Senator Manuel “Lito” Lapid has filed a bill which seeks to provide expanded employment security for workers whose function or designation might have a considerable exposure to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). 

Lapid’s measure, Senate Bill 1910, mandates that employers should provide a workplace free from serious hazards, a work area that is comfortable, and one that maximizes the productivity of the employees. 

Under the bill, an employee whose work exposes him to threats of COVID-19 may inform his or her employer of any health concerns that he or she might have regarding resuming or continuing employment.

The employer, on the other hand, must act upon it immediately by installing additional safety equipment, adjusting the work environment, adopting appropriate work schedule, or finding alternative suitable employment for the said employee.

The bill also proposes that if the employer fails to act upon the concerns brought about by the employee or if the employee is  not satisfied with the response of his or her employer then he/she can raise the issue before the Regional Office of the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE). 

The Regional Director will examine the report sent by the concerned employee, taking into consideration the facts presented in the report and /or reply, the applicable standards for occupational health and safety, the nature of the occupation, and the attendant risks of exposure to the COVID-19 disease. 

If the Regional Director or the BLR finds that the employer failed to provide adequate response to the health concern raised by the employee, the latter may terminate his or her employment and shall be eligible for unemployment benefits. 

However, an employer may not be held liable for any injury that resulted from an employee contracting COVID-19, except when the employer violates the laws related to workplace safety. 

Lapid said the emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic imposes an adverse impact on the economy, most especially on the primary social economic force— labor.

The unemployment rate in July, 2020, peaked at 10 percent, which is way higher than the rate of the same month a year ago— which was at 5.4 percent.

“Napakaraming kababayan na natin ang nawalan ng trabaho dahil sa mga kumpanya at negosyong napilitang magsara bunsod ng pandemya. Gayunman, meron ding mga nawalan ng hanapbuhay o hindi na piniling bumalik sa trabaho dahil sa takot na mahawa o magkasakit ng COVID-19. Ang mga ganitong pangyayari ay naiiintindihan natin lalo pa’t prayoridad dapat ang buhay at kaligtasan. Kaya ang nakikita nating solusyon, siguruhing ligtas ang lugar na pinagtatrabahuan ng mga kababayan natin at bigyang pansin ang mga alalahanin nila sa kanilang kalusugan,” Lapid added. (Many of our countrymen lost their jobs because companies or businesses were forced to shut down because of the pandemic. There are  also employees or workers who chose not to return to their jobs for fear of being infected. We understand their fears. Our solution is for employers to ensure that work places are health risk-free and give importance to the health of their workers.)