CLEMENTE, SHADREINA SHAINE T.

DINGLASA, MAHATMA KRISTINE A.

Affirmative Constructive Speech

Resolution: “Resolved, that all employees must work from home at this time of
the pandemic.”

Madam Chairperson, worth opponents, ladies and gentlemen:

The Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic continues to severely affect public health and
cause unprecedented disruptions to economies and labour markets. According to the
International Labour Organization (ILO), around 68 per cent of the world’s total
workforce, including 81 per cent of employers, are currently living in countries with
recommended or required workplace closures. In this new environment,
employers have to be able to adapt and make contingency plans to respond to new
measures as they arise since vaccines are still under development. Hence, my partner
and I believe that staying at home is the best provision for now. We stand resolved that
all employees must work from home at this time of the pandemic. 
 
We the affirmative define the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) as an infectious disease
caused by a new strain of coronavirus. This new virus and disease were unknown
before the outbreak began in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. We also
define Pandemic as “an epidemic occurring worldwide, or over a very wide area,
crossing international boundaries and usually affecting a large number of people” which
excludes seasonal epidemics. Lastly, we define work from home, in the context of the
COVID-19 pandemic, as the term used to refer uniquely to home-based teleworking as
a temporary, alternative working arrangement. It requires a shared responsibility and
commitment by both employers and workers to ensure business continuity and
employment.  
The affirmative has four needs for change. First, we recognize the current evidence
according to World Health Organization that Covid-19 is contagious and spreads
between people through direct, indirect, or close contact with infected people through
mouth and nose secretion and under some circumstances, airborne
transmission. Thus, employees should stay and work from home because health and
safety are of utmost priority.  Second, we affirm that work from home brings no harm to
both employers and employees because there are laws that provide security to both
employers and employees regarding the work from home arrangement and in the
Philippines, that is Republic Act No. 11165 or the Telecommuting Act.  The third support
for our contention is that work from home is only a temporary work setup in order to
achieve significant and permanent results which are flattening of the
curve and eventually putting a stop to COVID-19. Lastly, implementing work from home
during the pandemic helps the world to heal from pollution, specifically air pollution by
decreasing the use of vehicles which can contribute to the annual decline in global
carbon emissions, then indirectly benefiting both employer and employee.
  
First, the World Health Organization made it clear that COVID-19 is
contagious with 34.8 million recorded cases worldwide and 321 000 in the Philippines
as of October 4, 2020. COVID-19 spreads primarily through respiratory droplets or
contact with contaminated surfaces. Exposure can occur at the workplace, while
travelling to work, during work-related travel to an area with local community
transmission, as well as on the way to and from the workplace. According to WHO, the
risk of exposure to COVID-19 in the workplace depends on the likelihood of coming
within 1 meter of others, in having frequent physical contact with people who may be
infected with COVID-19, and through contact with contaminated surfaces and objects.
In line with the advice from the World Health Organization (WHO), many steps have
been taken worldwide to contain the spread of the virus. Governments have
implemented measures ranging from physical distancing, restrictions on the freedom of
movement and the closure of non-essential companies and undertakings, to the
lockdown of entire cities in different parts of the world. As the pandemic evolves, so
have the measures that have taken to address it.  As an employer, protecting
employees from health and safety risks is an everyday challenge. Why push a face-to-
face work setup when work can be done at home? Shifting to home-based work shall
promote health and safety among employees and the employer, as well as their families
during the pandemic. Reducing face-to-face contact is an important action to mitigate
the impact of COVID-19. In addition, work from home will be effective with the aid of the
advanced technologies that are made available for us today and with the proper
implementation of policies by the company.
 
For our second point, it is clear that every government is prepared upon advising
businesses and companies to adapt to the new normal and let their employees work
from home. Hence, employers and employees are secured with the work from
home arrangement during the pandemic. In the Philippines RA 11165 or the
Telecommuting Act declares the policy of the state to affirm labor as a primary social
economic workforce and to this end, shall protect the rights of workers and promote
their welfare, especially in the light of technological development that has opened up
new and alternative avenues for employees to carry out their work such as
telecommuting and other flexible work arrangements. The law defines telecommuting as
work arrangement that allows employees in the private sector to work from an
alternative workplace with the use of telecommunication and/or computer
technologies. In section 4, it is stated that an employer in the private sector may offer
telecommuting program to its employees on a voluntary basis and upon such terms and
conditions as they may mutually agree upon provided that labor agreements are in line
with the labor standards set by law. As suggested by International Labour Organization, 
employers should develop a workplace policy to provide clear guidelines and address
the challenges. In addition, employers should regularly assess the effectiveness of the
company policies and guidelines. Workers on the other hand should regularly
communicate challenges experienced with the company policies and guidelines to their
employers. Furthermore, in section 5 of RA 11165, fair treatment is emphasized in
which the employer shall ensure that the telecommuting employees are given the same
treatment as that of comparable employees working at the employer’s premises. Data
protection may be an issue, but RA 11165 covers what the employer should do to
ensure the protection of data used and processed by the telecommuting employee for
professional purposes. For this purpose, the provisions of the Data Privacy Act of 2012
shall have suppletory effect.
 
My partner will now continue.

For our third point, it is clear that the only way to get the workplace back to normal is to
flatten the curve and eventually stop the spread of COVID-19 and with that, work from
home is only a temporary work setup in order to achieve significant and permanent
results. To stop coronavirus, we will need to radically change almost everything we do:
how we work, exercise, socialize, shop, manage our health, educate our kids, take care
of family members. It’s now widely agreed that every country needs to “flatten the
curve”: impose social distancing to slow the spread of the virus so that the number of
people sick at once doesn’t cause the health-care system to collapse, as it is
threatening to do in Italy right now. That means the pandemic needs to last, at a low
level, until either enough people have had Covid-19 to leave most immune (assuming
immunity lasts for years, which we don’t know) or there’s a vaccine. The work from
home may initially affect the original flow of the workplace negatively because of
the unprecedented change of working setup. However, it is important to note that we
aim for stopping COVID-19 and thus changes that may entail sacrifices must be
implemented.  

For our last point, aside from the things mentioned, working from home has positive
effects to the environment. Not only it helps to flatten the curve but also makes the
environment cleaner. Vehicles are one of the major sources of air pollution and global
warming emissions. According to statistics, in 2019, approximately 1.2 million private
cars were registered in the Philippines. The number of private cars registered in the
country year on year has increased over the last ten years. More cars mean more
carbon emissions, and this could lead to damaging our ozone layer and could worsen
global warming. The air in some major cities has cleared during the COVID-19
lockdown. This is because people do not go out and use their cars. By removing cars,
we also remove smog. Moreover, experts predict that the transportation transformation
will contribute to the largest-ever annual decline in global carbon emissions. In terms of
transportation, the pandemic has shed an opportunity to shift to sustainable
transportation like cycling and walking which enable people to rethink the usage of the
streets. By shifting to work from home, not only we can beat COVID-19 but we are also
helping the world to heal from pollution. It is like hitting two birds with one stone.
 
A review from Harvard by Scott Edinger says that the team members who were not in
the same location with their leaders were more engaged and committed and rated the
same leader higher than team members sitting right nearby. The benefits of working
from home shows practicality especially in this time of pandemic. Since employees are
already in their homes, there is no need to commute which can save their time
especially to those who take long commutes, since rush hour traffic can be avoided.
Also, they can save money from working from home since they don’t have to pay for taxi
or bus. Moreover, they can attend meeting virtually anywhere in the world which is very
convenient. With all these technological advancements, we can achieve these
things. Working from home also helps focus on results instead of action. There is less
office distractions which will enable employees to reach more goals and be more
productive without necessarily coming into the office every day.  

Several studies have found that job satisfaction is highest among individuals who
telecommute a moderate amount compared to those who telecommute either a small
amount or more extensively (Golden, 2006b; Golden & Veiga, 2005; Virick et al., 2010).
Additionally, the extent of telecommuting has been positively associated with
organizational commitment and negatively associated with intent to leave the
organization, such that more extensive telecommuting has been associated with greater
commitment to the organization and lower turnover intentions (Golden, 2006a). In
addition to favorable job attitudes, telecommuting is also associated with significantly
lower work-role stress (cf. Gajendran & Harrison, 2007) and work exhaustion
(Sardeshmukh, Sharma, & Golden, 2012). Telecommuting provides workers with
location flexibility.
  
The world has changed many times, and it is changing again. All of us will have to adapt
to a new way of living, working, and forging relationships. We propose that companies
take the advice of the government, plan for telecommuting and immediately implement
work from home arrangement during the pandemic. 

In conclusion, the affirmative has shown clear need for change. Employees should stay
and work from home because health and safety are of utmost priority, work from
home brings no harm to both employers and employees because there are laws that
provide security to both employers and employees regarding the work from home
arrangement, work from home as a temporary work setup is needed in order to achieve
significant permanent results which is to flatten the curve and stop COVID-19, and lastly
implementing work from home during the pandemic helps the world to heal from
pollution, specifically air pollution by decreasing the use of vehicles which can contribute
to the annual decline in global carbon emissions, then indirectly benefiting both
employer and employee.
 
 
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