Narayan AmmachchiWages for call center workers in the Philippines might go up in the coming months, as a left-leaning party in the Asia-Pacific country has tabled a legislative bill seeking a minimum wage for entry-level BPO workers.
After introducing the bill, Raoul Manuel, a Congressman representing the Kabataan Partylist, stated that the proposed legislation will establish “fair labor practices” in the BPO industry.
LOOK: Kabataan Partylist Representative Raoul Manuel, together with the Makabayan Coalition and the BPO Integrated Employees Network, filed House Bill 8189, also known as the BPO Workers Welfare Act, today. pic.twitter.com/wrbzl1DDxu
— Kabataan Partylist (@KabataanPL) May 18, 2023
The bill guarantees job security and medical benefits for all of the country’s 1.4 million call center workers.
It will also lead to the formation of the BPO Workers Welfare Board to oversee the implementation of the law.
“We recognize the importance of the BPO industry in providing jobs for our countrymen, but we also recognize the need to protect the rights and welfare of BPO workers,” Manuel said, according to news outlet Philstar.
The Kabataan Party has for long expressed concern over job insecurity and low compensation in the BPO business.
“In the Bicol area, new workers are only granted a monthly pay of P5,500 (US$99). “Base salaries in the National Capital Region can be as low as P12,500 (US$224) per month,” the party noted recently in a press statement, adding that workers in both places rely on incentives to improve their take-home income.
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