Labor and employers groups are batting for the ratification by the Philippines on an international convention that ensures workplaces are from violence and harassment.
In a joint statement yesterday, the Leaders Forum (LF) vowed to actively participate in the ratification process initiated by the Philippine Government through the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) on International Labor Organization (ILO) Convention 190 or the “Violence and Harassment Convention.”
LF is composed of employer groups namely, Employers Confederation of the Philippines (ECOP), Philippine Chamber of Commerce and Industry (PCCI), and Philippine Exporters Confederation (PHILEXPORT), and trade unions namely, Federation of Free Workers (FFW), Sentro ng mgaNagkakaisa at ProgresibongManggagawa (SENTRO), and Trade Union Congress of the Philippines (TUCP).
By ratifying the Convention, the Philippines will undertake to apply the Convention in national law and practice and to report on its application at regular intervals.
Convention 190 is an international instrument that provides a clear framework for action and an opportunity to shape a work environment based on dignity and respect, free from violence and harassment.
It was adopted in June 2019 during the Centenary Session of the International Labor Conference (ILC) after employers’ and workers’ groups all over the world including those from the Philippines voted in favor of the approval of the Convention.
The Convention came into force in June 25, 2021 following its ratification by two member states, with four more member-states have yet to ratify it to date.
By jointly getting involved in the ratification process, the LF aims to launch a campaign to massively raise awareness jointly and separately among employers and workers through a series of consultations to get their insights on how this Convention will shape the Philippine policy environment and how laws and policies will be effectively enforced should it be ratified, the group said.
The LF calls on its constituents to participate in this process so that workplaces, whether at home or in the site (e.g., factory, office, etc.) is free from violence and harassment in whatever form to achieve a safe space for all workers regardless of gender, sex, race, age, beliefs, and ability.
The LF takes note of the passage of Republic Act No. 11313, “An Act Defining Gender-Based Sexual Harassment in Streets, Public Spaces, Online, Workplaces, and Educational or Training Institutions, Providing Protective Measures and Prescribing Penalties Thereof” or better known as “Safe Spaces Act” or the “Bawal Bastos Law” in April 2019 and the signing of its implementing rules and regulations in October 2019.
These laws, it said, align the country’s laws to ILO Convention 190.
Safe Spaces Act or the Bawal Bastos Law expands the scope of Republic Act No. 7877 or the “Anti-Sexual Harassment Act of 1995”. It now recognizes that incidents of sexual harassment may now happen between peers and be committed by a subordinate to his/her superior, and take place in streets, public, and online spaces.
