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Philippines: Reopening the workplace – A legal perspective

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In brief

The Philippine national government has imposed an Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ) over the entire Luzon island effective 17 March 2020 to 15 May 2020. Local governments have also imposed ECQ over territories they oversee. As a result, only private establishments providing basic necessities and activities related to food and medicine production, business process outsourcing establishments, and export-oriented industries are allowed to remain physically open.

As the Philippine government considers lifting ECQ and workplace restrictions, employers should prepare to address employment concerns related to reopening the workplace, such as bringing back employees placed on forced leave, new legal requirements, measures to ensure safety of employees and clients, telecommuting, and flexible working arrangements. Employers who strategize dealing with these concerns will be best prepared to resume their operations and navigate these uncharted territories.

Contents

Quisumbing Torres has prepared this guide to help employers manage the challenges that may arise from resumption of operations amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

Click here to access full alert.

*In cooperation with Quisumbing Torres, a member firm of Baker & McKenzie International, a Swiss Verein.  Please contact QTInfoDesk@quisumbingtorres.com for inquiries.

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Author

Gil Roberto Zerrudo is a member of Quisumbing Torres' Management Committee, and a partner in its Employment Practice Group. He also co-heads the firm's Technology, Media and Telecommunications Industry Group. Gil participates in initiatives of Baker & McKenzie International of which Quisumbing Torres is a member firm. He is a member of Baker McKenzie's Asia Pacific Regional Council, the Global ASEAN Economic Community Focus Group, and Global Policy Committee. Gil has more than two decades of experience advising on various matters relating to employment and labor litigation. He is consistently recognized as a leading lawyer in Labor and Employment by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific and Chambers Asia Pacific

Author

Kenneth Chua is a partner and the head of Quisumbing Torres' Employment Practice Group. He is also a member of the Financial Institutions and Technology, Media & Telecommunications Industry Groups. He participates in initiatives of Baker & McKenzie International of which Quisumbing Torres is a member firm. He is a member of Baker McKenzie’s Asia Pacific Employment & Compensation Steering Committee. He has 23 years of experience advising clients on various labor and employment issues, including compensation and benefits, employment contract and employee handbook. Kenneth serves as the legal counsel (representing Quisumbing Torres) for the Global In-House Center Council Philippines (GICC). He sits in the Tripartite Executive Committee and the National Tripartite Industrial Peace Council of the Department of Labor and Employment as representative of the employer sector. He is consistently recognized as a Leading Lawyer in Employment by the Chambers Asia Pacific, Benchmark Litigation and asialaw profiles. He is ranked Hall of Fame in Employment by the Legal 500 Asia Pacific. He is also among Asia Business Law Journal’s inaugural “A-List” of the Top 100 lawyers in the Philippines.

Author

Eliseo Zuñiga, Jr. is the head of Quisumbing Torres' Dispute Resolution Practice Group and a member of the Employment Practice Group. He is also a member of the Industrial, Manufacturing & Telecommunications and the Healthcare & Life Sciences Industry Groups. He has over 20 years of experience advising clients on general employment issues, employee termination, executive compensation, benefits transfers and terminations, and general litigation. He actively participates as a speaker and presenter in various regional and local seminars and conferences on labor and employment-related issues. He served as a Chairperson of the People Management Association of the Philippines’ Labor Policy Reforms and Industrial Relations Committee and is currently the Co-Chairperson of the European Chamber of Commerce Human Capital Committee. He has been consistently cited as a Leading Individual for Employment by The Legal 500 Asia Pacific (2019-2023), Band 3 for Labor and Employment by the Chambers Asia Pacific (2018-2023), Litigation Star for Labor and Employment by Benchmark Litigation (2019 to 2023) and Notable Practitioner for Labor and Employment by asialaw Leading Lawyers (2020 to 2022). Eliseo is also recognized as a thought leader in the 2021 Q3 Lexology Legal Influencers for the Future of legal services - Asia-Pacific.

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