AN OFFICIAL of the Bacolod-Negros Federation for Information and Communication Technology (BNEFIT) expressed confidence that business process outsourcing (BPO) companies in the province are implementing safety measures to prevent untoward incidents involving call center workers.
Lawyer Jocelle Batapa-Sigue, executive director of BNEFIT, said this in the wake of the fire in a Davao City mall, where a BPO firm is located, killing 37 on-duty call center agents.
Batapa-Sigue said 80 percent of the BPO companies operating in the province, especially in Bacolod City, are within Philippine Economic Zone Authority (Peza) zones, which means they must adhere to strict safety standards.
In Bacolod, regular fire drills as well as emergency and evacuation measures are conducted in these buildings since these are mandated and strictly enforced especially in economic zones.
The Peza also conducts regular annual and periodic inspections to maintain facility standards, Batapa-Sigue said.
“I have high confidence in Peza, local government units, and Bureau of Fire Protection standards enforced in Bacolod City,” she said. “I expect that BPO companies put first the safety of their employees as part of their corporate culture.”
The deadly fire, which lasted for more than a day, gutted the four-storey New City Commercial Center (NCCC) Mall at Maa in Davao City on December 23.
The Department of Labor and Employment (Dole), in a report said, it will look into the possible violation of safety and health standards by the mall management.
Batapa-Sigue, also a trustee of the National ICT Confederation of the Philippines, said companies must consider that, after all, their workers are their greatest resources.
BPO facilities must have the highest degree of safety and emergency measures to prevent loss of lives, she added.
“Malls in the Philippines offering their facilities to BPO locators must understand the nature of the business, and always take measures to protect the lives and welfare of the workers,” Batapa-Sigue said.
It will be one of the agenda of BNEFIT for the organization’s planning for 2018, she added.
