Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III said employers who would require returning employees to be tested for Covid-19 would have to shoulder the cost.
“If they will require their employee to be tested before they will report to work, then they have to shoulder the expense for the testing,” Bello said during Saturday’s Laging Handa Briefing aired over state television.
“Iyong employer naman has to provide all the medical equipment to ensure the work place is safe and is free from Covid-19 at saka iyong transmission and contamination is prevented,” he added.
Bello also said workers were allowed to use vacation leaves to cover for their absences from work amid the pandemic, but warned that they might be subjected to no-work, no-pay policies if such leaves were already exhausted.
The Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) has proposed schemes to protect jobs, which include three-day work weeks, rotational work arrangements and other ways to prevent downsizing.
“Basta mayroong mga flexible work arrangement, ang importante lang hindi mawala iyong employment status noong worker. Puwede nga iyong worker, ‘O doon ka muna sa branch namin sa Isabela dahil kasi wala masyadong trabaho dito, doon ka muna,’ puwede rin iyon. Puwede ring sabihin na, ‘Huwag ka munang pumasok ng isang buwan, next month ikaw naman, one month,’ ganoon, puwede rin iyon,” Bello said.
“These are what we call the flexible work arrangement between the employer and the employee, para sa ganoon hindi naman mawalan ng trabaho iyong ating mga empleyado. Mabawasan nga lang ang kita, pero okay na; mas maganda na iyong nabawasan ang kita kaysa nawalan ng trabaho,” he added.
The DOLE chief also urged workers to treasure their jobs to improve partnerships between employees and employers.
“Ang aming gustong iparating sa ating mga manggagawa ay alagaan nila iyong kanilang trabaho, napakahalaga iyan because if they treasure their work, I’m sure iyong employer will also treasure their partnership with our workers,” Bello said. John Ezekiel J. Hirro