5-day paid pandemic leave proposed in the Philippines

This comes as the country sees a surge in the number of Omicron cases. De Lima lamented that instead of providing assistance to afflicted workers, the government supposedly has been issuing threats and employing violence against workers found breaching quarantine restrictions just to go to work.

She said these workers have the burden to provide for their families, and usually battle sickness with no funds for medicines or other medical expenses, but still force themselves to go to work.

“They are faced with the uncertainty to be infected or lose their jobs and other burdens. In return, what they get from the government are threats, violence, punishment, discrimination, violations against their basic human rights,” she said.   

As such, she is advocating for the passage of Senate Bill No. 2307, which is a counterpart measure of House Bill No. 7909, filed by party list group Gabriela Women’s Party, and backed by 21 labour groups.

Senate Bill 2307 also provides a maximum of 60 days of paid leave credits at 80% of the employee’s full pay for those who were placed on “floating status”.

READ: Bill to protect workers’ rest hours proposed in the Philippines

Last April, De Lima filed Senate Bill 2148, which sought to grant 10 working days of paid COVID-19 leave for employees who contracted the virus and who, due to the nature of their jobs, cannot work remotely or work-from-home, according to The Inquirer.