What is 'endo' and why do presidential bets want it gone?

Presidential candidates during the last leg of the Pilipinas Debates on Sunday vowed to end the practice of "endo" that has been affecting the country's contractual employees for so many years.

But what is endo?

"Endo is the illegal practice of terminating a worker before he reaches six months of employment in order to avoid regularization and the benefits that go with it," said Julius Cainglet, vice president of the Federation of Free Workers.

Cainglet said that under Article 281 of the Labor Code, "an employee who is allowed to work after a probationary period shall be considered a regular employee."

The same law provides that an employee's probationary employment shall not exceed six months from the date the employee started working, unless it is covered by an apprenticeship agreement stipulating a longer period.

Senator Grace Poe first used the term during the debate to address the issue.

"Ang endo ay hindi makatarungan. Alam mo kung bakit? Kasi hindi mo maipaplano ang iyong kinabukasan kung hindi mo alam kung may trabaho ka pa. Kaya naiintindihan ko yon," Poe said.

"At bilang isang nanay na gumagawa ng budget para sa pamilya, ang hirap namang isipin na pagkatapos ng limang buwan walang trabaho yung asawa ko. Kaya kakampi mo ako, hindi ko papayagan ang endo," she added.

Former Interior Secretary Mar Roxas promised to end the practice within three months.

"Ang tanong ay papaano natin tatapusin ang endo. Makakaasa ka na sa loob ng tatlong buwan matapos ang pag-upo ko bilang pangulo, matatapos ang ENDO," Roxas said. —NB/JST, GMA News