DOLE: COVID-19 testing for employees not mandatory

MANILA, Philippines — Employers are not required to subject their workers to coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) testing, and only those showing symptoms would undergo one – at the expense of their bosses, labor chief Silvestre Bello said yesterday.

“No, it is not mandatory,” Bello said, referring to mass COVID testing for workers. “Only those showing symptoms shall be tested.”

Workers who physically return to work shall not spend a single centavo for having themselves tested for or protected from SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19.

“No cost related or incidental to COVID prevention and control measures shall be charged directly or indirectly to the workers regardless of employment status,” Bello said in an advisory.

The same position was raised by presidential spokesman Harry Roque Jr. at a press briefing.

“Based on the guidelines issued by the DOH (Department of Health), employers are not required to provide COVID testing but there are initiatives by the private sector to test their members. They will also test their employees who will return to work using rapid testing kits,” he said.

For contractual workers such as security guards, maintenance crews and janitorial workers, anti-COVID 19 expenses shall be shouldered by the principal or client of the contractor or subcontractor.

Bello said the advisory applies to all employers, including contractors or subcontractors in the private sector.

DOLE said companies should adopt COVID preventive measures such as testing, disinfection of facilities, and provision of personal protective equipment such as facemasks.

Employers may also organize relevant orientation for workers and distribute information materials on how to prevent COVID.

In a resolution issued by the Inter-Agency Task Force on Emerging Infectious Diseases, employees are not required to undergo COVID-19 testing prior to returning to work. Alexis Romero, Louella Desiderio