Filipino workers who test positive for COVID-19 will be eligible to receive compensation from the government, according to the Department of Labor and Employment.
In a statement on Wednesday, the board of the Employee’s Compensation Commission (ECC) approved the inclusion of COVID-19 to the list which entitled workers sick of COVID-19 to the compensation.
The following are the conditions for the compensability of COVID-19:
- There must be a direct connection between the offending agent or event and the worker based on epidemiologic criteria and occupational risk (e.g., healthcare workers, screening and contact tracing teams, etc.;
- The tasks assigned to the worker would require frequent face to face and close proximity interactions with the public or with confirmed cases for healthcare workers;
- Transmission occurred in the workplace; or
Transmission occured while commuting to and from work.
“Considering the OSHC’s recommendations and after deliberations with the Department of Labor and Employment and various labor and employers, the Commission has moved that CoViD-19 be considered an occupational and work-related disease,” the statement said.
To apply for the benefits, the following documents must be submitted: certificate of employment, diagnosis with RT-PCR result, submission of evidence of exposure, medical records as necessary.
The Social Security System and the Government Service Insurance System will be the administering of the ECC.
“The ECC is continuously working to improve its policies and services to better serve the Filipino workers, especially during this trying time. We will persist to find ways and come up with measures that will mobilize assistance and respond to the crises brought by the COVID-19 pandemic,” ECC Executive Director Stella Zipagan-Banawis said in a document.
Terms and conditions on the implementation or claims of the compensation, however, were not specified in the announcement.
There are currently 33 illnesses included under the Occupational and Work-related diseases list.
