DOLE to conduct compliance inspections on fishing vessels in GenSan

Sisinio Cano, DOLE-12 regional director, said Monday the initiative is in line with the implementation of Department Order (DO) No. 156-16, or the “Rules and Regulations Governing the Working and Living Conditions of Fishers on Board Fishing Vessels Engaged in Commercial Fishing Operations.” (Photo by: Butch Dalisay/Flickr,CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 )

GENERAL SANTOS CITY — The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) is set to conduct another round of inspections on fishing companies and operators here to check on their compliance with labor standards.

Sisinio Cano, DOLE-12 regional director, said Monday the initiative is in line with the implementation of Department Order (DO) No. 156-16, or the “Rules and Regulations Governing the Working and Living Conditions of Fishers on Board Fishing Vessels Engaged in Commercial Fishing Operations.”

He said the inspections will cover all fishing vessels owned and operated by entities based in the city.

The official said they have started profiling the concerned companies and operators to determine the number of vessels that will be subjected to the compliance inspections.

He said these will be based on three categories or classifications of fishing vessels — the small, medium and large.

Cano said they will come up with a checklist of the standards that will be covered by the inspections.

“We will start with the inspections as soon as the profiling is completed,” he said in a press conference.

Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III had ordered the conduct of the inspections in response to the clamor of local labor groups led by the Alliance of Progressive Labor-Sentro ng mga Nagkakaisa at Progresibong Manggagawa.

The group said the move aims to ensure that fishing companies and other players in the city’s tuna industry would be compliant to the labor standards and address possible cases of illegal employment schemes, especially labor-only contracting.

Cano said DO 156-16 sets employment standards such as minimum wage, holiday and premium pay, additional premium pay, overtime pay, night shift differential pay, paid service incentive leave, and 13th month pay.

He said it applies to fishing vessel owners, fishers, and captains or masters on board Philippine-registered fishing vessels engaged in commercial fishing operation in Philippine or international waters.

DOLE-12 had forged a partnership with tuna industry players here to ensure their compliance to various labor laws and standards.

Industry players, though the Socsksargen Federation of Fishing and Allied Industries Inc. specifically agreed to jointly promote “stable, equitable, and harmonious employment relations” within the industry.

They agreed to undergo assessments to validate allegations regarding the prevalence of illegal contractualization schemes in the operations of companies in the tuna industry.