A LABOR group in Negros Occidental has expressed optimism that President Rodrigo Duterte will make the signing of the service charge measure into law an urgent matter.

Wennie Sancho, secretary general of the General Alliance of Workers Associations (Gawa), said the measure would be a breakthrough as this will augment the income of hotel and restaurant workers in the country including Negros Occidental.

On May 28, the Senate ratified the bill granting 100 percent of the service charges to restaurant and hotel employees as well as to those of similar establishments in the service industry.

The Congress Bicameral Conference Committee, earlier that day, adopted the reconciled version of the Senate Bill No. 1299 and House Bill No. 8784.

The bill covers rank-and-file service industry workers as well as supervisors.

Under which, all service charges shall be equally distributed among these workers from the current sharing of 85 and 15 percent for the workers and management, respectively.

Sancho said the sharing has been reversed as some employers are getting bulk of the service charges.

“Companies are recovering their breakages and losses from the service charges paid by the consumers,” he said, adding that “in Negros Occidental, it is also happening as we received reports from workers on not having their right share.”

The ratified bill provides that the Department of Labor and Employment (Dole) is tasked to ensure the compliance of establishments and determine the penalties for violators.

Though, it does not require the imposition of service charge among establishments.

Sancho said that if passed into law, the measure would benefit at least 400,000 workers in the country. They have yet to get the figure for Negros Occidental.

Hotel and restaurant frontline workers will now get what is actually theirs after providing quality and efficient services to the costumers, Sancho said.

“The President should sign it immediately as thousands of workers are waiting for it,” he said, stressing that it sides to the independence of the workers in getting what is due to them.