As the Philippines moves a step closer to protecting freelancers with stronger labor laws, freelancers must also be better equipped in protecting their intellectual property rights when dealing with clients.
Last week, the House of Representatives approved on second reading the consolidated version of House Bill 6718, or the Freelance Workers Protection Bill, authored by Pangasinan Rep. Christopher de Venecia.
This is such relishing news as the bill aims to safeguard freelance workers by requiring a written contract between the client and the freelance worker. The contract would state the conditions of the contract, contract period, details of payment, grounds for breach of contract, and other conditions that the Department of Labor and Employment may set forth.
The law also mandates clients to provide a down payment, hazard pay, and night shift differential pay, while penalizing violators from P50,000 to P500,000.
We laud our legislators for acting swiftly to tackle abusive business practices besetting our freelancers. This would ensure the steady momentum of the sector and further promote the country as a hub for quality and efficient talent.
According to Payoneer’s 2019 Global Gig Economy Index, the Philippines ranks sixth among countries with the fastest-growing freelance market in the world.
True enough, the Philippines recorded a 208 percent year-on-year leap in freelance revenue from 2019 to 2020, marking the highest growth in Asia. The revenue growth also advances significantly from the 35-percent growth rate from 2018 to 2019, during which the country ranked only sixth in the region.
Freelance work is an attractive option for people as it allows for flexible work arrangements. Filipino freelancers are often contracted to produce creations of the mind, such as articles, graphic designs, and web development, among others.
To better protect our freelancers, it is crucial to help them understand the importance of protecting their intellectual property under a commissioned work arrangement.
Just as the Freelance Workers Protection Bill emphasizes a written contract, the Intellectual Property Office of the Philippines would like to stress the importance of establishing clear boundaries and expectations of the work contracted.
For freelancers, it would be prudent to make sure that their contracts cover these three provisions:
Non-disclosure agreement. We’ve heard horror stories where freelancers would present their output merely as a proposal to clients. Some would never receive a callback only to find out that the company had commercially used their work, often with only minor changes. Freelancers are advised to assess the risk of delivering full-blown work for a proposal vis-a-vis creating a visual presentation of what clients can expect of the output. It would be best to register their original work with the Bureau of Copyright & Related Rights of IPOPHL before sending out proposals.
Ownership terms. While freelance work contracts usually transfer the entire IP rights ownership to the client, this is not to say that freelancers cannot negotiate. Some freelancers can request to preserve some of their moral rights, such as the right to be attributed as the original author of the work. However, such would depend on the agreement between the parties as it is still within the discretion of the client to grant any request.
Retention rights. Freelancers might be lending to clients some elements that the former have IP ownership to, such as logos or trademarks. It is best for freelancers to let clients know that they maintain their rights over these IP assets.
Having a well-defined contract on IP ownership and confidentiality prevents future conflicts and enables greater understanding among parties, helping freelancers foster relationships with clients in the long term while expanding their portfolio.