THE government and rural banks will now be offering soft loans to distressed micro and small establishments to help them pay the 13th-month pay of their workers, according to the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE).
Labor Secretary Silvestre H. Bello III said the Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) has offered to allocate a portion of the P10- billion funds of its attached agency, Small Business Corp., for the purpose.
“They are willing to share about 4 billion of that [fund] to provide soft loans for micro and small enterprises so they could loan without collateral and pay the 13th-month pay of their employees,” Bello said in an online briefing on Tuesday.
Likewise, the labor chief said the Rural Bankers Association of the Philippines announced its members have also offered to provide similar soft loans to micro and small establishments.
Pending action
In a related development, Bello said their proposed government subsidy for distressed establishments has yet to be acted upon by the Office of the President.
DOLE is currently requesting for between P3.5 billion and P13 billion to provide subsidy to benefit 1.5 million to 5 million workers, respectively.
“If we will be able to find a stand-by fund or savings for it, maybe we could subsidize small and micro enterprises,” Bello said.
The labor chief said the soft loan and subsidy, if approved, will ensure all companies will be able to afford to pay the 13th-month benefits of their workers on or before December 24, 2020, as mandated by Presidential Decree (PD) 851.
Labor group aid
Despite DOLE’s assurance, labor advocate group Defend Jobs Philippines (DJP) said some companies may still opt to violate PD 851 by citing the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on their operations.
To help the workers of these erring establishments, DJP launched a hotline—09150052082 (Globe) or 09995542533 (Smart)—where they could report the nonpayment of their 13th-month pay.
“While ensuring the confidentiality of our complainants, we aim to compile the 13th-month pay related violations of employers and file the list of violators to the Labor Department for appropriate penalties and sanctions,” DJP spokesman Christian Lloyd Magsoy said.
DOLE spokesman Rolly Francia said the affected workers may also directly file their complaint with DOLE through its hotline 1349.
Image credits: Roy Domingo