MANILA — House committee on Labor chairman and Davao City Rep. Karlo Alexei Nograles on Wednesday expressed hope that President Benigno Aquino III 6th and final State of the Nation Address (SONA), will endorse the immediate passage of various pro-labor measures including the proposal to criminalize non-compliance to Occupational Safety and Health Standards and other bills that seek to generate more jobs and foster better protection for workers. Nograles said President Aquino still has one more year to prove his commitment to uplift the living conditions of the country’s labor sector and increase employment by taking advantage of the emerging opportunities in the field of green technology. “President Aquino only has a little more than a year to prove himself as one who is responsible for bridging the unemployment gap and one who has championed for the protection and welfare of our labor sector. He can still make this happen by supporting pro-labor measures now pending in Congress,” Nograles said. One such measure is the proposed Occupational Safety and Health Standards Law which would set the health and safety standards and best practices in workplaces to reduce workelated accidents and other disasters such as the Kentex Factory fire that killed 72 workers. The proposed OSH law would also impose stiff penalties and enforce stricter mechanisms to ensure a safe and healthy environment for all workers. “I really hope that this measure will be passed into law under this administration because this would highlight President Aquino’s commitment to uplift the well-being of our workers,” Nograles said. The Mindanao solon said that apart from the proposed OSH Law, he is hopeful that President Aquino would also push for the immediate passage of the proposed Jobstart Law which would provide training and work exposure for first-time job seekers. This would institutionalize the “Jobstart Philippines Program” which was initiated by Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) in partnership with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) to better prepare first-time job seekers with the needed skills to assume full-time jobs. “This Jobstart Program is a patent program of the Aquino administration. His administration pioneered this program so I really hope that Pnoy will endorse this measure in his SONA,” the senior House official pointed out. He said another measure which he hopes would be endorsed by Aquino in his SONA is the proposed Green Jobs Law which would open job opportunities on areas that promote the use of environment friendly technologies. Nograles said that “green jobs” is fast becoming an employment trend especially now that many countries around the world are beginning to embrace the use of environment-friendly technologies and practices. “In the Philippines, there are now power companies that actually invest on the construction of windmills and there are now households that actually use solar panels for their power supply. I can see a global boom on the demand for technicians and engineers in the field of green technology so I think that we should be able to provide the needed workforce through the Green Jobs Law,” he explained. “I’d be really happy if President Aquino can mention one or two or even all of these pro-labor proposals in his SONA,” Nograles stressed. PNA