Information exchanged between employers and laborers during a conciliation-mediation process should be held in strict confidence, the Confederation of Sugar Producers Associations (CONFED) said Monday, August 10,.
The Single Entry Approach (SEnA) is a conciliation-mediation process instituted by the Department of Labor & Employment (DOLE) through Department Order No. 249, Series of 2025, a press statement from CONFED said.
It implements Republic Act 10396, or the Conciliation-Mediation Law, by institutionalizing mandatory conciliation-mediation as the first step in settling labor disputes, it said.
Rule V, Section 4 of DO 249, on Confidentiality of Proceedings and Minutes, states in part: “Information and statements given and exchanged during conciliation-mediation proceedings shall be treated as confidential and as privileged communication.”
The CONFED press statement underscores the use of the word “shall” to stress that confidentiality of information shared during the conduct of SEnA commands obligatory compliance. It is not optional – it is mandated by law.
CONFED said that holding a press conference when a labor issue is still at the SEnA phase, and publishing the same by traditional media or social media, are acts violative of the rights of employers, and injurious to their reputation.
Employers should familiarize themselves with the SEnA process, it said.
. It begins with the laborer filing a Request for Assistance (RFA) at a Single Entry Approach Desk (SEAD). According to Rule II, Sec. 1 of DO 249, these desks are located in all DOLE regional, provincial, field, and satellite offices. There are also SEADs in regional facilities of the National Conciliation and Mediation Board (NCMB) and the National Labor Relations Commission (NLRC), the press release said.
Due to this multiple location of SEADs, a laborer may file his RFA at a SEAD that is far from the office of the employer. Following Rule III, Sec. 3 of the Department Order, the SEAD where the laborer filed his RFA will coordinate with the SEAD nearest the employer so that the conciliation-mediation conference can begin, it said.
CONFED advised farmers to avail of the services of a lawyer.
Although Rule V, Sec. 1 of DO 249 states that SEnA is a “non-litigous, non-technical” approach, a lawyer may be authorized to represent either party. Having a lawyer is helpful to employers in case laborers and their representatives resort to adversarial maneuvers, like holding press conferences and publishing confidential information. And lawyers are needed to put together settlement agreements at the successful close of the SEnA, it said.
CONFED believes that settlements respectful of both employer and laborer rights are key to achieving industrial peace.
A complete copy of DOLE Department Order No. 249, Series of 2025, “Revised Implementing Rules and Regulations of Article 234 (228) of the Labor Code of the Philippines, as Amended by Republic Act No. 10396, Otherwise Known as An Act Strengthening Conciliation-Mediation as a Voluntary Mode of Dispute Settlement for All Labor Disputes”, may be accessed through the DOLE website, it said.*
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