EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 126
EXECUTIVE ORDER NO. 126 -
REORGANIZING THE MINISTRY OF LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT AND FOR OTHER
PURPOSES
RECALLING
that the reorganization of the government is mandated expressly in
Article II, Section I (a), and Article III of the Freedom
Constitution;
HAVING IN MIND that pursuant to Executive Order No. 5 (1986), it is
directed that necessary and proper changes in the organizational and
functional structures of the government, its agencies and
instrumentalities, be effected in order to promote efficiency and
effectiveness in the delivery of public services;
CONSIDERING that it has become necessary to introduce critical
structural and functional changes in the Ministry of Labor and
Employment to make it more responsive to the urgent demands of national
economic recovery;
BELIEVING that the same Ministry has to streamline its operations by
rationalizing its functions, structure and organization to make it more
efficient and effective in undertaking its principal mission of
translating the declared policy of the state on labor into meaningful
program on employment promotion, manpower development and utilization,
advancement of workers’ welfare, provision for a decent living wage and
other just and humane conditions of work and promotion of sound and
stable industrial harmony as essential components of national economic
recovery and development;
RECOGNIZING that women and rural workers have a vital role in
nation-building, the same Ministry has to create, promote and develop
the conditions for their full utilization, including their protection
and welfare.
NOW, THEREFORE, I, CORAZON C. AQUINO, by the powers vested in me by the
sovereign will of the Filipino People and the Freedom Constitution, do
hereby order:
Section 1. Title. — This Executive Order shall
otherwise be known as the Reorganization Act of the Ministry of Labor
and Employment.
Sec. 2. Reorganization. — The Ministry of Labor
and Employment, hereinafter referred to as Ministry, is hereby
reorganized, structurally and functionally in accordance with the
provisions of this Executive Order.
Sec. 3. Declaration of Policy. — It is the
declared policy of the State to afford protection to labor, promote
full employment, ensure equal work opportunities regardless of sex,
race, or creed, and regulate the relations between workers and
employers. The State shall assure the rights of the workers to
self-organization, collective bargaining, security of tenure, and just
and human conditions of work.
Sec. 4. Mandate and Objectives. — The Ministry
shall be the primary policy, programming, coordinating and
administrative entity of the Executive Branch of the government in the
field of labor and employment. It shall assume primary responsibility
for:
(a)
The promotion of gainful employment opportunities and the optimization
of the development and utilization of the country’s manpower resources;
(b) The
advancement of workers’ welfare by providing for just and humane
working conditions and terms of employment;
(c) The
maintenance of industrial peace by promoting harmonious, equitable, and
stable employment relations that assure equal protection for the rights
of all concerned parties.
Sec. 5. Powers and Functions. — In pursuit of its
mandate, the Ministry shall have the following powers and
functions:
(a)
Formulate and recommend policies, plans and programs for manpower
development, training, allocation, and utilization;
(b) Protect
and promote the interest of every citizen desiring to work locally or
overseas by securing for him the most equitable terms and conditions of
employment, and by providing social and welfare services;
(c) Regulate
the employment of aliens, including the establishment of a registration
and/or work permit system for such aliens;
(d) Formulate
general guidelines concerning wage and income policy;
(e) Recommend
necessary adjustments in wage structures with a view to developing a
wage system that is consistent with national economic and social
development plans;
(f) Provide
for safe, decent, humane and improved working conditions and
environment for all workers, particularly women and young workers;
(g) Maintain
harmonious, equitable and stable labor relations system that is
supportive of the national economic policies and programs;
(h) Uphold the
right of workers and employers to organize and to promote free
collective bargaining as the foundation of the labor relations
system;
(i) Provide
and ensure the fair and expeditious settlement and disposition of labor
and industrial disputes through collective bargaining, grievance
machinery, conciliation, mediation, voluntary arbitration, compulsory
arbitration as may be provided by law, and other modes that may be
voluntarily agreed upon by the parties concerned.
Sec. 6. Minister of Labor and Employment. — The
authority and responsibility for the exercise of the mandate of the
Ministry and for the discharge of its powers and functions shall be
vested in the Minister of Labor and Employment, hereinafter referred to
as the Minister, who shall be appointed by the President and who shall
have supervision and control over the Ministry. For such purposes, the
Minister shall have the following powers and functions:
(a)
Advise the President on the promulgation of executive/administrative
orders, other regulative issuances and legislative proposals on matters
pertaining to labor and employment;
(b) Formulate
policies, guidelines, rules and regulations and other issuances
necessary to carry out Ministry policies, plans, programs and projects;
(c) Issue
orders, directives, rules and regulations and other issuances to carry
out labor and employment policies, plans, programs and projects;
(d) Provide
overall direction, supervision, and control over all offices under the
Ministry to ensure effective and efficient implementation of its
policies, plans, programs and projects;
(e) Coordinate
with other government offices, labor, organizations, employers
associations, and any other group to carry out the mandate of the
Ministry;
(f) Evaluate
the policy, plans, programs and project accomplishment of the Ministry;
(g) Prepare
reports for the President and for the public;
(h) Delegate
authority for the performance of any function to officers and employees
of the Ministry;
(i) Exercise
such other powers and functions as may be provided by law or assigned
by the President.
Sec. 7. Office of the Minister. — The Office of
the Minister shall consist of the Minister and his immediate
staff.
Sec. 8. Deputy Minister. — The Minister shall be
assisted by not more than four (4) Deputy Ministers who shall be
appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the Minister. The
Minister is hereby authorized to delineate and assign the respective
functional areas of responsibility of the Deputy Ministers, provided,
that such responsibility shall be with respect to the mandate and
objectives of the Ministry; and provided, further, that no Deputy
Minister shall be assigned primarily administrative responsibilities.
Within his functional area of responsibility, a Deputy Minister shall
have the following functions:
(a)
Advise and assist the Minister in the formulation and implementation of
the Ministry’s policies, plans, programs and projects;
(b) Oversee
the operational activities of the Ministry;
(c) Coordinate
the programs and projects of the Ministry for efficient and effective
administration;
(d) Serve as
deputy for the Minister;
(e) Perform,
when so designated, the power and functions of the Minister, during the
latter’s absence or incapacity; and
(f) Perform
such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the
Minister to promote the efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of
public services.
Sec. 9. Assistant Ministers. — The Minister shall
likewise be assisted by not more than four (4) Assistant Ministers who
shall be appointed by the President upon the recommendation of the
Minister. The Minister is hereby authorized to delineate and assign the
respective areas of functional responsibility of the Assistant
Ministers. Within his functional area of responsibility, an Assistant
Minister shall assist the Minister and Deputy Ministers in the
formulation, determination and implementation of laws, policies, plans,
programs and projects on labor and shall oversee the day-to-day
administration and supervision of the constituent units of the
Ministry.
Sec. 10. Structural Organization. — The Ministry
shall consist of the Ministry proper comprising the Office of the
Minister, the Office of the Deputy and Assistant Ministers, the
Services and the Staff Bureaus, and its Regional Offices.
Sec. 11. Planning Service. — The Planning Service
shall provide the Ministry with efficient, effective and economical
services relating to planning, programming, project development and
evaluation, and the development and implementation of a management
information system.
Sec. 12. Administrative Service. — The
Administrative Service shall provide the Ministry with efficient,
effective and economical services relating to records, management,
supplies, equipment, collections, disbursements, building
administration and maintenance, security and custodial work.
Sec. 13. Human Resource Development Service. — The
Human Resource Development Service shall provide the Ministry with a
program and corresponding projects that shall make available training,
education and development opportunities needed to upgrade the levels of
competence and productivity of Ministry managers and personnel. It
shall absorb the powers and functions of the Administrative Service in
relation to the development and administration of personnel programs
including selection and placement, development, performance evaluation,
employee relations and welfare.
Sec. 14. Financial Management Service. — The
Financial and Management Service shall be responsible for providing the
Ministry with efficient, effective and economical services relating to
budgetary, financial, management improvement and internal control
matters.
Sec. 15. Legal Service. — The Legal Service shall
provide legal advice and service to Ministry officers and employees;
prepare informative or clarificatory opinions on labor laws, rules and
regulations for uniform interpretation thereof; answer legal queries
from the public; assist the Office of the Solicitor General in suits
involving the Ministry or its officers or employees or act as their
principal counsel in all actions taken in their official capacity or
other causes before judicial or administrative bodies.
Sec. 16. International Labor Affairs Service. —
The International Labor Affairs Service shall be responsible for
monitoring the observance and implementation of all obligations,
courtesies, and facilities required by international labor affairs,
particularly the International Labor Organization, the Conference of
Asian Pacific Labor Ministries, the ASEAN Labor Ministers Meeting of
which the Philippines is a member, and related international labor
standards and agreements reached in various international labor forums,
treaties, and other multilateral, bilateral or multi-bilateral
agreements in the area of labor and employment; provide staff support
and policy guidelines to the Minister in the supervision, monitoring
and reporting of the activities of the Philippine overseas labor
officers assigned in different countries; serve as the instrumentality
of the Ministry for technical cooperation, programs and activities with
other countries and international institutions.
Sec. 17. Information and Publication Service. —
The Information and Publication Service shall be responsible for
promoting rapport and understanding between the Ministry and the public
through the development of public relations programs and the
dissemination of accurate and updated information on labor and
employment, by means of publications and media coverages of special
events and related matters on the Ministry’s policies, plans, programs,
and projects; shall likewise be responsible for providing answers to
queries from the public regarding the Ministry’s policies, rules,
regulations, programs, activities and services.
Sec. 18. Bureaus. — The following staff bureaus of
the Ministry are hereby retained and shall continue to have the same
functions, except as otherwise provided herein:
(a)
Bureau of Local Employment;
(b) Bureau of
Women and Young Workers;
(c) Bureau of
Rural Workers;
(d) Bureau of
Labor Relations, which shall continue to performs its present functions
except those to be absorbed by the National Mediation and Conciliation
Board as provided under Sec. 29 (c) hereof; and
(e) Bureau of
Working Conditions.
Sec. 19. Attached Agencies. — The following
agencies shall continue to be attached to the Ministry for policy and
program coordination and administrative supervision:
(a)
National Wages Council;
(b) Philippine
Overseas Employment Administration;
(c) Employees
Compensation Commission which is hereby reorganized to include the
Executive Director of the ECC as an ex-officio member of the
Commission;
(d) The
National Manpower and Youth Council;
(e) The
National Labor Relations Commission;
(f) The
Welfare Fund for Overseas Workers’ Administration which is hereby
renamed as the Overseas Workers’ Welfare Administration;
(g) Maritime
Training Council; and
(h) National
Maritime Polytechnic Foundation.
Sec. 20. Center for Labor Studies. — There is
hereby created a Center for Labor Studies, hereinafter referred to as
the Center, which shall be under the administrative supervision of the
Minister. The Center shall absorb the research and publication
functions of the Institute of Labor and Manpower Studies which is
hereby abolished in accordance with Sec. 29 (b). The Center, to be
headed by an Executive Director, assisted by a Deputy Executive
Director, shall have the following functions:
(a)
Undertake research and studies in all areas of labor and manpower
policy and administration;
(b) Review the
rationale of existing legislation and regulations and analyze the costs
involved in the implementation of such legislation against the benefits
expected to be derived;
(c) Study and
develop innovative and indigenous approaches towards the promotion of
harmonious and productive labor-management relations, and the
improvement of workers’ welfare services;
(d) Develop
and undertake research programs and projects in collaboration with
other national agencies to enhance the Ministry’s capability to
participate in national decision and policy making;
(e) Enter into
agreements with international or bilateral agencies for the carrying
out of the foregoing functions;
(f) Expand the
scope of its research interests into other countries and regions;
(g) Publish
its research studies for dissemination to government as well as to all
concerned parties; and
(h) Perform
such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the
Minister.
Sec. 21. Bureaus of Labor and Employment
Statistics. — A Bureau of Labor and Employment Statistics is hereby
created and shall absorb the functions of the Labor Statistics Service
which is hereby abolished in accordance with Sec. 29 (b). The Bureau
shall have the following functions:
(a)
Formulate, develop and implement plans and programs on the labor
statistical system in order to provide the government with timely,
accurate and reliable data on labor and employment;
(b) Conduct
nationwide surveys and studies which will generate trends and
structures on labor and employment;
(c) Develop
and prescribe uniform statistical standards, nomenclatures and
methodologies for the collection, processing, presentation and analysis
of labor and employment data;
(d) Establish
appropriate mechanisms for the coordination of all statistical
activities in the Ministry and for collaboration with other government
and private agencies including international research organizations in
the conduct of surveys and studies in the area of labor and employment;
(e)
Disseminate statistical information and provide statistical
services/advice to the users by establishing a data bank and issuing
the Bureau’s statistical materials and research findings;
(f) Develop
and undertake programs and projects geared towards the enhancement of
the technical competence of the Ministry on theories, techniques and
methodologies for the improvement of the labor statistical
system;
(g) Monitor
and exercise technical supervision over the statistical units in the
Ministry and its agencies; and
(h) Perform
such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the
Minister.
Sec. 22. National Conciliation and Mediation
Board. — A National Conciliation and Mediation Board, herein referred
to as the “Board”, is hereby created and which shall absorb the
conciliation, mediation and voluntary arbitration functions of the
Bureau of Labor Relations in accordance with Sec. 29 (c) hereof. The
Board shall be composed of an Administrator and two (2) Deputy
Administrators. It shall be an attached agency under the administrative
supervision of the Minister of Labor and Employment.
The Administrator and the Deputy Administrators shall be appointed by
the President upon recommendation of the Minister of Labor and
Employment. There shall be as many Conciliators-Mediators as the needs
of the public service require, who shall have at least three (3) years
of experience in handling labor relations and who shall be appointed by
the President upon recommendation of the Minister.
The Board shall have its main office in Metropolitan Manila and its
Administrator shall exercise supervision over Conciliators-Mediators
and all its personnel. It shall establish as many branches as there are
administrative regions in the country, with as many
Conciliators-Mediators as shall be necessary for its effective
operation. Each branch of the Board shall be headed by an Executive
Conciliator-Mediator.
The Board shall have the following functions:
(a)
Formulate policies, programs, standards, procedures, manuals of
operation and guidelines pertaining to effective mediation and
conciliation of labor disputes;
(b) Perform
preventive mediation and conciliation functions;
(c) Coordinate
and maintain linkages with other sectors or institutions, and other
government authorities concerned with matters relative to the
prevention and settlement of labor disputes;
(d) Formulate
policies, plans, programs, standards, procedures, manuals of operation
and guidelines pertaining to the promotion of cooperative and
non-adversarial schemes, grievance handling, voluntary arbitration and
other voluntary modes of dispute settlement;
(e) Administer
the voluntary arbitration program; maintain/update a list of voluntary
arbitrations; compile arbitration awards and decisions;
(f) Provide
counselling and preventive mediation assistance particularly in the
administration of collective agreements;
(g) Monitor
and exercise technical supervision over the Board programs being
implemented in the regional offices; and
(h) Perform
such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the
Minister.
Sec. 23. Transfer. — The National Productivity
Commission is hereby transferred from the National Economic Development
Authority and attached to the Ministry in accordance with Sec. 29
(c) hereof. The Commission shall primarily deal with productivity
promotion and enhancement, education and training,
coordination/monitoring, funding and the conduct of special and policy
studies directly related to its activities. It shall have the Minister
of Trade and Industry as Chairman and the Minister of Labor and
Employment as Vice-Chairman.
Sec. 24. Regional Offices. — The Ministry is
hereby authorized to establish, operate and maintain such ministry-wide
Regional Offices in each of the administrative regions of the country,
insofar as necessary, which shall be headed by a Regional Director who
shall have supervision and control thereof. The Regional Director,
whenever necessary, shall be assisted by an Assistant Regional
Director. A Regional Office shall have, within its regional area, the
following functions:
(a)
Implement laws, policies, plans, programs, projects, rules and
regulations of the Ministry;
(b) Provide
economical, efficient and effective service to the people;
(c) Coordinate
with regional offices of other ministries and agencies;
(d) Coordinate
with local government units; and
(e) Perform
such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the
Minister.
Sec. 25. New Structure and Pattern. — Upon
approval of this Executive Order, the officers and employees of the
Ministry shall in a holdover capacity, continue to perform their
respective duties and responsibilities and receive the corresponding
salaries and benefits unless in the meantime they are separated from
government service pursuant to Executive Order No. 17 (1986) or Article
III of the Freedom Constitution.
The new position structure and staffing pattern of the Ministry shall
be approved and prescribed by the Minister for the Ministry within one
hundred twenty (120) days from the approval of this Executive Order and
the authorized positions created thereunder shall be filled with
regular appointments by him or by the President as the case may be.
Those incumbents whose positions are not included therein or who are
not reappointed shall be deemed separated from the service. Those
separated from the service shall receive the retirement benefits to
which they may be entitled under existing laws, rules and regulations.
Otherwise, they shall be paid the equivalent of one-month basic salary
for every year of service, or the equivalent nearest fraction thereof
favorable to them on the basis of the highest salary received, but in
no case shall such payment exceed the equivalent of 12 months
salary.
No court or administrative body shall issue any writ or preliminary
injunctions or restraining order to enjoin the separation/replacement
of any officer or employee affected under this Executive Order.
Sec. 26. Prohibition Against Reorganizational
Change. — No change in the reorganization herein prescribed shall be
valid except upon prior approval of the President for the purpose of
promoting efficiency and effectiveness in the delivery of public
services.
Sec. 27. Funding. — Funds needed to carry out the
provisions of this Executive Order shall be taken from funds available
in the Ministry.
Sec. 28. Implementing Authority of Minister. — The
Minister shall issue such rules, regulations and other issuances as may
be necessary to ensure the effective implementation of the provisions
of this Executive Order.
Sec. 29. Transitory Provisions. — In the
abolition/transfer of entity/functions as prescribed in the Executive
Order, the following rules shall be provided:
(a)
Any transfer of entities shall include the functions, appropriations,
funds, records, equipment, facilities, other properties, assets, and
liabilities and of the transferred entity as well as the personnel
thereof as may be necessary, who shall, in a holdover capacity,
continue to perform their respective duties and responsibilities and
receive the corresponding salaries and benefits unless in the meantime
they are separated from government service pursuant to Executive Order
No. 17 (1986) or Article III of the Freedom Constitution. Those
personnel from the transferred entity whose positions are not included
in the new position structure and staffing pattern approved by the
Minister or who are not reappointed shall be entitled to the benefits
provided in the second paragraph of Sec. 25 hereof.
(b) Any
transfer of functions which results in the abolition of the entity that
has exercised such transferred functions shall include as may be
necessary, to the proper discharge of the transferred functions, the
appropriations, funds, records, equipment, facilities, other assets,
and personnel of the entity from which such functions have been
transferred. The remaining appropriations and funds shall revert to the
General Fund and the remaining records, equipment, facilities and other
assets shall be allocated to such appropriate units as the Minister
shall determine or otherwise shall be disposed of, in accordance with
the Auditing Code and other pertinent laws, rules and regulations. The
liabilities, if any, of the abolished entity shall be treated likewise
in accordance with the Auditing Code and other pertinent laws, rules
and regulations. Incumbents of the abolished entity shall, in a
holdover capacity continue to perform their respective duties and
responsibilities and receive the corresponding salaries and benefits
unless in the meantime they are separated from government service
pursuant to Executive Order No. 17 (1986) or Article III of the Freedom
Constitution. Any such personnel whose position is not included in the
new position structure and staffing pattern approved by the Minister or
who is not reappointed shall be entitled to the benefits provided in
the second paragraph of Sec. 25 hereof.
(c) Any
transfer of functions which does not result in the abolition of the
entity that has exercised such transferred functions shall include the
appropriations, funds, records, equipment, facilities, other assets as
well as the personnel of the entity from which such functions have been
transferred that are necessary to the proper discharge of such
transferred functions. The liabilities, if any, which have been
incurred in connection with the discharge of the transferred functions
shall be allocated in accordance with the Auditing Code and the
pertinent laws, rules and regulations. Such personnel shall, in a
holdover capacity, continue to perform their respective duties and
responsibilities and receive the corresponding salaries and benefits
unless in the meantime they are separated from government service
pursuant to Executive Order No. 17 (1986) or Article III of the Freedom
Constitution. Any such personnel whose position is not included in the
new position structure and staffing pattern approved by the Minister or
who is not reappointed shall be entitled to the benefits provided in
the second paragraph of Sec. 25 hereof.
(d) In case of
the abolition of an entity which does not result in the transfer of its
functions to another entity, the appropriations and funds of the
abolished entity shall revert to the General Fund, while the records,
equipment, facilities and other assets thereof shall be allocated to
such appropriate units as the Minister shall determine or otherwise
shall be disposed of in accordance with the Auditing Code and other
pertinent laws, rules and regulations. The liabilities, if any, of the
abolished entity shall be treated in accordance with the Auditing Code
and other pertinent laws, while the personnel thereof shall be entitled
to the benefits provided in the second paragraph of Sec. 25
hereof.
Sec. 30. Change of Nomenclatures. — In the event
of the adoption of a new Constitution which provides for a presidential
form of government, the Ministry shall be called Department of Labor
and Employment and the titles of Minister, Deputy Minister, and
Assistant Minister shall be changed to Secretary, Undersecretary, and
Assistant Secretary, respectively.
Sec. 31. Notice or Consent Requirement. — If any
reorganizational change herein authorized is of such substance or
materiality as to prejudice third persons with rights recognized by law
or contract such that notice to or consent of creditors is required to
be made or obtained pursuant to any agreement entered into with any of
such creditors, such notice or consent requirement shall be complied
with prior to the implementation of such reorganizational change.
Sec. 32. Separability Clause. — Any portion or
provision of this Executive Order that may declared unconstitutional
shall not have the effect of nullifying other portions or provisions
hereof as long as such remaining portions can still subsist and be
given effect in their entirety.
Sec. 33. Repealing Clause. — All laws, ordinances,
rules, regulations, other issuances or parts thereof, which are
inconsistent with this Executive Order, are hereby repealed or modified
accordingly.
Sec. 34. Effectivity. — This Executive Order shall
take effect immediately upon its approval.
APPROVED in the City of Manila,
Philippines, this 31st day of January, in the year of Our Lord,
nineteen hundred and eighty-seven.
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