A new legislator seeks an end to what he called was the “exploitation of on-the-job trainees or interns hired by private companies and the government.”
Rizal Rep. Fidel Nograles has filed House Bill 5652 or the Interns’ Rights, Welfare, and Benefits bill that bans the practice of unpaid work rendered by interns, particularly those training with the government.
The bill also mandates the activation of a grievance mechanism where interns could air their complaints, particularly for cases of abuse such as sexual harassment and intimidation.
Nograles said the bill hoped “to secure and protect the interns during the whole duration of their internships.”
The measure would also protect interns from “abusive and irrelevant work assignments by just working on what is described in their internship contract and following a clearly defined internship plan,” Nograles added.
“This bill seeks to recognize the contribution of on the job trainees in the companies where they were assigned,” he said.
Interns, he said, provide fresh and unique insights that contribute to process improvement, as well as talent in key areas such as technology, yet they are not compensated for such contributions.
“The most that outstanding interns could get at the present system is the promise of employment upon graduation,” Nograles lamented.
He relayed that he has had various conversations with students who became disillusioned after their internship because they were assigned tasks that were not related to their course.
“Some of the older generation still see the value in making interns go through tasks such as brewing coffee or acting as messengers. But in this digital age, that seems a massive waste of the talent of the young ones,” said Nograles who used to teach in law school.
Nograles expressed hope that with the passage of the bill, the youth would be inspired, instead of turned off, by the workplace.
“Let’s give the youth something to look forward to,” he said.