Labor Law Reforms

for the 21st Century:

Transcending Classical
Labor
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Hans Leo J. Cacdac

February 5, 2010

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 "Afford protection to labor p
lu"
s
 1935 and 1973 Constitutions

 1987 -> specific elaboration of rights

 Collective bargaining and negotiation, humane

conditions of work, living wage, security of tenure
 Principle of shared responsibility

 Balanced approach

 Labor Code and statutes

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 Primacy of Collective Bargaining
 Employment preservation

 Democracy in the workplace

 Ensures compliance with labor standards and

regulations
 Mechanism for improved terms and conditions of
employment
 Maintenance and promotion of industrial peace

 Increases productivity

 Network of guarantees: registration,2/5/10

recognition,
 Primacy Paradigm B
ut…
 Globalization  integration of markets

 Technological changes in many sectors

 Capital “threat of exit”, “race to the bottom”

 Collective bargaining numbers declining despite R.A.

9841
 Unionization not prevalent in sectors with most
workers
 Most formal sector workers are in micro and small
enterprises
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Labor Market Realities

•
Labor force grows faster than economy’s ability to create
jobs.
•
Negative attributes  youth joblessness, child labor,
interregional migration, population growth, informal sector
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without social protection, slow decline in poverty incidence
•
Job mismatch
•
International survey FAIL
•
Issues of corruption and delayed labor justice

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Reality of Managed Migration

•
Stronger consumption power
•
Improved quality of life
•
Regulation for better protection
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of OFWs
•
Maximizing gains, minimizing costs

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 Decline in Collective Bargaining
 Adversarial workplace culture  “us versus them”

 Anti-union animus, union busting, unfair labor

practice
 Divisive trade union movement

 Atypical employment

 “Structural” issues  organizing not prevalent in

agriculture, wholesale/retail, not prevalent in micro
and small establishments
 L
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st
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 Labor Relations Stimulus
Package
 Brave new social fronts

 Engage in active labor market policy (ALMP)

formation  employment services, enhancing labor
supply through training and retraining, reducing
supply through education or early retirement,
creating demand through enterprise creation and
micro-credit, employment subsidies
 Address nagging ALMP issues: security of tenure
and contractualization  admit areas of flexibility,
soft and hard regulation 2/5/10
 Address LR Adversarialism
 Marriage between industrial relations (IR) and
human resources management (HRM) approaches
 Emphasis on responsible, democratic workplaces

 Advocacy for healthy workplace relations in micro

and small establishments  balance between
flexible, incentives- and rights-based approaches
 Crafting a new labor relations framework for the 21st
century

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 2010-2016
 Not just the term for the new national leadership

 “A Time for Heroes”

 “Ako ang simula”, “Boto mo, ipatrol mo”

 Consultation, tripartism  participation in policy- and

decision-making
 Participation in implementation

 Labor relations constituency  no longer just union

memberships or bargaining units, but the Philippine
labor force
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Iyon lang po.

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