Employees condemned Cebu’s several Business Process Outsourcing (BPO) companies for enforcing the “business-as-usual” policy during and after the earthquake that struck the province on September 30. The 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit the northern part of the province where authorities recorded at least 72 deaths. Aftershocks followed in succession.

On October 2, the BPO Industry Employees Network (BIEN)-Cebu filed a formal complaint with the Department of Labor and Employment-Regional Office 7 (DOLE-RO7) to raise the workers’ grievances.

Within just two days, BIEN-Cebu reported receiving hundreds of complaints from call center agents who were forced by companies into dangerous situations amid the disaster.

Reports received by the group included companies pressuring agents to continue taking calls during the earthquake instead of evacuating buildings. In some cases, companies even blocked exit doors to stop employees from leaving. These are serious violations of laws on Occupational Safety and Health Standards.

Some employees were also compelled to return to work despite their requests to focus first on the safety and well-being of their families during the crisis. Prohibiting them to deal with the disaster aside, employees who did not report to work received “notice-to-explain” letters, sanctions, loss of incentives and benefits, and other punitive measures.

According to BIEN-Cebu, DOLE-R07 must investigate these complaints and hold companies accountable for their abuse and negligence. The group also stated that the disaster only revealed the BPO companies’ long-standing problems and abuses against their workers, as well as the government’s lack of control over private corporations.

“Corporate greed combined with government inaction show the complete disregard over BPO workers welfare and safety,” BIEN-Cebu spokesperson John Kyle Enero said. The group also said that BPO employees have long suffered from job and benefit insecurity, lack of retirement pay, incentives, and other rights.

“BIEN-Cebu rejects this ‘business-as-usual’ approach of BPO companies, and government neglect during this time of crisis,” said Enero. BIEN-Cebu called on all BPO workers to unite and resist the blatant disregard for workers’ rights.

Cebu ranks as the second-largest hub of BPO companies, next to Metro Manila. Based on conservative figures from the Contact Center Association of the Philippines (CCAP), the province hosts at least 160,000 BPO employees, making up 15% of the total number nationwide.