QuestionsQuestions (Republic Act No. 11962)
RA No. 11962 is known as the “Trabaho Para sa Bayan Act.” It establishes the National Employment Master Plan called the “Trabaho Para sa Bayan Plan (TBP Plan),” appropriates funds for it, and provides for related purposes aimed at employment generation and recovery.
The State commits to full protection to labor, promotion of full, productive and freely chosen employment and livelihood, equitable employment opportunities regardless of protected characteristics, poverty reduction through decent jobs and sustainable enterprises, support for MSMEs, and improvement of workers’ employability, productivity, and competitiveness.
The objectives include: (a) stimulating national/local growth by aligning incentives to create decent jobs and address labor-market challenges; (b) promoting worker employability/competitiveness via industry-relevant skills training and active labor market services; (c) supporting businesses (especially MSMEs) through incentives and financing to spur employment and protect jobs; and (d) incentivizing employers and stakeholders that provide training, technology transfer, upskilling/reskilling, and enterprise-based training.
It applies to national, regional, and local government units (LGUs), without prejudice to the Bangsamoro Government and its component LGUs to adopt and implement labor and employment projects consistent with national policies and laws.
The TBP Plan includes a three (3)-year, six (6)-year, and ten (10)-year development timeline for its vision, mission, goals, and milestones.
Examples include: (1) support for MSMEs (financing, transition from informal to formal, incentives); (2) skilling/upskilling/reskilling for lifelong learning, including marginalized/vulnerable workers; (3) incentives to employers/industry stakeholders for training and enterprise-based education; (4) empowerment of workers on constitutional and Labor Code rights; (5) active labor market policies and OFW reintegration support; (6) tripartism/social dialogue; (7) addressing youth unemployment (including NEET); (8) standards for apprenticeships; (9) grievance redress mechanisms; (10) support for workers in new forms of work (including gig/freelance).
Section 5 creates the “Trabaho Para Sa Bayan Inter-Agency Council,” abbreviated as “TPB-IAC.”
The Director-General of NEDA chairs the TPB-IAC. The Secretary of DTI and the Secretary of DOLE serve as co-chairpersons.
There are: one representative from employers’ organizations; one from labor organizations; one from marginalized or vulnerable sectors; and one from the informal sector.
They include formulating the TPB Plan with action components/success measures/KPIs; monitoring/reviewing/evaluating/updating the plan; conducting analysis of employment and labor market trends; reviewing and streamlining policies and inter-agency councils for alignment and avoiding duplication; assisting LGUs with aligned employment plans; crafting guidelines for institutionalizing the plan in agencies; and performing related functions.
Working groups may be established to pursue implementation of the TBP Plan by developing/enhancing employment generation and recovery for specific industries and emerging sectors (e.g., health services, construction, tourism, agriculture, IT-BPM, manufacturing) and thematic areas, typically chaired by a government agency with industry representation.
CSC, COA, and DBM must conduct an analysis and review (in consultation with agencies and LGUs) of existing hiring policies and standards in government, including required skills/competencies, streamlining recruitment/selection, and identifying appropriate manpower needs.
The TPB-IAC must submit reports every January and July to the Office of the President, the Senate of the Philippines, and the House of Representatives, including timelines/status and accomplishments, evaluation of relevant agency policies/programs, recommendations for policy interventions, and other relevant information. Reports must be publicly available through relevant websites.
Initial implementation expenses shall be charged against the current year’s appropriations of concerned departments/agencies. Thereafter, sums necessary for continued implementation shall be included in the annual General Appropriations Act.
The Act takes effect 15 days after its publication in the Official Gazette or in two (2) newspapers of general circulation.