The Labor Code of the Philippines

The Labor Code of the Philippines is the legal code governing

employment practices and labor relations in the Philippines. It was enacted on
Labor Day, May 1, 1974 by late President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos in
the exercise of his then extant legislative powers.

The Labor Code sets the rule for hiring and firing of private employees; the
conditions of work including maximum work hours and overtime; employee
benefits such as holiday pay, thirteenth-month pay and retirement pay; and the
guidelines in the organization and membership labor unions as well as in collective
bargaining.

The Labor Code contains several provisions which are beneficial to labor. It
prohibits termination of employment of Private employees except for just or
authorized causes as prescribed in Article 282 to 284 of the Code. The right to self-
organization of a union is expressly recognized, as is the right of a union to insist
on a closed shop.

Strikes are also authorized for as long as they comply with the strict
requirements under the Code, and workers who organize or participate in illegal
strikes may be subject to dismissal. Moreover, Philippine jurisprudence has long
applied a rule that any doubts in the interpretation of law, especially the Labor
Code, will be resolved in favor of labor and against management.

Labor Rights

Labor rights or workers rights are a group of legal rights and claimed
human rights having to do with labor relations between workers and their
employers, usually obtained under labor an employment law. In general, these
rights debates have to do with negotiating workers pay, benefits, and safe
working conditions. One of the most central of these rights is the right to unionize.
Unions take advantage of collective bargaining and industrial action to increase
their members wages and otherwise change their working situation. Labor rights
can also take in the form of workers control and workers self-management in
which workers have a democratic voice in decision and policy making. The labor
movement initially focused on this right to unionize, but attention has shifted
elsewhere.

Critics of the labor rights movement claim that regulation promoted by the
labor rights activists may limit opportunities for work. In the United States, critics
objected to unions establishing closed shops, situations where employers could
only hire union members. The Taft-Harley Act banned the close shop but allowed
the less restrictive union shop. Taft-Harley also allowed states to pass right-to-
work laws, which require an open shop where a workers employment is not
affected by his or her union membership, Labor counters that the open shop leads
to a free rider problem.