With the proliferation of work-from-home companies in this pandemic, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has reminded employers of the rights of their employees.
According to DOLE Assistant Secretary Dominique Rubia-Tutay, employees and employers must have an agreement, in accordance with the Telecommuting Act.
“Kailangan talaga magkaroon ng agreement ‘yung worker at saka ‘yung employer: ano po ‘yung expected work, hanggang kailan. ‘Yung mga companies po na nakausap namin at sinasabi na nag-work-from-home po sila, sila talaga ‘yung nagpo-provide ng equipment tapos binibigyan nila ng allowance for Internet every month,” said Tutay.
Nor should the wages and benefits of employees be affected by the work-from-home set-up, and their chances of promotion and training should be equal.
According to DOLE data, 37,434 workers in 2020 were placed in telecommuting and it is expected to increase further.
From January to March of 2021, the number of work-from-home people reached 22,012. According to the DOLE, the work-from-home set-up has opened up new opportunities for Filipinos.
“You are catering to employers abroad pero nandito ka sa Pilipinas. Or puwede rin na ikaw ay working halimbawa in Davao, pero you are catering to, nationwide ang iyong clients,” said Tutay.
DOLE reminds employers of work-from-home guidelines
But there are still some problems, such as internet connectivity, and monitoring the quality of work which is why most companies choose a hybrid or mixed set-up, based on a study by professional networking site LinkedIn.
In the study, 76 percent put in 3 days per week in the office and 2 days work-from-home.
Some companies, divided employees into 59 percent on-site and 41 percent work-from-home.
This type of setup is also expected to be permanent as it reduces the cost of the company.
According to the DOLE, online jobs in the information technology, business process outsourcing, and e-commerce sectors are expected to continue to increase this year.
Last week, DOLE said up to 17,329 people lost their jobs due to retrenchment or permanent closure of the company from March 29 to April 11,
Of this number, nearly 80 percent came from NCR Plus.
Those in service activities, construction, transportation and storage, administrative and support services, and accommodation and food support services were mainly affected.