

[I support the BPO sector’s call to extend WFH setup from April to September, because their offices had closed during the pandemic and they want to continue the WFH setup. Besides, we already have the Telecommuting Act].

Recalling that the Department of Finance had previously stated that the Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) had affirmed its resolution 19-21, allowing the WFH arrangement of registered IT-BPM companies, but only until March 31, Lacson also cited fuel and transportation costs.

During Saturday night’s presidential debate, Lacson also claimed that the four-day workweek, which he supports, “should be a temporary arrangement.”

The senator clarified that his support is “provided that the worker be compensated for five days of work since the total number of hours worked is the same whether he works four days or five days”.

BBB’s Legacy

MEANWHILE, Lacson replied, when asked if the Duterte administration’s Build, Build, Build legacy had been successful, that people should “be the judge” given that “out of 118 projects, only 12 have been made.

Nevertheless, he asked aloud, “Should we continue? and replied, “Yes. But let’s improve it, strengthen it and make it bolder. inviolability of contracts.” He said “we cannot turn our backs on them, especially if they involve foreign investment”.

Still, he noted that as national, foreign and domestic debt has already reached 12.03 trillion pesos, “it may be time to move from BBB (Build, Build, Build) to PPP (Public-Private Partnership) where the government does not spend and private initiative ensures the realization of a good project.