Philippines group warns against scrapping Work-from-Home setup

The Information Technology and Business Process Association of the Philippines (IBPAP) has warned against the government pushing for a return to 100% on-site work. IBPAP said that many employees of IT and business process management (IT-BPM) firms may leave their jobs if they are required to do full-time, on-site work. The Fiscal Incentives Review Board (FIRB) temporarily extended the current arrangement allowing IT-BPM enterprises in Philippine Economic Zone Authority’s (PEZA) economic zones to have 30% of their employees work from home (WFH), which would have expired on Sept. 12. Jack Madrid, IBPAP president and chief executive officer, said the temporary extension is a “relief” for IT-BPM investors and employees. Madrid said an “overwhelming majority of Filipino workforce and the employers” have expressed a strong preference for a location-independent or hybrid work arrangement.