Muntinlupa-based business owner heeds Duterte's call; to release prorated 13th month pay for employees

A private company based in Muntinlupa has started to heed President Rodrigo Duterte’s call to make their employees’ lives easier amid the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in the Philippines.
Ricardo ‘Ding’ Calderon, business owner of Katmar Industrial Center, has announced that their company will be providing half of the employees’ 13th-month pay and they are no longer required to report to work from March 18, until further notice.
“We at Katmar Industrial Center value the safety of everyone more than anything else. In cooperation with the government’s call to practice social distancing, starting March 18, 2020, all employees of Katmar Industrial are no longer required to report from work until further notice. To help support their daily expenses, the management will release half of their 13th month accordingly,” read the statement.
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The company, which has been in the business for over 15 years, is located near the border of San Pedro and Muntinlupa City. Checkpoints currently in place all over Luzon, along with restrictions and suspensions on public transportation made it harder for employees to reach their office.

In an interview with The Filipino Times, Calderon said that apart from the government’s pronouncements, it was the plight of their employees amid the enhanced community quarantine that urged them to provide such benefits.
“Unang dalawang araw simula ng lockdown e naglalakad halos karamihan ng mga empleyado kasi ang traffic. Eh yung pila sa check point dikit dikit, di sila nag observe ng social distancing so mas exposed sila sa virus,” said Calderon.
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Netizens lauded the business owner’s kindness for his employees, and hope other companies would follow suit.
“Sana’y gayahin po kayo ng iba pang company na may ginintuang puso para sa mga manggagawa. Maguhay po kayo at nawa’y lalo pang umunlad ang inyong negosyo,” said a netizen.
Earlier, President Rodrigo Duterte urged employers and private companies to make Filipinos’ lives more convenient amid the spread of COVID-19 by allowing them to work from home, and to provide a prorated 13th month pay to help with their expenses during the enhanced community quarantine.