Stricter BPO laws sought

CEBU, Philippines - After the recent closure of a Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) company in Cebu City, an association for call center workers has demanded for reforms in the industry to further protect their labor rights.

"Kinahanglan gyud nga e-require ang mga BPO companies nga magbutang gyud og cash bond sa DOLE. This is to prevent fly-by-night companies to proliferate," said Rosie Hong of the Inter Call Center Association of  Workers (ICCAW), in an interview with The Freeman.

Hong said that it is upsetting to know that "fly-by-night" companies are exploiting the workers by violating Philippine labor laws.

As of now, BPOs are not required to deposit a cash bond.

She said that through stricter government regulations in line with their industry, call center companies that are not financially equipped to run a business and does not respect labor rights would not be able to operate.

"We want a BPO company to be a better place to work with. But if the occupational health of employees are compromised, this industry will instead be a time bomb just waiting to explode," Hong said in a separate statement. — /ATO

She added that call center workers deserve a stable BPO industry so that they can have regular jobs that provide decent salaries and benefits.

"But this cannot happen if the requirements and criteria for operating a call center company are so relaxed," she said.

ICCAW aims to be the voice for call center and BPO workers so that the 600,000 employees in the industry who are entirely unorganized can enjoy their labor rights.

 ICCAW is also calling for industry-wide standards for wages, benefits and entitlements that must be well above the minimum wage mandated by law and commensurate to the profitable dollar-earning nature of the call center industry, the statement further reads.

 It can be recalled that two weeks ago, some of the 100 employees of Leadamorphosis, a call center in downtown Cebu, picketed outside their office building to protest the illegal closure and non-payment of their salaries.-/ATO (FREEMAN)