UST Hospital has decided to cut jobs due to the losses it has suffered from the impacts of coronavirus disease (COVID-19), the university’s official publication The Varsitarian reported.
According to a statement released by the UST Hospital, one of the reasons for the said measures is the payment delays owed by state-run Philippine Health Insurance Corp—which has reached Php180 million (Dhs13.2 million) since 2019.
“While Philhealth has instituted healthcare coverage of admitted COVID-19 patients, reimbursement is delayed by an average of 5-6 months. Currently, the receivable of USTH from Philhealth stands at more than P180 million and counting,” the hospital said in its statement.
The statement added that despite the delay, the hospital continued to operate and pay for the utilities, services, medications, supplies, as well as salaries of employees. It also noted that a lot of the employees could not come to the hospital either due to limited transportation, or because some were not allowed by their family members to report for work.
The hospital added that the decision was made after a careful deliberation by the hospital’s Legal Counsel and complete compliance with all the legal requirements such as notifying the Department of Labor and Employment (DOLE) and providing a 30-day notice to the affected employees.
“[W]e first implemented non-renewal of fixed-term contracts and recently, retrenchment, which, based on our collective bargaining agreement (CBA), would be based on the principle of last in first out,” the statement said.
Hospital medical director Dr. Marcellus Francis Ramirez also pointed out that the employees affected by the plan would receive a 150 percent separation pay based on the hospital’s CBA—which he noted as 50 percent higher than the guidelines set by the Labor Code.
“[P]ainful decisions were needed to be made. While the news around significantly highlights the health and medical impact of the pandemic, the huge economic and financial impact brought about by this crisis to all business establishments, most especially to healthcare institutions, is often overlooked,” The Varsitarian quoted Ramirez as saying.
Meanwhile, the Ugnayang Nagkakaisang Manggagawa–University of Santo Tomas (UNM–UST) told The Varsitarian that the hospital’s management implemented “wrongful termination,” and that workers continued to come to work despite their pleas for additional benefits “fell on deaf ears.”
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