COVID-19 now listed among compensable work-related diseases — ECC

MANILA, Philippines — The Employees’ Compensation Commission (ECC) has approved the inclusion of COVID-19 as a compensable work-related disease, Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello III announced on Wednesday.

In an online media forum, Bello said the ECC had classified COVID-19 as a compensable occupational disease under Board Resolution No. 21-04-14.

Bello said COVID-19 positive workers might get P30,000 as compensation under the ECC’s Employees’ Compensation Program. However, DOLE spokesperson Rolly Francia told reporters that the ECC Board recommended the amount for approval by President Rodrigo Duterte.

The resolution read that upon the request of the ECC secretariat, the DOLE’s Occupational Safety and Health Center has conducted a study on the possible inclusion of COVID-19 in the list of occupational and work-related diseases.

READ: DOLE’s OSHC seeks declaration of Covid-19 as work-related illness

Under the ECC resolution, “COVID-19 clinically diagnosed and consistent with the history, and signs and symptoms of COVID-19 supported by diagnostic proof to include reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction test is compensable in any of the following conditions:”

* There must be a direct connection between the offending agent or event and the worker based on epidemiological 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 interaction with the public or with confirmed cases for healthcare workers
* Transmission occurred in the workplace
* Transmission occurred while commuting to and from work

The resolution states that it shall take effect 15 days after publication in a newspaper of general circulation.

abc