Duterte to consult Cabinet on proposed 4-day work week

November 24, 2019

President Rodrigo Duterte on Saturday said he still needs to discuss with his Cabinet members the proposed four-day work in private and government offices to solve the traffic woes in Metro Manila.

In an interview with reporters in Davao City, Duterte said he has not decided yet on the proposal.

“I have to discuss it with the --- I have to discuss it with the Cabinet. I have to discuss it with (Labor Secretary Silvestre) Bello (III) and the rest,” he said.

“I am open to… I have not yet decided really. I just want to hear,” he added.

The minority bloc in the House of Representatives recently revived the appeal for the implementation of a shortened work week.

The lawmakers were pushing for the adoption of a four-day work week in the private sector and non-frontline national government offices as well as the maximization of the telecommuting or work-from-home law as a way to mitigate the traffic congestion in Metro Manila.

House Minority Floor Leader Bienvenido Abante Jr. has allayed fears that the congressional proposal to adopt a four-day work week, especially during the holiday season, would cut the salaries of employees.

Abante has assured that the proposal would not reduce the number of hours an employee must work per week, which is 40 hours.

For those who are paid on a daily basis, Abante said the employers who would adopt the four-day work week must pay the employees adequately so that their weekly and monthly wages remain the same.

He added that it would be a good opportunity for private and government offices to study and assess whether it is feasible to adopt the four-day work week in the future.

In 2017, the House of Representatives approved on third and final reading a bill that would allow employees to have a four-day work week.

House Bill 6152 would institutionalize a compressed work week policy "to promote business competitiveness, work efficiency and labor productivity."

The compressed work week would be an option aside from the current five- or six-day work week which would allow employees to work four days a week, but they must work up to 12 hours a day with three days off.

However, the bill was not passed into law.

According to the Labor Code, employees are required to render 40 to 48 hours of work a week. Ella Dionisio/DMS