ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 1

ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 2

Ending Endo: The Reality of Contractual Employment

President Dutere (2018) claimed that “I will not run a country that way. If those who have

money won’t accept this, then you campaign against me. Make sure tatalunin ninyo ako. I will

not go for it. It is not a policy. It is not good.”(para. 3). In other words, Duterte voiced out his

thoughts about abolishing endo. Endo, also referred to as 5-5-5, is a form of contractualization

wherein companies hire workers for a limited amount of time. This issue has been a topic of

many debates here in the Philippines. Some say that the practice exploits the right of workers,

while others say that it will help with the growth of our economy. Regardless, current revisions

of the Philippine Labor Code considers the practice illegal. Endo infringes on worker’s basic

rights by providing them no job security and fewer benefits compared to the average worker.

Body

Citizens were delighted to hear that President Duterte would finally put a stop to Endo.

Although a large amount of workers here in the Philippines are regular workers, according to the

Philippine Statistics Authority (2015-2016), 572,034 of 1,190,697 non-regular workers are

contractual or project-based workers.

TABLE 9 - Total Employment and Number of Non-Regular Workers in Establishments with 20 or
More Workers by Category and Major Industry Group, Philippines: June 2016

Non-regular Workers

Total Contractual/
MAJOR INDUSTRY GROUP Probationary Casual Seasonal Apprentices/
Employment Total Project-based
Workers Workers Workers Learners
Workers

ALL INDUSTRIES 4,384,678 1,190,697 356,456 159,277 572,034 80,660 22,270

Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing 155,231 56,170 4,807 11,994 10,630 28,628 112
Mining and Quarrying 30,727 6,950 874 407 3,613 1,822 233
Manufacturing 994,455 269,824 56,645 60,899 118,505 18,906 14,869
Electricity, Gas, Steam and Air Conditioning Supply 41,354 4,131 827 902 2,169 80 153
Water Supply; Sewerage, Waste Management
and Remediation Activities 30,585 10,786 852 3,251 6,128 546 10
Construction 243,490 155,629 7,739 4,734 141,768 1,258 130
Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles
and Motorcycles 559,419 127,663 50,534 22,360 40,941 12,081 1,748
Transportation and Storage 164,726 35,929 11,095 3,949 17,022 2,039 1,823
Accommodation and Food Service Activities 215,750 71,049 23,445 13,360 29,487 3,029 1,727
Information and Communication 116,685 19,485 7,302 1,388 10,389 381 25
Financial and Insurance Activities 243,532 25,064 17,222 1,270 3,899 2,639 35
Real Estate Activities 45,190 10,197 4,728 650 4,549 256 15
Professional, Scientific and Technical Activities 108,609 18,085 9,804 1,026 7,014 81 159
Administrative and Support Services Activities 967,699 270,408 108,682 18,499 138,281 4,652 295
Education except Public Education 271,023 78,106 38,443 9,345 26,577 3,338 404
Human Health and Social Work Activities
except Public Health Activities 135,173 19,501 11,188 3,962 3,707 307 337
Arts, Entertainment and Recreation 46,655 9,726 1,790 992 6,495 365 84
Repair of Computers and Personal and Household Goods;
Other Personal Service Activities 14,373 1,993 480 289 859 251 114
Note: Details may not add up to totals due to rounding.
Source: Philippine Statistics Authority, 2015/2016 Integrated Survey on Labor and Employment (ISLE).
ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 2

As stated by Olaguer (2016) most business agencies such as housekeeping, security and

maintenance have been practicing Endo for years on end. Establishments exercise this model to

cut-off expenses such as employee benefits. These benefits include 13th-month pay, which is

when the total monthly salary of an employee, for a whole year, is divided by twelve months.

Overtime pay, which is when an employee works past her usual schedule. Service incentive

leave, which is when an employee is given a 5 day paid leave for every one year of service; and

more benefits included as stated in Employee Benefits under Philippine Laws of Nicolas and De

Vega (2019). Contractual employees lack the indicated benefits due to the short amount of time

in their employment. Since contractual workers only last for 5 months, benefits such as 13th-

month pay and service incentive leave do not apply to them. This bypasses the Executive Order

no. 51, that prohibits illegal labor contracting laws, but allows other forms of contractualization.

Regular employees are involved in performing activities that are usually vital in the

business; however, term employees are under a contract that lasts for 5 months, and can be

terminated with or without due process. Companies that have term employees do not consider

their employment valid. This is because employees that last at most five months in a company

are only considered as trainees. Contractual employees, as mention previously, are terminated as

soon as their contract expires. These workers are dismissed without any due process which can

be a problem for employees especially if they dismissed before the end of the contract. For

instance, on the 26th of June, 2018, former workers of Jollibee held a protest due to their abrupt

termination. According to Ang and Amboroso (2018) this was the worker’s second protest action

after the termination of their two contracting agencies led to a mass suspension of nearly 400
ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 2

workers. The protest happened due to Jollibee refusing to regularize their workers. One of these

workers was Renante Hisanan, who was a “regular contractual” in Topis Solutions.

Conclusion

In the end, workers continue to fight for what is right and for their rights regarding this

issue. Endo is a malpractice continually used by companies to cut down costs. This short-term

employment used by many employers disregards the basic rights of workers such as benefits and

job security. The lack of employee benefits: service incentive leave, over time pay, 13th month

pay and no job security are the reasons why citizens of our country highly frown upon this

practice.
ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 2

References

Ang, A., & Amoroso, H. (2018, July 26). Jollibee refuses to regularize workers, lays off 400.

Retrieved November 25, 2019, from https://www.bulatlat.com/2018/06/29/jolibee-

refuses-regularize-workers-lays-off-400/.

Nicolas, K. & De Vega, N. (2019). Are Contractual Employees Entitled to Separation Pay?

Retrieved November 20, 2019, from https://ndvlaw.com/are-contractual-employees-

entitled-to-separation-pay/.

Nicolas, K. & De Vega, N. (2019). Employee Benefits under Philippine Laws. Retrieved

November 1, 2019, from https://ndvlaw.com/employee-benefits-under-philippine-laws/.

Olaguer, J. (2016). ACADEMIA. Retrieved November 1, 2019, from

https://www.academia.edu/28062037/Realities_of_Contractual_Employment_in_the_Phil

ippines_An_Exposition_of_Its_Impact_to_Workers_and_Business.

Philippine Statistics Authority. (2016). Table 9 – Total Employment and Number of Non-Regular

Workers in Establishments with 20 or More Workers by Category and Major Industry

Group, Philippines: June 2016. [PDF File]. Retrieved November 1, 2019, from

https://psa.gov.ph/sites/default/files/table%209.pdf

The Japan Times. (2018). The Japan Times. Retrieved November 1, 2019, from

https://www.japantimes.co.jp/opinion/2018/02/12/editorials/job-security-irregular-

workers/#.XcjOqsoRWhB

Tomacruz, S. (2018). Duterte’s promise to abolish endo. Rappler. Retrieved November 1, 2019,

from https://www.rappler.com/newsbreak/iq/201468-duterte-endo-contractualization-

promise-2016-to-2018
ENDING ENDO: THE REALITY OF CONTRACTUAL EMPLOYMENT 2