Cebu labor groups launch ‘People’s Sona’

MOBILIZING ahead of President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s State of the Nation Address (Sona) on Monday, July 27, 2026, local progressive alliances led by the BPO (business process outsourcing) Industry Employees Network (Bien) Cebu and labor coalition Sanlakas launched the “People’s Sona,” an alternative platform designed to expose the ground-level plight of the country’s workforce.

Kyle Enero, BPO sector representative and president of Bien Cebu, pointed out the contradiction between official government rhetoric and working conditions within call centers and IT hubs.

The administration is expected to report that the BPO industry generated $40 billion in revenue in 2025 and outranked foreign exchange remittances from overseas Filipino workers (OFWs).

Enero said these achievements came at the expense of workers who remain underpaid and inadequately protected.

He said that while President Marcos will likely praise the BPO industry’s historic revenue growth and its vital role as an economic engine, the administration focuses on corporate interests rather than human welfare.

“For us BPO workers in particular, what we demand, expect, or benchmark to hear in BBM’s Sona is that the President will definitely boast that the BPO industry has now outranked foreign exchange remittances from OFWs, and the administration will also boast about the continued growth of the BPO industry in the form of record-breaking revenues generated by the sector in 2025, which reached $40 billion,” Enero said.

“This growth was made possible through the dedication and hard work of BPO workers to achieve these targets.”

Demand for Magna Carta

Enero said economic praise is meaningless without tangible legislative safeguards and fair compensation.

Chief among the group’s demands is the immediate passage of the long-delayed Magna Carta for BPO Workers.

The measure aims to modernize labor protections and establish a mandatory entry-level living wage of P36,000 for industry workers.

“Now, with this kind of growth in the BPO industry, what we want to hear is not just his praise for the industry, but what mechanisms and protections he will provide to the workers in the sector particularly the actual passage of our demanded Magna Carta for BPO Workers,” Enero said.

“At its core is raising the entry-level salary of BPO workers to a living wage of P36,000.”

Impact of automation

Beyond basic wages, labor groups call for urgent state intervention regarding job security amid rapid technological disruption.

Enero said the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into customer service operations, combined with sudden client pull-outs, has triggered widespread layoffs.

This situation leaves thousands of employees stranded in prolonged, unpaid “floating status.”

“Aside from that, other labor protections are needed, especially in the face of AI integration, which has already resulted in massive layoffs among BPO workers,” Enero said.

“So, these are a few of our benchmarks that we want to hear directly from the President. We shouldn’t just hear about investments and revenues from the President regarding the industry, but also what his plans are to ensure that the workers who made these benchmarks and industry targets possible are taken care of.”

Calls for accountability

Teody Navea, secretary of Sanlakas, highlighted the growing vulnerabilities of BPO employees, including the proliferation of questionable agencies, abusive employers and illegal “scam call centers” operating with minimal oversight.

In response to queries regarding these industry-wide threats, Enero said workers want concrete commitments from President Marcos to hold noncompliant and predatory BPO firms accountable under Philippine laws.

“Definitely, we want to hear the President’s commitment to holding these abusive BPO companies accountable,” Enero said.

“Currently at Bien, we have received many reports that first, there are companies failing to remit SSS, Philhealth, and Pag-IBIG contributions for their employees, even after they’ve worked for months or years at the company. And let’s be clear that under our law, failure to remit SSS contributions is a criminal offense.”

Enero said the lack of statutory remittances carries immediate consequences for workers, especially during the La Niña season.

As heavy rains and severe weather threaten local communities, affected BPO workers cannot access essential government safety nets, such as SSS calamity loans, because employers fail to remit monthly contributions.

Furthermore, labor advocates condemned the practice of withholding final pay from resigning employees for extended periods and criticized the deliberate abuse of the legal six-month “floating status” provision to avoid paying formal separation benefits.

“So first, that is one of the key issues we’ve observed,” Enero said.

“Second, the long delays in releasing the final pay of resigning employees. Third, the persistent floating status of BPO workers due to client pull-outs, AI integration and other factors.”

Bien Cebu and Sanlakas reiterated that the government cannot continue relying on the BPO industry as an economic savior while ignoring systemic labor exploitation within its ranks.

They urged the administration to move past generalized economic statistics and implement strong, legally binding protections to safeguard the workers who serve as the true backbone of the country’s outsourcing boom.

“This series of violations must be taken seriously by the government,” Enero said.

“That is why we want to hear directly from BBM regarding his commitment to ensuring strong labor protections for employees who, again, serve as the backbone in achieving the industry’s targets.” / ABC