THE House of Representatives on Tuesday night approved on second reading a bill seeking to grant indigent job applicants a 20 percent discount on fees for pre-employment clearances and other documents.
In some instances, House Bill No. 8008, or the proposed Kabalikat sa Hanapbuhay Act, even mandates that the fees be waived.
Rep. Michael Romero (PL, 1-Pacman), chairperson of the House committee on poverty alleviation and principal author of the bill, said it would “ease the financial burden on our poor countrymen who are seeking employment here and abroad.”
“They could save hundreds or even thousands of pesos in securing several clearances, certificates and other documents from government agencies – money they could use to buy food items like rice for their families,” he said.
The bill is a consolidation of nine related measures authored by Reps. Marissa Magsino, Lani Revilla, Bryan Revilla, Jolo Revilla, Paolo Duterte, Eric Yap, Edvic Yap, Oscar Malapitan, Ralph Tulfo, Jocelyn Tulfo, Ernesto Dionisio Jr., Samuel Verzosa, Raymond Democrito Mendoza, and Gustavo Tambunting.
Romero urged the Senate to support the bill “for the sake of thousands, even millions, of poor job applicants.”
Under Bill No. 8008, the 20 percent fee discount would apply on clearances from the barangay, National Bureau of Investigation and Philippine National Police; medical certificate from any government hospital, marriage certificate from the Philippine Statistics Authority (PSA), birth certificate from PSA, certificate of competency from the Technical Education and Skills Development Authority, civil service eligibility certificate from the Civil Service Commission, and other documents required from government agencies.
Fees shall be waived on Tax Identification Number from the Bureau of Internal Revenue; and transcript of records, transfer credentials, authenticated copy of diploma, and certificate of good moral character from the state or local university or college of the jobseeker.
To qualify for the fee discount and waiver, a job applicant must obtain a certificate of indigency from the Department of Social Welfare and Development or the local social welfare office.
