Senate bill seeks protections, professional growth for interns

A bill seeking to protect interns from abuses and promotes their professional growth was filed in the Senate.

Senator Risa Hontiveros, in filing Senate Bill No. 994 or the Interns’ Rights and Welfare Bill, said internships were for students and young people to learn more about the workplace and to deepen their craft, and not an excuse for employers to take advantage of cheap or free labor.

The bill listed the responsibilities of host training establishments or HTEs to their interns, with the end view of establishing a proper and relevant learning experience for interns.

“Dahil walang employer-employee relationship, maraming nagiging kaso ng exploitation at kawalan ng professional growth,” Hontiveros pointed out.

The bill requires any employer who chooses to host interns to come up with a contract and program that details the professional training of interns.

“Dapat ang internship, may professional growth talaga. Hindi yung pinagtitimpla ka lang ng kape o nakatunganga buong araw,” said Hontiveros.

Senate Bill No. 994 also seeks to strengthen schools’ vetting process for HTEs. Hontiveros said schools have a responsibility to accredit reputable HTEs for their students and to ensure that students do not undergo internship in companies with dubious programs.

“Hindi pwedeng ipag-intern mo yung mga estudyante sa mga kumpanyang may questionable labor practices na pwedeng maglagay sa kanila sa alanganin,” the senator said. 

The bill would also put a cap on internship hours.

For the government sector, internships should not exceed 300 hours, nor last for more than 6 months. For industry-based internships that are more technical in nature, like those in the engineering or health-allied fields, internship hours were capped at 660 hours per semester - equivalent to 15 units per term.

The proposed measure also seeks to protect all interns from any form of workplace abuse and harassment.

Senate Bill No. 994 also contained the following key provisions:

• providing basic benefits and remuneration (75% of the prevailing minimum wage in the region for private companies and 75% of Step 1 Salary Grade 1 for interns in the public sector);
• appropriating funds for government agencies to host interns in order to promote public and civil service among young people; and
• a grievance mechanism to address any violation of basic interns’ rights.

— DVM, GMA News