MANILA, Philippines — Government workers who physically report for work will now not only receive hazard pay during the implementation of enhanced community quarantine (ECQ) but also during modified ECQ.
This, after President Rodrigo Duterte signed on June 1 Administrative Order No. 43 granting hazard pay of up to P500 per day to government personnel who are physically on duty during ECQ and MECQ.
Workers who occupy a regular, contractual or casual position or those engaged through a contract of service, job order, or similar schemes are all qualified for the benefit.
In his AO made public Wednesday, Duterte underscored how those who physically report for work during ECQ or MECQ “are inevitably exposed to the risk of COVID-19 infection and other similar health dangers and hazards.”
From June 1 to June 15, the following areas are under MECQ:
- Santiago City in Isabela
- Cagayan
- Apayao
- Benguet
- Ifugao
- Puerto Princesa City in Palawan
- Iloilo City in Iloilo
- Zamboanga City in Zamboanga del Sur
- Zamboanga Sibugay
- Zamboanga del Sur
- Zamboanga del Norte
- Cagayan de Oro City in Misamis Oriental
- Butuan City in Agusan del Norte
- Agusan del Sur
Parts of the country were first placed under community quarantine in March 2020.
Since then, the government has been changing the status of areas to the strict ECQ and MECQ or the more open general community quarantine (GCQ) and modified GCQ, depending on the number of cases and health utilization rate.
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