Employers can mandate return to full onsite work, but employees should be consulted —DOLE chief

Employers have the prerogative to mandate their workers to return to full onsite work setup, but this should be done in consultation with employees, Labor Secretary Bievenido Laguesma said Tuesday.

“Hindi pinagbabawalan ang mga employer kung gusto po nilang 'ika nga ibalik sa face-to-face [setup],” Laguesma said in an interview on Dobol B TV.

(Employers are not barred should they want a return to face-to-face setup.)

Jose Ma. Concepcion III, Private Sector Advisory Council (PSAC) lead for jobs, said employees should be encouraged to return to the office as remote work options cut down consumption and slow down the economy, noting that the work-from-home arrangement is only good during a pandemic.

With calls for the return-to-office setup, Laguesma said the government recognizes employers’ prerogative.

“Kinilala natin ang prerogatibo ng mga employer pero dapat binabalanse sa kapakanan at karapatan ng mga manggagawa,” the Labor chief said.

(We recognize the prerogative of employers but this should be balanced with the rights and welfare of workers.)

Laguesma said the Telecommuting Act recognizes that some activities can be done through remote work arrangements.

Employers and their employees can have a dialogue about alternative work setups, he said.

The Telecommuting law defines telecommuting as “a work arrangement that allows an employee in the private sector to work from an alternative workplace with the use of telecommunication and/or computer technologies.”—AOL, GMA Integrated News