Administrative Code of 1987
Section 23. National Conciliation and Mediation Board. - The National Conciliation and Mediation Board, shall absorb the conciliation, mediation and voluntary arbitration functions of the Bureau of Labor Relations. The Board shall be composed of an Administrator and two (2) Deputy Administrators. It shall be an attached agency under the administrative supervision of the Secretary of Labor and Employment.
The Administrator and the Deputy Administrators shall be appointed by the President upon recommendation of the Secretary of Labor and Employment. There shall be as many Conciliators-Mediators as the needs of the public service require, who shall have at least three (3) years of experience in handling labor relations and who shall be appointed by the Secretary. The Board shall have its main office in Metropolitan Manila and its Administrator shall exercise supervision over Conciliators-Mediators and all its personnel. It shall establish as many branches as there are administrative regions in the country, with as many Conciliators-Mediators as shall be necessary for its effective operation. Each branch of the Board shall be headed by an Executive Conciliator-Mediator.
The Board shall have the following functions:
(1) Formulate policies, programs, standards, procedures, manuals of operation and guidelines pertaining to effective mediation and conciliation of labor disputes;
(2) Perform preventive mediation and conciliation functions;
(3) Coordinate and maintain linkages with other sectors or institutions, and other government authorities concerned with matters relative to the prevention and settlement of labor disputes;
(4) Formulate policies, plans, programs, standards, procedures, manuals of operation and guidelines pertaining to the promotion of cooperative and non-adversarial schemes, grievance handling, voluntary arbitration and other voluntary modes of dispute settlement;
(5) Administer the voluntary arbitration program; maintain or update a list of voluntary arbitrations; compile arbitration awards and decisions;
(6) Provide counselling and preventive mediation assistance particularly in the administration of collective agreements;
(7) Monitor and exercise technical supervision over the Board programs being implemented in the regional offices; and
(8) Perform such other functions as may be provided by law or assigned by the Secretary.
The Tripartite Voluntary Arbitration Advisory Council, which is attached to the National Conciliation and Mediation Board, shall advise the National and Conciliation and Mediation Board on matters pertaining to the promotion of voluntary arbitration as the preferred mode of dispute settlement.
The Tripartite Voluntary Arbitration Advisory Council shall consist of the Administrator of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board as Chairman, one other member from the government, two (2) members representing labor, and two (2) other members representing management. The members shall be appointed by the President to serve for a term of three (3) years. The Chairman and Members shall serve without compensation.