Good news to all media practioners out there.

A group of mostly Camarines Sur-based have refiled in the current 20th Congress the proposed Media Workers' Welfare Act, which seeks to give journalists and other workers in the industry rights and benefits that are enjoyed by their fellow workers in the government and private sector.

There include security of tenure, hazard and overtime pay, mandatory additional insurance coverage and other job-related benefits.

Camarines Sur 5th district Reps. Migz Villafuerte, Camarines Sur 2nd district Rep. Luigi Villafuerte, Camarines Sur 1st district Rep. Tsuyoshi Horibata, and Bicol Saro Party-list Rep. Terry Ridon filed House Bill (HB) No.1985 for this purpose.

It seeks to guarantee rights of media workers to self-organization and additional economic benefits enjoyed by other workers; and to establish a safe, protected atmosphere conducive to their productive, free and fruitful work.

“Media workers serve as frontliners in ensuring public information, promoting freedom of the press and expression, and upholding democracy, hence contributing to shaping public discourse and act as watchdogs in government accountability issues that, at times, jeopardize their safety and security,” the solon-authors said.

But despite their significant role in Philippine society and the nature of their work, “media workers face a wide array of labor standards and protection issues in the country,” they said.

They said these include contractualization, lack of security of tenure, and dangerous working conditions.

In line with the government’s responsibility to protect Filipino media workers and its effort towards the realization of these constitutional mandates, the authors of HB No.1985 said they aim in their bill to:

• Ensure that media workers receive a minimum wage, overtime pay, night shift premiums, hazard pay, and other forms of compensation provided in the Labor Code of the Philippines and other related laws and issuances;

• Provide media workers with social security and welfare benefits, as well as mandatory additional insurance benefits such as death benefit, disability benefit, and medical insurance benefit;

• Classify media workers as regular employees after six months from the start of employment; and

• Mandate the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) to create a News Media Tripartite Council (NMTC), which will serve as a platform for media workers and their employers to craft mutually beneficial policies and settle conflicts.

Migz Villafuerte, who is chairman of the House committee on information and communications technology (ICT), said that this pro-media proposal was passed by the House of Representatives in the 19th Congress, but it was not enacted into law as the Senate had failed to pass its counterpart measure.

HB No.304, which was authored by then-congressman and now Camarines Sur Governor LRay Villafuerte along with Migz Villafuerte, Horibata, and Bicol Saro Party-list, was passed by the House in May 2022.

“That this proposed measure was approved on third and final reading by the House of Representatives in the 19th Congress, underscored the overwhelming support in the chamber at that time for improving the welfare of Filipino media workers,” Luigi Villafuerte, a House deputy majority leader, said.

The approval of HB No.1985 aligns with Section 10, Article XVI of the 1987 Constitution, which mandates the State to “provide the policy environment for the full development of Filipino capability and the emergence of communication structures suitable to the needs and aspirations of the nation and the balanced flow of information into, out of, and across the country, in accordance with a policy that respects the freedom of speech and of the press.”

“Media workers” are defined in HB 1985 as those who are legitimately engaged in news media practice, directly or indirectly, whether as a principal occupation or not.

The bill defines “media entities” as persons or organizations, including media networks and operators that actively gather information of potential interest to a segment of the public, turn collected information into a distinct work, or distribute that work to an audience within the Philippines.

HB No.1985 states that media workers shall not receive less than the applicable minimum wage rate prescribed by the Regional Tripartite Wages and Productivity Board (RTWPB), and shall be entitled to overtime pay and night shift premiums, as well as other forms of compensation provided by the Presidential Decree (PD) No. 442, as amended, otherwise known as the “Labor Code of the Philippines”, and other related laws.