What about endo? Senators ask Duterte after SONA

Several senators on Tuesday said they would have wanted President Rodrigo Duterte to mention the issue of end-of-contract or “endo” scheme — the practice of labor contractualization — in his second State of the Nation Address (SONA).

In an interview, Minority Leader Franklin Drilon said Duterte also failed to report how his administration plans to generate employment throughout his term.

“The job generation should [include] the issue on the endo, ano na ba ang nangyari? Mukhang end na, wala pa kaming nariring,” Drilon said.

Senator Risa Hontiveros also raised the same query.

“Dapat tungkol sa marami niyang campaign promises na meron din inaasahan ang mga sektor [ang SONA], katulad ng security of tenure o pagwasak sa endo,” Hontiveros said.

Senator Joel Villanueva, chairman of the Senate committee on labor, employment and human resources development, said he also expected Duterte to push for the law that would put an end to the practice of endo.

“We believe that there is an immediate need to strengthen our labor law compliance system to ensure that companies will truly adhere with our labor laws,” Villanueva said.

“We have to clearly delineate 'endo' from legitimate job contracting. We are hoping that we can have our 'End Endo' bill passed before the year ends,” he said.

The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) earlier issued Department Order (DO) 174, ordering a prohibition on the repeated hiring of employees by contractors under an employment contract of short duration that falls short of the mandated six months to qualify for regularization.

Several labor groups, however, said they were not satisfied with the DO.

Duterte has yet to sign the executive order he promised to issue last month for the strict implementation of the laws against endo.

Duterte delivered a fiery SONA on Monday going off the cuff to go on profanity-laced tangents about his critics even as he took time to make a push for his legislative agenda. — MDM/KVD, GMA News