Recto to government: Regularize, promote medical frontliners now
MANILA, Philippines — Senate President Pro Tempore Ralph Recto on Thursday urged the government to regularize and promote its frontline health workers.
"How can government reward medical frontliners? Let us count some of the ways. Release of hazard pay, now na. Regularization. Promotion," Recto said.
He further explained that due to pay scales and salary grades, the discrepancy between nurses' salaries can be as high as P33,000.
According to Recto, a number of government workers, including those employed by Department of Health hospitals, are "stranded" in their salary steps.
"Pandemic or not, they deserve to be bumped up the payscale."
He added that the current rules set by the COVID-19 task force call for salary step increases "meritorious service rendered."
Recto emphasized in Filipino: "Is there anything more meritorious than the health personnel who walked to the hospital, for 12 hours of duty, with no bathroom breaks because they cannot remove their personal protective equipment soaked in sweat?"
The senator also sounded the alarm over the rate at which health workers in the country are contracting disease.
"As of July 28, 4,691 health care workers had been downed by 'respiratory distress,' from the 4,443 reported three days before, in July 25. That's a surge of 82 a day. One health worker lands in the sick bay every 20 minutes."
Given all this, Recto demanded that health workers be given increases in salary, promotions, and hazard pay.
"For those who have been laboring for years as casuals, reward them with regularization. If academic qualifications bar the regularization of non-medical but essential staff in hospitals, waive them."
DOH: Infections among healthcare workers declining
On July 10, the DOH said the number of healthcare workers infected with COVID-19 were declining.
From 19.96 percent infected healthcare workers recorded on April 30, the rate went down to 9.25% on June 29, according to Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire.
The month of July, however, marked several spikes in the country's COVID-19 cases as Metro Manila remained under general community quarantine, with government officials zeroed in on reopening of the economy.
Nurses from San Lazaro Hospital, a COVID-19 referral facility in Manila, this month called for better working conditions after more than 40 hospital employees tested posive for the virus.
Management from the government-funded hospital in a statement acknowledged the nurses complaints but also went on to deny almost every single claim made by its employees.
The City of Manila's Public Information Office on Thursday confirmed that mayor Isko Moreno ordered the temporary closure of the Ospital ng Maynila due to a surge of COVID-19 infections among its workers.
As it stands, the country has been under community quarantine for 135 days — the longest quarantine period in the world.
Cases are still rising, with the Health department logging over 2,000 cases new cases four days in a row from last Thursday to last Sunday.
On Wednesday, the DOH placed the national caseload at 85,486 and fatalities at 1,962. — Bella Perez-Rubio
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