MANILA -- The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) urged other government agencies to push for the approval of the telecommuting bill.

“The DOLE is pushing for its immediate passage to ensure that notwithstanding the location of work, workers’ rights and welfare are protected, especially at the speed with which technological developments are taking shape,” Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said in a news release Thursday.

The Labor department has called on other government agencies to strengthen measures that would encourage workers and enterprises to take full advantage of the vast opportunities of rapid automation and digitalization, including enhancing access to new technologies.

Bello also underscored the digital technology's influence on the alternative forms of work model shifting, which is from the traditional and onsite locations to remote work sites.

For his part, Undersecretary Ciriaco Lagunzad III emphasized the support of DOLE in the proposed bill that seeks to enhance protection for the workers engaged in telecommuting.

House Bill 7402, or the Telecommuting Act, and its counterpart measure, Senate Bill 1363 or the Telecommuting Act of 2017 are pending before both Houses of Congress

Both measures are geared towards enhancing the protection and promotion of workers’ rights and welfare engaged in telecommuting and other flexible work arrangements. (PR)