Senate Majority Leader Joel Villanueva on Monday urged employers to allow the work-from-home setup for their employees amid the “worsening traffic situation” in Metro Manila.

“This is exactly why we pushed for the passage of Republic Act No. 11165 or the Telecommuting or ‘Work-from-Home Law’ during the 17th Congress, which we advocated then precisely because of the country’s traffic situation,” Villanueva said in a statement.

“Companies and employees should be allowed to arrange for flexible work arrangements instead of having employees report physically in the office every day and losing working hours due to traffic,” he added.

He issued the statement following the call of the Management Association of the Philippines to declare a state of calamity in Metro Manila due to the severity of traffic congestion in the country’s capital region.

For her part, Senator Grace Poe, who chairs the Senate Committee on Public Services, said she does not see the need to make such a declaration.

“They don’t need to declare a state of traffic calamity. We feel it every single day,” Poe said in a separate statement.

“Government should listen and employ the help of experts from all sectors,” she added.

Citing the staggering P3.5 billion per day economic losses incurred by the country due to traffic congestion in Metro Manila, she emphasized the importance of addressing this pressing issue.

“Adding more roads is not the only solution. Mass transit should be improved and expanded,” she said.

She, likewise, stressed the government can adopt the use of public electric vehicles which she said are already being utilized in many countries.

“Our air quality can certainly improve if public buses are converted to e-vehicles,” she said.

“But any initiative towards conversion should include a plan on how the government can help subsidize the program. Otherwise, it will not progress,” she added.