THE Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) on Monday said it would intensify inspection of companies’ compliance with general labor standards and safety and health regulations that include payment of decent wages and remittance of workers’ social benefits, such as the Social Security System (SSS), Philippine Health Insurance Corp. (PhilHealth) and Pag-Ibig contributions.
Dole Acting Secretary Danilo Cruz said the department will start the implementation of the Working Conditions Information System (WCIS), which ensures compliance of companies with the general labor standards (GLS) and occupational safety and health (OSH) regulations.
Labor field inspectors will monitor establishments with 10 to 199 workers, and subject them to routine inspection for compliance with the existing minimum wage and social-welfare benefits, like registration with and remittances to the SSS, PhilHealth and Pag-Ibig.
Director Brenda Villafuerte of the Dole’s Bureau of Working Conditions also said technical safety inspection on pressure vessels, internal combustion engines, and mechanical and electrical installation also form an integral part of the inspection activities.
She said the efficient enforcement of OSH and GLS is in line with the implementation of the labor standards- enforcement framework.
The framework also requires companies with work force of 200 and above and those with collective bargaining agreements are under the Self-Assessment (SA) approach, which is jointly conducted by the management and union representatives.
“Those [companies] which will not submit SA [self-assessment] reports-checklists will be subjected to regular inspection,” said Villafuerte.
Cruz, meanwhile, said around 50 Dole regional personnel were trained recently to handle the inspection system, which will be implemented fully next month.
“The trained personnel would develop, maintain and update the WCIS as a computerized database of relevant information on inspection activities of all Dole regional inspectors detailing their work assignments, particularly the list of establishments that they are supposed to inspect and also corrections that should be implemented they found with violations,” Cruz said.
He said the compliance inspection system will allow the Dole to monitor and speed up the conduct of inspection and corrections in establishments with violations in their respective areas of jurisdiction.
Meanwhile, for business establishments with nine workers or less and registered as barangay micro-business enterprises, the department will provide assistance in mapping out development plans for the improvement of working conditions and allow them to comply voluntarily with applicable laws.
