Health workers who have yet to receive their overdue Special Risk Allowance (SRA) and other benefits in the fight against COVID-19 will kick off mass walkouts in at least 10 private hospitals today, a group representing them said Sunday.
Alliance Health Workers (AHW) president Robert Mendoza said the massive walkouts will be staged following the protest actions, which include rallies and noise barrages held last week at the Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center, Philippine General Hospital, Tondo Medical Center, and the National Center for Mental Health.
An AHW spokesman said medical frontliners from the St. Luke’s hospitals in Quezon City and Taguig, the University of Santo Tomas Hospital and Chinese General Hospital both in Manila would lead the private-sector protest.
Chinese General, in a statement, said Sunday it would distribute the SRA of its health workers "this week." The hospital received P21 million from the Department of Health last Friday, said its medical director Dr. Samuel Ang.
"We would like to convey to the public that CGHMC management and its roster of health workers remain committed to its goals in maintaining quality service to its patients and a safe, healthy environment to its employees," Ang said in a statement.
The Chinese General Hospital Union also said that it has no orders for its members to join the health workers' mass action on Monday. The association is not a member of the AHW.
Rank and file employees of government owned and controlled corporations (GOCCs) and government financial institutions (GFIs) also joined the calls for protection and support for frontline workers amid the worsening health and economic crises in the country.
In a virtual press conference, officers of the Kapisanan ng mga Manggagawa sa GOCCs at GFIs (KAMAGGFI) asked President Rodrigo Duterte to shield them from the COVID pandemic and reiterated their call for his administration to carry out their salary hike that has been put on hold for several years.
The group reiterated their appeal to the President to implement the Compensation and Position Classification System (CPCS) that he suspended in 2017.
KAMAGGFI has 100,000 members from over 200 GOCCs and GFIs that are engaged in public utilities and commercial activities for profit, enabling the government to earn and deliver basic services.
On Saturday, members of the Filipino Nurses United also said they planned to join the protests and are even preparing criminal charges against officials of the DOH for “criminal neglect” in failing to release their benefits as they continue to lead the fight against COVID-19.
Monday's protest action, Mendoza said, will commence on National Heroes' Day to press the government and the Department of Health (DOH) to heed their call for the release of their benefits as mandated by law.
Interviewed over ABS-CBN's TeleRadyo, Mendoza said health workers from Chinese General, who have been waiting for their benefits since Friday, will also participate in the walkout.
"They're worrying. So, they will proceed with the mass walkout on National Heroes' Day, together with 10 other private hospitals," he said.
Mendoza also said the 10 private hospitals joining told him they were “allowed by their management to conduct a mass walkout," he said.
He further said walkouts will also be done on Tuesday at the government-run Dr. Jose Fabella Memorial Hospital in Sta. Cruz, Manila, and the Research Institute for Tropical Medicine on Tuesday in Alabang, Muntinlupa City.
He said walkouts will be staged from 9 a.m. to noon, while protests such as noise barrages and red armband-wearing will be conducted by health workers in other parts of the country.
Mendoza said no patients would be neglected during these actions.
“Our patients also understand that this is a fight for the health and safety of health workers. It's not only for us, they are also included, so they can receive quality care,” Mendoza said.
Vice President Leni Robredo on Sunday maintained there is no excuse for the government’s delay in the release of benefits for the health care workers amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We waited for mass actions before we listened to them. We should have not waited until they complained,” Robredo said.
Noting that the 2021 budget was drafted amid the pandemic, there was no excuse for the government's failure to attend to the overdue benefits, she said.
Nanette Jarino, KAMAGGFI secretary general, said they are hoping Duterte will acknowledge their contributions to the government and grant their appeal.
“We are hoping that the government will see our efforts and contributions as public workers,” she said.
Virginia Cabonce, vice chairwoman of the group, said GOCC and GFI workers are also considered front-liners.
In 2017, Duterte suspended the CPCS implementation through Executive Order No. 36.
The CPCS was initiated by the administration of late President Benigno “Noynoy” Aquino to streamline the compensation scale of GOCC and GFI officers and employees.
Health workers were dismayed by Health Secretary Francisco Duque's remarks before the Senate Blue Ribbon committee probe, which is looking mismanaged COVID-19 funds at the Department of Health. In the hearing, Duque said it would take two months to give health care workers their due benefits as they still have to validate the names of the beneficiaries.
"If they can't give us these benefits, we have plans to continue these protests until they do," said Mendoza.
At the same time, Mendoza said the DOH has yet to provide P38,000 in meal and transportation allowances to health workers from December 2020 to June 2021, as well as the P3,000 monthly active duty hazard pay.
Earlier, the Philippine Nurses Association said its members would quit their jobs if the government will not be able to pay the SRA and other benefits by Sept. 1, 2021.
In the Senate, Senator Francis Pangilinan said all 488,000 health care worker-claimants should be given their SRA and other benefits.
“They want to know how long (will they wait) because every day, they are risking their lives. Every day, they can be exposed to COVID. So at least, let us give them the courtesy, at the very least of telling them when they will get it. It is due them,” he said.
He said he wants to know when 95 percent of those entitled to the SRA will receive it.
Following Malacañang’s order to release the SRA, the DOH on Friday committed to validate the list of frontliners eligible to receive benefits within two months.
This would be on top of the initial 20,156 health workers that will receive their benefits within 10 days as ordered by Malacañang.
The Department of Budget and Management on Wednesday announced that it has released P311.79 million but only for the long overdue SRAs of health workers.
According to the DOH, they are only able to pay the benefits of frontliners included in validated lists.
Health Undersecretary Maria Rosario Vergeire appealed to health workers not to proceed with their planned mass protests as these would put the health system at risk and endanger the welfare of patients.
She said the DOH is doing everything it can to give the benefits needed by health care workers.
