Virtuality has taken over our lifestyles, culture, personal relationships, offices and homes. Virtuality was already expanding at an accelerated pace and the planetary crisis of the pandemic caused that pace to skyrocket. The pandemic highlighted the vulnerable state of the Dominican educational system, how vulnerable it is, and how
The pandemic highlighted the vulnerable state of the Dominican educational system, the vulnerability of the Dominican social security system and, even more palpably, the digital divide that separates Dominicans, a divide that increasingly distances Dominicans from the opportunities they deserve and need to connect, express themselves and find employment.
The pandemic, in addition to variants of the disease and millions of unfortunate deaths, brought with it severe inequalities in the labor market. Although the National Vaccination Plan implemented by the government has contributed to the reactivation of some sectors of the national economy, there is still a challenge to be met in terms of job creation in line with the needs of the labor market.
The National Vaccination Plan implemented by the government has contributed to the reactivation of some sectors of the national economy, but there is still a challenge to be met in terms of generating jobs in accordance with the new profiles demanded by companies inside and outside the Dominican Republic. Without urgent adaptations the human resource will be less competitive and less attractive for hiring; for that reason it is so important that we adapt ourselves in a more competitive and attractive way, therefore, the telework bill is a bet towards a prosperous and more inclusive future.
As Deputy for the province of San Pedro de Macoris and new Spokeswoman of the Block of the Dominican Revolutionary Party, I have chaired the Labor Committee of the Chamber of Deputies with a high sense of responsibility about the needs currently experienced by the labor market of the Dominican Republic.
In the bill that regulates telework in the public and private sectors, the individual and collective rights contained in the Labor Code of the Dominican Republic are maintained, in addition the bill stipulates as a requirement that telework is intelligible and defined by means of a pact between the parties.
The National Network for the Promotion of Telework is one of the incentives offered by the bill for private companies and government institutions to better adapt to the Public Policy for the Promotion of Labor and the National Development Strategy. The telework bill not only promotes hiring and fundamental labor rights, the bill also promotes equity through the hiring of women and people with some type of disability, it promotes the reduction of environmental pollution caused by traffic congestion. Among other advantages of the bill is the employment opportunity for those Dominicans who live in the outskirts of urban centers and who spend a lot of money on transportation; the telework bill is also an employment opportunity for young people interested in applying for vacancies in companies whose headquarters are outside the Dominican territory and who invest in the local market. The telework bill is also a very valuable growth opportunity for entrepreneurs and MSMEs.
We have to adapt to the wave of transformations that the XXI century brings with it and that is not only a challenge for the Dominican Republic, it is also a challenge for Central American integration. The only States in the region that have advanced in the approval of regulatory instruments on Telework are Costa Rica (2019) and Panama (2020). Our nation can not lag behind or disengage from the new features of the globalized economy. The bill that regulates telework is undoubtedly one of the most important pieces that have been studied in the Labor Commission of the Chamber of Deputies. As president of that commission I feel a deep interest in that the Dominicans are instructed and informed about it.
From the Labor Commission we will continue to do our utmost to represent the interests of the population and to bring to the Chamber of Deputies an instrument that improves the working conditions of Dominicans, that promotes employment, that reduces inequalities and that allows us to better adapt ourselves to the 21st century and to the effects that the pandemic will have on our economy.
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