A labor leader is questioning the jurisdiction of the Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) to compel Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) offices in economic zones to require their employees to go back physically to office work.
Bukluran ng Manggagawang Pilipino (BMP) President Luke Espiritu pointed out the order undermines the jurisdiction of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) since it affects employer-employee relationship.
“The order in question, Resolution 19-21 of the FIRB is not a return to office order at all, but a declaration that they will revoke the tax incentives of BPO companies unless they compel their employees to work onsite by April 1, 2022,” Espiritu said.
The affected BPO firms appealed to the FIRB to extend the deadline that will require their workers to return to office work, but the board refused to budge on the issue, saying it will be unfair for BPO firms operating outside of economic zones that are paying taxes.
Establishments are given tax breaks if their operations are based in economic zones.
The FIRB relaxed these restrictions during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in the last two years, when cases were much more widespread, and allowed BPO firms to retain their tax perks even if some of their personnel are working from home.
Espiritu said he is supporting the appeal of BPO companies for a longer grace period before they start requiring office duties to their personnel since the country is still under a state of calamity due to the pandemic.
FIRB’s insistence, he said, may put the lives of the affected BPO workers at risk.
“We are one with the 1.3 million workers in the BPO industry in their struggle to reverse the RTO [return to office] order and fight for the right to continue the work-from-home [WFH] setup, which ensures their productivity, health and safety, and greater time with their respective families,” Espiritu said.
Espiritu also criticized Finance Secretary Carlos G. Dominguez III, who also chairs the FIRB, for using micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs) as an “excuse” to justify Resolution 19-21.
Dominguez earlier said BPO firms in ecozones are actually allowed to definitely implement WFH arrangement, but they will risk forfeiting their tax exemptions.
For its part, the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) said FIRB Resolution 19-21 is a tax issue and not an issue on the legality of telecommuting.
Image credits: PITON-Global